Celebrate Good Times

Okay, so I worked for about an hour and a half today. Then I went to poetry and read 3 poems from my book. I also made some people laugh. After that, I returned several books and Kris and I went to Celebration. It was pretty fun. We played this pitching game. Kris threw faster than I did, but I won the bet, because we each bet that the other would do better. Then we shared a funnel cake and each got a Mountain Dew. Then we sort of just hung out and talked a while. Then, Brandy came over and we started a movie. But then Rach came over and got extremely wild. Keep in mind, I was pretty tired when she got here (around 8:00) so I was exhausted when she left. I don't know about that application. I need to fill it out but I keep dragging my feet about it. I also need to work on studying for the GRE, taking it, and applying to grad school. Ugh. I'm so sick of school and work both though. But yeah, Rach just kept having me wait on her and stuff. Then she kept starting like 50 things or whatever. She had to show me a scene from some movie she rented, and then she tried to get me to watch Walk the Line with her. Thing is, I've already seen it, and she also rented some games to play, so I talked her into starting the games. I beat her at Need For Speed, but I couldn't figure out the Tony Hawk one.

Best of Both Worlds

Sorry about the somewhat obscure song references. This one is from Van Halen. Kris and I were listening to it today at his place.

Well, here goes the story of my day.

Last night, I was on Yahoo and talked to Kris until 2:00 A.M. about some pretty important things. Tomorrow is our 2-week anniversary and also the last day of school. I thought that would be a good time to tell him not to try to sleep with me because I wouldn't do it. But he said something similar first. So he couldn't have been copying off me if he told me that before I told him. At least we're on the same page regarding such matters.

I got about 5 hours of sleep last night.

So then today, I had my last session of American lit, and Dr. Swords commented on my column that was in the paper yesterday (he liked it). A side note, I also got quoted in the DEN earlier this week and two of my poems were published in the Vehicle. Thanks to the STD gang who found my stuff worthy enough for university publication.

Evaluations finished off the course, and then I called Kris so he could come meet me and help me on my poetry project. He said he needed to get a shower, so I didn't know how long that would take. I ended up talking to Derek for about 10 minutes though. Derek is afraid he'll be roommates with Kris in England and I just don't think they would get along well as roomies. Kris told me he was mad at me for not going to England with him, but oh well.

So, Jones showed up around 10:30 or so--pissed off about something. We went to Wal-Mart together and got a black ink cartridge and then he went to the video store to return some movies and after that, went to Taco Bell for some lunch. But we eventually got around to working on that project. It was drama.

I will spare the long story, but basically, we wasted a LOT of paper and ink trying to print off my stupid poems. It was insane. I kept telling him I could try it at home, but he was bound and determined to print them off at his place. I was like whatever. Finally we got it figured out though. Afterwards, we sat on the couch and talked. Well, he wasn't saying much and I had a pretty good idea what he was thinking. Finally he asked if I wasn't too embarrassed or uncomfortable would I kiss him. I said I supposed I'd give it a try. Keep in mind, I'd never kissed a guy on the lips before. It was weird, wet, and I really didn't like it. But then, nothing against Kris--I never really liked being kissed by my mom or dad or anybody anyway. We made a few tentative plans for the summer--hiking/picnic in Indiana and some all-day trip to Indy. I asked him how long the Indy trip would take and he said all day. I asked, "So I'd get home that night then?" and he said, "Well, we are not staying all night" so that made me feel more comfortable.

Then it was time for fiction.

Jessi wrote a very disturbing piece about murder. It seriously gave me the creeps. So I told Kris and he told me about a story he wrote about a murder. I was like you're scaring me. He says he based it on stuff he'd read, and to be honest, it sounded a lot like E.A. Poe. He tried to get me to stay for his fiction class, but I said no I needed to do stuff tonight.

Brandy and I went to Effingham and I picked up an application at the place Rachel works. I'm probably not qualified to work there, but whatever. Also, we had supper at Little Caesar's and saw Lisa for a while, and went to Wal-Mart. I am proud of myself for driving on the interstate today and Tuesday. I know, it's really no big deal, but I'd never driven the interstate by myself before Tuesday.

When we got back, Brandy and I rode 4-wheelers a while and then I finally came home. It was a fairly big day and I'm really tired. I need to put my book together tonight though, because it is due tomorrow. Yikes. Plus, I'm going to try to work tomorrow morning before school and then go to Celebration with Kris after class and then hang out with Brandy after that. Lots of plans.

I apologize if I talk about Kris too much. This whole thing is new to me, and I've been around him a lot lately, so a lot of my day is about him.

I'm So Broke That It Ain't Funny

Well, I'm starting to regret not going on the England trip this summer. Kris is going and I'm going to miss him pretty badly. Plus, DUH--England? I've wanted to go there for a while. I don't need the class credit though, but I would totally dig the culture. Mom says I can still drive up to O'Hare and take the trip with the class but just not do the work...

Janice, can I bum a ride offa you?

Well, school was all right today. My last day of Senior Seminar is supposed to be Wednesday SO... I'm going to try to work Friday morning so I can have the afternoon off. Dilemma: I want to go to Celebration on Friday. I asked Brandy to go with me, and she said she would, though I doubt she'll have a very good time. Also, I wanted to do something with Kris that day (it will be the last day we'll see each other for a while and it will also be our 2 week anniversary). I would ask him to join us, but Brandy doesn't like him. I don't wanna ditch Brandy though, because she feels like I don't spend any time with her now that he and I are together. So I don't know. Maybe he and I can go to Positively 4th Street or get some lunch or something. Heck, why not see another movie? I just want to do something, because I don't know how often I'll see him this summer.

Anyhow, I worked 2.25 hours today (not a lot, but eh?) and then I have a couple hours that I can work on Friday morning. I need to save up some gas money so I can hang out with my man a little before and after his trip. I plan on going to see him at Danville a few times (and that's a nice little drive) and his karaoke buddies want to meet me too (also in Danville) so anyway, gotta keep working. I might try to get on at that day care with Rach if they'll let me work there. I need to make some extra cash.

Silent Hill--Good Movie, But Not Too Scary

Well, I'm still up. I had a good day (technically yesterday). Kris and I presented to a crowd of 5 people. His mom and sister, my mom, and two other students. It was fun though. I like his family.

We stayed for Shauna's presentation too, then had a little of the free lunch that was provided, and then hung out at his apartment for a while. He showed me this box he had to put together for his study abroad trip. It was pretty cool. Then we left for the movie.

I enjoyed the movie, but like I say, it really didn't scare me at all. And maybe that's a good thing. I watched Carrie for the first time last night and it didn't scare me either. It was kinda fun to snuggle in the movie theater too ;)

After the movie, Kris dropped me off at school and I went to Brandy's house. We rode 4-wheelers with Rach--that was pretty fun. Then we went to Effingham and went to Wal-Mart and got pizza from Pizza Hut. That was cool too. Now I'm just really tired. Had a good day, but it wore me out. I guess I should start doing homework again maybe tomorrow...

English Conference

Today is the English conference at EIU. Kris and I are going to present creative writing pieces. We're the only ones in our group. Yesterday, he walked with me to Buzzard to turn in my column to the DEN. Then he walked me out to my car and we proceeded to sit in the parking lot behind my car for 4 hours. Just talking and laying around. We both got a lot of sun. I am really tanned now, and Kris will probably have a pretty painful sunburn soon (if he doesn't have one yet). We talked about all sorts of crap--it was a lot of fun. Then I dropped him off at his apartment. I went home and worked on my paper for the conference today and watched Carrie. Great movie--very sad, totally unrealistic, but I liked it a lot. Then I attempted to watch Pee-Wee's Big Adventure. Wow. I can't believe I used to like Pee-Wee Herman. And furthermore, I can't believe Kris still does. I managed to fall asleep during PW's BA, though. Oh, I also started on my poetry book (finally). I have around 12 pages of poetry. I need 30. Yikes. I called Sarah and talked to her for a while. Brandy called me too. I'm glad that school is about out though.

After the conference, Kris and I are going to see Silent Hill at the theater. It will probably scare me a lot. Then I plan on heading to Brandy's house. Hopefully Rach will still be there. She was wanting to come to my house, but I'm going to Brandy's house. Hopefully it will turn out to be a fun day.

By the way... I know this is short notice, but anybody who doesn't have a life and wants to see me and my man presenting today, we're in room 3170 on the 3rd floor of Coleman Hall at EIU at 10:00.

I'll Be Down in Mississippi and Up to No Good

Very good song people. Unless of course, you hate country music. Or Mississippi. Yeah, the editor is really anxious for me to get this column done, so I guess I'll work on it tonight. I'm so tired. I didn't sleep much last night. And then, at 2:30 (when I was in a sort of stupor) I rolled over onto the bunny Kris got my for Easter. I forgot I had it in my bed, first of all. But what was even scarier is that I put enough pressure on it, that it started praying, "Now I lay me down to sleep." This is not a scary prayer, but it was recorded in a child's voice and anybody who is familiar with "Enter Sandman" will understand why, at 2:30 AM that might be a little unnerving.

Yes, Rachel called me around midnight and talked about 30 minutes. I started on my column after we got off the phone though.

Kris only got a couple hours of sleep last night. He ended up doing this paper that he said he wasn't going to do. Ended up staying up until 5:00 or so working on it, then he had to go to work at 8:00 in the physical science building and work until noon. We pretty much just hung out in the library after I had lunch with Brandy. Subway--eat fresh.

Then, somewhat spontaneously, Kris just put his hand on mine. I was like whatever. My hand was cold anyway. However, I'm not a very touchy type of person. Then I asked him if he wanted to walk with me to Coleman and he said he did. So we got to Coleman and I was getting ready to head to class and he asks if I have a couple seconds. I was like I guess. And in front of the water fountain by the bulletin board, he says, "I'm not very good at this sort of thing.... but I wanted to kiss you goodbye before you go to class." I was like hold on, horn-dog. So I said, "Cheek for right now" and he seemed cool with that. Goatee whiskers really tickle. At least it wasn't as embarrassing as the first hug.

Hope that wasn't too much info for you guys ;)

And now, back to academic topics...

I plan on writing my column tonight and maybe even emailing it to the editor. At some point I need to finish Grapes of Wrath for the 3rd or 4th time. I also need to revise my paper and do my take-home final for the same class. The Tempest isn't going to read itself. And goodness knows I need to make a book for my poetry class--STILL.

You're My Wonderwall...

Hadn't heard that song in a while, but I heard it tonight sitting in my car in our driveway and now I can't stop singing it. Okay, well, I picked up my paper this morning, and spent a good part of the afternoon revising it. Hopefully I get a good grade on it. Then I met Kris (who was not having a good day) in the library, and we walked to Coleman to look for Dr. Raybin so I could ask him a question, but he wasn't there. So then we went back to the library and tried to print the paper. Well, I don't have any money on my Panther Card and he had maxxed his out, so he said I could print it out at his place. I said alright, so we went there. He has a pretty cool little apartment. He was all embarrassed to take me there because it was messy, but honestly, it was cleaner than my room. Thus, I am going to clean my room some tonight. Anyway, he got it all printed off for me so I was able to hand it in. I'm hoping Raybin takes pity on me since I only had TODAY to revise it, print it, and hand it in.

My man also read his "Yetish Fetish" poem, which I personally think is hysterical. The rest of the class did too. We had a lot of fun in poetry today. I brought a box of Count Chocula, but Martone said he couldn't eat it and I shouldn't be eating it because of the marshmallows--they have gelatin in them, and Martone has it in his head that all gelatin comes from animal sources.

By the way, thanks to Amanda for her suggestion for a column. However, I think I'm going to write my column about rising oil prices and how I'm still poor. Might try to tie it in with The Grapes of Wrath or something. I don't know. Also, this is pretty cool, I got asked to write columns and/or draw cartoons for the DEN this summer. I was pretty excited about it.

Today was a big day of firsts for me: eating LemonHeads, eating Count Chocula, eating chicken (yes, I tried a little chicken from Brandy's Chalupa at Taco Bell--it was pretty good), holding Kris's hand, going to his apartment, riding to my car with Kristy after class. Kris acted a little disappointed that I had chicken today. I was like hey now, I've seen you eat at Chik-Fil-A or whatever, so I don't wanna hear it. I think he's trying to go vegetarian too though, so he was pretty shocked that I tried some meat. I need to check on him--like I said, he had a fairly bad day and I worry about him--hope he's doing better. Peace out guys...

10 Proof

Hey ya'll... not much to say today. Kris brought me my Easter gift today. He got me like 3 different kinds of candy and a stuffed animal. It was sweet of him. We returned some of our books together today too. And got accosted numerous times by United University people wanting us to vote. Kris said if he got asked again, that he'd tell them he voted for Danny O'Day (inside joke). I went to work today from 9:10 to 9:55, although I messed up and put 10:10 to 10:55--eh, still got the amount of time correct. Kris and I hung out until my 2:00 class and then for about 15 minutes before his 3:30 class. It was cool. I forgot to check on my Shakespeare paper so I can make revisions and print it out for tomorrow night's class--drama. I'm going to make some changes tonight and then check tomorrow and maybe print off a copy at LLC or at Booth, or at Kris's apartment or something. I also need to read Grapes of Wrath tonight too. Hopefully it will all work out. School's almost over. Looking forward to this summer. Kris and I plan on seeing Silent Hill sometime and then we might go on a picnic and other stuff over the summer too. Hopefully it will be fun. Well, I gotta check on my food now.

Two Weeks of School Left

Well, I only worked an hour and a half today. And after that, I bought gas, so I only have five dollars to my name. Kris and I attempted our first hug today. Disastrous consequences. First, I tried to put my left arm over his shoulder, at the same time that he was trying to put his right arm over my shoulder. Then mid-hug, I realized our glasses were hooked together. Great. After taking care of the glasses drama, I was trying to walk towards my car, only to find that my hair was now stuck in his glasses. I don't know how many people saw that...

Oh yeah, he loaned me 4 movies today. I'm not really sure when he thinks I'm going to watch them, because I'm pretty busy with homework, but I'll get them watched sometime. Things are going fairly well with us. I think Anita is trying to start some gossip though because she caught me outside Coleman and had to hear all the dirt. I was actually talking to Lakisha when Anita came up to me. Lakisha says, "I thought you were married." I'm like no, where did you get that idea? Well she thought I said something about it in a class I had with her last semester. She spent a little less than I year thinking I was married. Weird. So who knows what kind of garbage will be spread around EIU by tomorrow.

Speaking of committment (of which I have a pretty serious fear) I have a column due on Friday. The new DEN editor says there has to be some sort of news content in it. Anybody have any ideas? I don't know what to write. Plus, I need to get ready for the English conference this Saturday. As far as I know, Kris and I are the only ones presenting creative writing pieces and we're supposed to be scheduled together. Busy week. I'll try to fit at least one of the Stephen King movies and one comedy in this week though.

I'm serious about column ideas though. If anybody has any ideas, just leave me a comment. I'm open to suggestions. Thanks!

Happy Easter

Well, we had church today. I was 15 minutes late though because I couldn't find a place to park. I ended up parking at my grandma's house and walking to church. Wasn't a long walk, just a little time-consuming. After service, Mom and I went with Grandma and Vickie to Fazolis. It was good. Then we went to Wal-Mart and then I came home and changed clothes for the Easter egg hunt (AKA Hudfest 2006). Side note--Brandy, we gotta make t-shirts this year...

In response to Kris's concern over the use of ellipses (as referenced in my use of them at the end of the preceding paragraph) Carpenter is right. I got a new copy of Writer's Digest last night (I may have already mentioned this) but anyway, sure enough dude, you're supposed to use a dash to connote time passages or choppy speech. The ellipses is used (passive voice) when you are quoting something and cutting a portion of the quote out. I actually knew that... or I thought I did at least :)

Yeah I had a good time at Hudfest. No Rach--nobody took your camera. You left it in your car. And the weather really didn't get bad over here. That's okay though--sorry I was being such a creep.

Day #2 of going out with Kris. Note to self (and any single ppls reading this): Never start a relationship on a weekend that you will not see the significant other. When starting a new relationship, it is usually a good thing to be around the person. Otherwise, you will forget that you actually have a boyfriend because it has been 10 years and the whole notion of you actually having a boyfriend is so surreal that you have to pinch yourself and make sure you're not bleeding pancake syrup.

But yeah, I kind of miss him.

However, tomorrow in class will be the first time we actually look at each other face to face as boyfriend and girlfriend. Not sure when we'll start holding hands and stuff. We plan on moving very slow with this thing. Summer is going to be very strange. He's going to England for a month, but he's supposed to be sending me postcards. I imagine I'll miss him terribly. Then after that, we plan on getting together occasionally once he gets back from the trip. He also said we can maintain a long-distance relationship if I happen to go to another state for grad school. He said he'd come see me sometimes if that's the case.

But enough about my new boyfriend.

I know from experience that nobody wants to hear about the new boyfriend except the new girlfriend who is excited that she now has him and talks about him nonstop. I'm trying not to do that. I don't know why I was so nervous about this whole thing. It's really not that big of a deal. Especially to know that we can still be friends if the boyfriend/girlfriend thing doesn't work out. Hope ya'll had a great weekend.

It's Official, Ladies and Gents...

Well, Kris and I decided to give it a go as a couple. Working out good so far (although this thing just started yesterday). He and I and Maurice got offered positions writing for the DEN in the fall. Kris and I both agreed to do it. Also, we are both supposed to present creative writing pieces at the English conference a week from today. I'm pretty excited. I feel weird having a boyfriend too. We agreed that if it didn't work out though, we'd still be friends. I got a new issue of Writer's Digest today too. I didn't get my garden set out like I wanted to though. I went to town today with Rach, Brandy, and Carolyn. It was pretty fun. I was at Brandy's house pretty much all day. Well, that's about all I've got for right now. I need to catch up on some homework tonight (probably be busy all day tomorrow too). Happy Easter everybody!

Let's Give 'Em Something to Talk About...

Hello ya'll... I plan to make this post short because I'm really tired. It's getting close to midnight, you know. I had a good day today. Brandy and I checked out Blair Hall. Neither of us had ever been there before. Then we went to Pemberton to check out where her presentation thing was going to be. Then we both ended up going to the presentation thing. I felt funny, being an English major hanging out with a Soc class. I was actually really sad today because after Brandy went home, I got lonely. I started to wish I'd told Kris to drop by Coleman and we could hang out for an hour or so before my class. Anyhow, as I was reading The Grapes of Wrath, I happened to see him walk out of the English Department and out the doors. I was like crap and tried to follow him. Well, by the time I reached the 2nd floor, he was outside, so I was literally running down the stairs, feeling like a fool. And wouldn't you know, I almost knocked down his friend, Shauna. I keep going back and forth as to whether or not I like him, as in a crush. I just can't see me reacting that way if I didn't sort of like him. I mean, I really miss him when he's not around. Anyway I happened to finally almost catch up with him outside (and keep in mind it was hot and I'd been running and I had a heavy backpack) and I hollered "Hey Kris!" and he turned around and instantly got a smile on his face. He wasn't doing anything, and I had a break, so he suggested we go to Taco Bell. Yep--we walked to Taco Bell in the heat and we just got something to drink. I like doing silly spontaneous things like that sometimes. Nothing bad or dangerous, just slightly eccentric. Then I was talking to him before his fiction writing class, and this other girl (one he used to like last year) was looking at us and pointing and I thought I heard her say, "I want to know what's going on there." Hee hee. Publicity is usually a good thing, in some way.

So I didn't go to the meeting tonight after all. I hope I can go to the English Conference--I didn't even know about it, except that's what Kris got from the English Department--a form to submit a paper for the conference. I got one too, but when I got home tonight, I realized it said the deadline for abstract submissions was yesterday? I never heard about it until today. Grr. I'm going to try to go anyway.

After I left Carpenter's class (yes, I left as the prof was getting there) I decided to go to Brandy's house. I had loads of fun there. I rode 4-wheelers with Brandy and Eliza. I even drove part of the way. And I hadn't driven a 4-wheeler in a very long time. It's amazing I could remember everything even after I had to ask what pedals did which things (shifting gears and braking). Eliza loved this song I wrote about 4 years ago. She wanted me to sing it, and she recorded it on her phone and I think she made it her ringtone. I didn't realize it was that great. I mean I liked it alright I suppose. As usual, I haven't done much homework tonight. I really didn't do much at school either--we watched The Grapes of Wrath in American lit, and then workshopped two pieces in fiction. It just occurred to me that I think I accidentally used the italics code in an email to Kris tonight. He's not going to understand what "em" inside <> is going to mean. I'm just in the habit of using the code on here, that I probably do it in emails all the time. Oh well. Whatever. I'm really tired and a little nervous as to where he and I are going, so it's not unlikely that I might do something crazy in an email. Can't be any crazier than walking 15 minutes one way to go to Taco Bell for a small drink...

Woo Hoo! 100th Post!

I had a really good day today. I'll try to sum it up quickly. I gave my Senior Seminar presentation today. It went well. Then I went to poetry. Kris got me a card and put a lotto ticket in it. I ate one of Derek's Swedish Fish and he even gave me a beanie baby. "The Stoned Sheep" beanie. Anyhow, Kris finallygot to read "Lake Winnipesaukee" (I probably botched the spelling). Then, he walked with me to 9th St. to submit my EWP, which did NOT work yesterday, but DID WORK TODAY!!! And then I saw Dr. Swords sitting on the quad with a student and he told me my conference would be on the quad too. Sweet action. I had lunch with Brandy at Taco Bell and I found a dime on the ground. Awesome. Then I came back, had my outdoors conference (which was awesome too) and Swords loved my paper. That made me SO HAPPY. Then we just chatted about music and literature and stuff. It was so cool. Then I bugged Brandy a while. Then around 4:00 Kris got off work and talked to me for just a few minutes, then I started to read my Shakespeare again. Well, wouldn't you know, just a few minutes later, Kris comes back and says he's going home. Well, I didn't figure he really had any intentions of going home or else he would have just gone instead of telling me about it. So we ended up talking until about 5:50 and I realized I hadn't finished my assignment. Oops! So I went to class, and miraculously I didn't have to act like I knew anything about the last couple of scenes I didn't read (keep in mind, I read around 3.5 acts of the play) so I was able to talk quite a bit, but I didn't have to talk about the part I hadn't read. I was very thankful about that. Then we got out 10 minutes early from class. I have to remember to go to my Sigma Tau Delta meeting tomorrow. I wonder when the Vehicle is coming out?

I Love Ewe

Yes, sheep are cool. But I just wanted to misuse the word "ewe." Rach and I have been punning that word for a couple days or so. I had a good day today. Didn't have to work, so I came home and promptly got a sunburn. I also wrote three pages on this Shakespeare paper that is due next Wednesday. I want to have a draft ready for this Wednesday though, because that way I can make revisions. But the paper is due next Wednesday... so I'll get the paper back the day it is due... so I hope I'm not totally screwed on this deal. I mean, I'm REALLY trying to keep up my GPA. Guess I can just do my best. Now I'm starting to stress out. That's the bad thing about once-a-week classes. And still have to do TAXES. Oh the drama. Kris and I are supposed to hang out tomorrow. Now I'm starting to lean towards just friends again. Man, this sunburn is getting painful. Well, I need to do a little more homework before getting to bed.

Mid-April Crises...

I have been wanting to take trips lately. There ya go--maybe I should go with Kris after all. He loves to travel. He has all the qualities I prayed for in a guy, but there are things I don't like about him too. I know I have to compromise at some point for the simple fact that nobody is perfect. And he seems to really care about me so... who knows.

So I've been working most of the afternoon on this Shakespeare paper. Ten pages and research for the honors program. Ick. I don't care for research. However, I've found three sources so far and I have quoted from the plays. I'm not doing too badly, all things considered. However, I've only written 4 pages. I wanted to get a draft done tonight so I could look it over and print it out tomorrow and then I'd have a draft ready to hand in Wednesday so I could get it back and revise it before it is due NEXT Wednesday. *sigh* Also, I need to read The Grapes of Wrath, which I would totally rather be doing right now, but whatever. Don't forget I need to finish Acts 3 and 4 of The Winter's Tale for Wednesday too.

Totally unrelated to any of the mid-April crises: Congrats to Kris for being named one of the 10 best DEN columns from 2002-2006! His column, "Everybody Needs Somebody Sometime" (my personal favorite of his columns) made the list. If you care to read it, check out: www.dennews.com and search Kristopher Jones. The article should come up first on the search.

Mommer is busy with tax crap this afternoon. I completely forgot about taxes, dang it. I still need to do mine and I don't know how because I always did the telephone deal WHICH THEY NO LONGER OFFER so I don't know, but I need to get mine done pronto.

Ever notice that nobody ever says "pronto" anymore?

I'm Going to Jackson...

Or maybe Oxford, if I am lucky enough to get in. That is, Oxford MS--home of Ole Miss. But totally off the subject of anything, except that I've been excited thinking about it. Yeah, I've also been thinking about how much I want to travel too. Sure I'm growing up, but for once, it's not scaring me.

So Brandy and I took The Lucky One to Wal-Mart and Little Caesar's today. It was fun. I also had to buy gas. So... I now have a one-way ticket to Broke City. I came home and read some of The Winter's Tale, but I'm not crazy about English lit, and specifically anything besides comedies that Shakespeare wrote tends to bore me. So what did I do to take a break from it? I started working on a Shakespeare paper. Actually... Mom got me sidetracked. She got out an atlas, and I love maps and atlases (now ya'll see why I got so excited about wanting to travel). But anyway, I did write a couple pages on the 10 page research paper for my honors Shakespeare class. Wasn't a lot of fun, but at least I have an idea as to where I want to go with the paper.

And now I'm getting ready to read some more of The Grapes of Wrath, though it will be my 3rd or 4th time reading it.

I'm Stuck in Folsom Prison, and Time Keeps Draggin' On...

Okay, I'm an even bigger Johnny Cash fan than I once was. I don't know how accurate Walk the Line is, but as a movie, I loved it. I decided that I am crazy about pretty much any song that has "blues" in the title (i.e. "Folsom Prison Blues," "Subterranean Homesick Blues," and "Yer Blues." The movie brought back haunting memories of the late great Marty Scott. I never dreamed I'd miss that guy nearly like I do. He was my inspriration for going into creative writing, first of all. First got me interested in the U of Iowa (though I doubt I'll go there), and he got me interested in blues and bluegrass (he had this awesome Johnny Cash poster in his office... after he died I considered asking if I could have it, provided his ex-wife didn't want it... guess I didn't get to it in time... probably got thrown away).

So today Kris says he wants to do stuff together during the summer. He suggested karaoke and swimming. I vetoed both ideas. So the jury is still out. I think it could be fun, but provided we do something I actually enjoy. I don't know why I'm so conflicted about Kris. Some days I'm really interested in him, and some days I just want to be friends. And then there are days like today where I feel both ways. Must be my bipolarness... or the fact that I'm ragging :)

Speaking of such...

I had to work from 1:30 to 5:00 this afternoon. And I not only didn't feel at my peak, but I definitely was not in the mood to joke with my boss, who had a migraine and thus was in a silly mood. Workplace drama.

Here Comes Johnny Singing Oldies Goldies

I ended up having a good day. Brandy brought me home from school last night and then stayed the night and took me back to school this morning. Around midnight or so, I awoke to the very quiet--almost silent--sound of Brandy getting up to go to the bathroom. Being in a strange state of near-consciousness, I apparently jumped up, screamed, had a horrifying look on my face, and asked her where she was going. I don't know why, but it was really traumatic. So I had to watch Black Sheep until I could get to sleep.

Then I overslept. And so I got to class on time because Brandy was driving, but then it started raining heavily and I got drenched going to class. I mean, almost the entire front of my jeans was soaked. I'm very thankful my coat is made of WASHABLE suede. Somehow an episode of Seinfeld comes to mind whenever I think of suede and rain...

American lit went well. I shared my book with the guy that sits next to me. Then Kris was waiting on me in the hall. We had lunch together in the union. He's been having a rough time lately. People are making him nervous for various reasons. We ended up doing this crazy random song-singing thing, not even caring that there were like tons of other people in the union at the time. Heck, we even did a duet on the Dire Straits song that I allude to in the title of this post. So yeah, I know I had a great time and hope he did too. Then Sarah showed up 25 minutes late, but between the two of us we were able to help her on an English paper. Then I saw Finney, who told me that he enjoyed my "Creative Writers Are a Bunch of Masochists" column. I was pleased. Sure I got ONE negative comment, which did get put in the paper... BUT I got at least SEVEN positive comments, so I'm glad I took the risk and wrote it.

I need to get going on some Shakespeare so I can write a paper in there. I also need to make a book for poetry and read The Grapes of Wrath. No biggie. I only plan on being busy like all weekend too.

What Up, Creep-Dawg?

Happy Birthday Kevin!!! Where he is, it was yesterday, but whatever. Kris and I had lunch today. Last night I pretty much told him why I just wanted to be friends, and he didn't bug me at all about it today. That was a huge relief. I really didn't want to hurt his feelings. Anyhow, then I saw Sarah and Tammy and another girl from LLC that I didn't know. That was pretty cool. I wish they could have stayed longer, but oh well. I had to drop off a dress at the dry cleaners for Mommer and then I had to get some Horseradish for Daddy. I got some breakfast food for myself too though. This is at Wal-Mart, not the cleaners. I also saw Dr. Searle at Wal-Mart. That was pretty cool. I'm hungry and really Jonesing for some pizza now. Unfortunately... it's probably a little late to start on such an endeavor.

Caution: Potentially Graphic Post. Viewer Discretion is Advised

Hi! So yeah I had a good time last night. I had the craps at Fazolis though. Rach and I were in adjoining stalls, making all sorts of obscene noises. Then she was talking to me and laughing in the bathroom. Strange situations, folks.

Okay, so I felt better after that. Until about midnight or so when I awoke from a short nap (actually I went to bed maybe at 10:00 or 11:00 and I was just waking up) and I felt terrible. I tried to ignore the red flags (stomachache, heartburn, feelings of general indigestion) and went back to sleep. I was very tired, so this was not hard to do. However, when I awoke again at 4:30, things were different. I could not just ignore the salty taste in my mouth and knew i had to get to the bathroom. FAST. So I did, and I flushed the toilet to make sure it was good and clean, but while I was waiting for it to flush... yep. Barfed in the sink. Repeatedly. I don't think my throat has ever been this sore before. It was terrible. I'm guessing either I got lactose poisioning from OD-ing on cheese at Fazoli's past 3:00 PM (because I'm moderately lactose intolerent, just in case ya'll cared) or perhaps someone slipped some sort of mind-altering substance into the creamer at Rural King when I went for my free popcorn and coffee yesterday. Who knows. All I know is it made me horribly sick.

My throat was swollen for a good part of the day too. I felt like I had something stuck in my neck like all morning and kept gagging when I tried to cough it up because I realized I was trying to cough up the inside of my throat. And it wasn't wanting to come up.

I stayed home from church today, just in case you couldn't figure that out. I was not feeling well at all.

So I spent the morning/early afternoon trying remedies. My throat still hurts, but the swelling has gone down. In fact, I don't think my throat is swollen at all anymore. I also tried typing my Faulkner paper that might be due on Tuesday, but the prof says he'll accept the papers anytime. Yeah. That's the one. So I did more research and I am one page away from finishing a rough draft. I talked to Rach while I was doing research. Rather, I should say I listened to Rach and occasionally had a chance to answer one or two of her questions about Kris. Yeah, she likes Kris now. And she doesn't even know him.

Speaking of Kris... I watched all I could stand of his movie Return of the Living Dead Part II. He warned my that it would be stupid. Oh yes. It was stupid. He said if I liked corny, campy old horror movies from the 80s I'd like it. First off, I had to look up campy in the dictionary. I think the movie fits the definition. Cheesy to the point of being funny. Or something along those lines. I figured out from the context clues that I wouldn't like the movie though. But I took yet another one for the team and tried to watch it. I told Dad that I couldn't give up on the movie until the corpses actually started getting out of the graves, so I fast forwarded to that part. And then I rewound the tape and turned it off.

Now, I know I haven't been speaking of Faulkner for probably about 20 miles now, but I'm still going to refer back to it. Speaking of William Faulkner, I got another idea on grad school. Like my buddy Barry, I had a "well duh" moment regarding grad school today. I love Faulkner, and I love the South, so why not apply to Ole Miss? And here's the funny thing: Barry's "well duh" moment was when he realized he should have applied there too. He's actually going into Faulkner for his MA thesis right now and I assume he wants to specialize in Faulkner for his PhD. I checked out tuition and it's not too much, surprisingly. I don't know how much housing and other fees are though. Also, I don't know if they offer assistantships or anything like that down there. I need to do some more research into the school. I just remembered that Dad always kind of wanted me to go there when I was younger though. And miraculously, he didn't immediately veto the idea when I suggested it. He just mentioned that I should look into assistantships and financial aid and stuff. It's about 7 hours from here, whereas Iowa is between 4.5 and 5. Really, not too far. I'm pretty excited thinking about it anyway.

I CARE

Hey everyone... I will warn you I've had a long day (very fun though) I really didn't play any April Fool's jokes, except one stupid one on Rachel, and I doubt she really fell for it. I really haven't done April Fool's in a long time, because it's mean. APRIL FOOL'S!!! It's not so much because it's mean, but more because I don't want people to think I'm a creep (and also if I play tricks on ppl, why would they have any reason to believe ANYTHING I happen to say on April 1st?) Also, I figure the results are better to fool someone on any day BUT April 1st. I mean, most people have their guard up on April 1 because they're expecting creeps like me to come up with something mean and/or ridiculous on this day. Sorry, folks.

I'm pretty sure I just want to be friends with Kris. He's a great guy, seriously, but not my type of guy. I love being friends with him and I really care about him a lot, though. This decision took a lot of time, a lot of prayer, and a lot of talking with people. Thanks to everyone for their patience with me in this matter.

Thanks again to Rach, Sarah, and Brandy for taking me out tonight. I seriously had a great time. I gotta get going on this paper for Tuesday though. It's kind of sad that I have such a big paper to do, and that I don't have much time to do it. I mean, I've had plenty of time to work on it, but I've been putting it off. It's totally my fault that I'm in this situation.

I also had fun at TheLuckyOne's house today. I like her friends, and the new phone is cool too. Well, once again to all, don't forget to change the old clockeroos tonight. It's 11:30 or so by daylight savings time, so I better get going.