Week 17 Just the Two of Us

According to Dominic's Home Depot work schedule calendar, the week does not start until Monday, so I am still counting this as Week 17. Plus I have never been able to subscribe to the idea that the week starts on Sunday anyway- that has never felt right. Sundays have always felt like endings, not beginnings.

So now it is back to just the two of us (we can make it if we trryyyy...just the two of us....you and I...How can you not think of that song when you think of the phrase?) for a while again. We are so lucky to have such amazing friends and family- we have been able to spend the past few weeks with family (Dad, Yvonne, Sissy, John), old friends (Mikal and Anna), and new friends (Joe and Jeremy). It was great having house guests and I will say, of course, that I was sorry to see each one of them go.

But now it is high time to get my head back in the academic game, and I'm starting to feel like these long winter breaks make us soft! I start classes again on the 22nd, so it is time to start thinking of somehow paying for books, working out schedules (one of my classes STILL isn't scheduled...this happened last semester too...the department allows some professors to schedule the class themselves, but they tend to wait until the very. last. minute. I am definitely not used to that), and outstanding, ongoing projects.

Of course I have not done as much work as I should have over break, but I have a week to make up for it! Which is good because I need to have a warm-up period before getting back in gear. I really needed some inspiration and I got it yesterday; I had two emails, one from Dr. Shenk asking for bio info for her website (reminding me that, yes, I am in school and yes, there are things I should be doing) and the other was from the CLS program (click here to check out the website!) I applied for. I was super surprised and extremely happy to find out that I am a semi-finalist!!!- that means I am moving forward in the selection process and I stand a higher chance of spending this summer in Bangladesh learning Bangla. As a first year graduate student I did not expect to make it this far (I am thinking the fact that I applied four years ago as an undergrad might have helped, as they can see I've been working towards this for a long time!). Of course the chance of my not going is still really high, but I figure even if I don't make it this summer, the fact that I have made it this far already makes it that much more likely that I will get to go next summer. Fingers still crossed for this year though ;)

I have been making decent progress on my resolutions, but it hasn't been long enough to do anything substantial. It is easy to still be reading fiction because the semester hasn't started, and here I am, blogging! I joined a few online book clubs to play around with (on my new favorite website, Goodreads), and am going to start Orlando by Virginia Woolf for one of them this week. I've written two real letters so far (and had a blast doing it, so I'm confident I can keep that up!).

Last night and this morning Columbia was graced with some very lame snow and some very unpleasant ice- coating everything, including the sidewalk and roads. Walking Ripley this morning I saw people with cups of salt, spreading it in the apartment parking lots, and Ripley and I both did some slippin-and-slidin'. All the more reason to stay in, read, and get some solid project work done!

And Dominic is gradually feeling better. Luckily he has had this weekend and Monday off of work to really lay around and recover. Hopefully by the time he heads back to work on Tuesday he will be right as rain.

I have plenty of pictures to share this week! Dominic and I started the week visiting the Mizzou library...

Then we had dinner (thanks to Groupon!) at our favorite Vietnamese restaurant. Dominic is drinking green tea.

Of course I can't resist taking pictures from the top of the parking deck...

Anna's visit! (our hair looks like the same color!)

Anna asked this guy to take a picture with her. He was happy to oblige! I took a bunch but this one is by far my favorite...

And Anna and I had a blast with Jeremy and Joe at Lazer Lanes Lazer Tag!

Here is the BRRR snow from last night...

Rips has no problem with the snow and cold ;)

Dominic might though...

Until next time- have a great week, everybody! Stay warm!

Week 16 Big Blog Post for a Big New Year

Happy New Year everyone! I hope everyone had a great end to 2012 and an even better beginning to 2013. This blog post, of course, should deal with the new year, but I think, to start, I want to share twelve of my favorite photos from 2012, in general chronological order. Then we can look at 2013 goals or "resolutions" etc. ;) 

 

1. I like this photo because it has an adorable smile in it (Miss Morgan) and it reminds me of all the great times we had dancing in that room! A lot of dancing happened that night too; it was a surprise birthday party for Lizzy, so of course it was a lot of fun. Plus I love, love, love the arched doorways in that house.

2. Mom is never really into the whole taking pictures thing, but she let me snag this one and it is one of my favorites. She's gorgeous in it and it definitely does make me miss my Mama.

3. I like this picture for three reasons: 1) It has Ripely in it. I'm one of "those" people who really freakin' loves my pets. 2) It was taken spending a summer day on the James River. 3) One of my favorite people took this photo (Anna!). 

4. What's not to love about reading at the river? Lots of great family times have happened here, and I think the lighting can represent warmth and love and happiness.

5. There is a lot to love in this picture. I love the lighting in the summer rain, you can see my flower garden and my favorite tree in the whole world, the pink crape myrtle, and there's my grandma and mom, running in the rain.

6. This was our last father-daughter dinner before moving to Missouri. I really miss those dinners!

7. There is enough greatness in this photo that not much needs to be said. All of my best girlfriends- from elementary through post-college are in this photo. How cool is that?!

8. This was at the going away party Dominic's mom held for us. This picture is just really cool and it was one of our last nights in Richmond. A lot of good times have happened here as well.

9. Favorite photos for 2012 would not be complete without a picture of the two wonderful people who helped us move halfway across the country! Plus this is just a really great photo of both of them. Big smiles!

10. Sissy and John's backyard in Chicago is quite the natural oasis in the middle of the big city. One great thing about the move- being closer to them! The fact that weekend visits to Chicago are possible is sooo super awesome and it really makes me happy.

11. This pup followed me home one day. I still think about this little guy (and can't help but secretly- or not so secretly- wish I could have kept him!). I really, really hope he found a good home. 

12. What's not to love about a cat who loves his Christmas present?

Okay, choosing 12 favorite photos for 2012 was a lot harder than I thought. There are at least three that are missing. One is a beautiful picture I took one sunny afternoon of the outside of the house we lived in on Masonic Lane (where the first picture was taken). Unfortunately, I haven't been able to snag it in the labyrinth of my photos and so maybe I did not take it this year but last. This exercise certainly showed me how time really starts to run together and there are things I was going to post and thought dang, that happened well over a year ago! 

A photo of Mizzou is also missing, along with a photo of Dominic and I. So to make up for it I will post two photos from New Year's Eve. Technically the first one was taken in 2012, but hey, we were prepping for the new year ;) 

He is a big goofy guy and I absolutely love him for it <3

I know the lighting is kind of weird, but I still think it's a neat-o picture, and you can see Dominic getting ready to climb up on one of the columns. And this was one of the first photos taken in 2013 (around 1:30 in the morning)!

Okay, so how does everyone feel about 2013? When I think of how much changed in 2012, it kind of blows my mind, and so I am reluctant to make any predictions about 2013. This time last year I had just finished up my second year of grad school applications, I was still working at VCU but was getting ready to start with a new supervisor on a new project, and I was thinking of life path alternatives, aka, what will I do if I decide not to go to grad school (or don't get in again)? I was volunteering with Cats Cradle and spending everyday Tuesday morning with the kitties. I made some really cool new friends at VCU right as I got ready to leave Richmond. I actually got into more than one school and had to make the really difficult decision between Missouri and Kentucky. I had a whirlwind summer characterized by saying a lot of goodbyes to a lot of people and places I've been around my whole life. I moved halfway across the country, luckily with the love of my life by my side (thankful for that/him everyday!). I started grad school, met a ton of new and interesting people, and Dominic and I are really living on our own for the first time. It is all extraordinarily exciting and absolutely terrifying at the same time. 

So I decided that any "goals" or "resolutions" for the year will be general and relatively easy to accomplish. I have no idea where this year will take me. I am applying to language schools for the summer- I could spend two months in Bangladesh (unlikely but, hey, you never know) or Madison, Wisconsin or ??? Of course, I really want to make a trip home in 2013, but I have no idea when- Spring break, early summer, late summer? This year I will need to pick a thesis/dissertation topic, really start working on my own research, and eventually start studying for my MA exam (*shudder*).

So I'm picking six pretty basic things I really want to try to do in 2013: 

1) Continue reading fiction during the semester. It's good for the mind and the soul. 

2) Submit a research paper for publication. Any journal will do! I need to do something with all this work I've done on my Korean TV show project. 

3) Keep up my weekly blog. And keep it real. I have every intention of being "real" with anyone who reads. By this I mean that I don't want to appear fake or false in my posts- I want to share what's really going on in my life, how I'm really feeling and thinking. Maybe this will lead to a couple of TMI (too much information) moments, but I think that people need to share more than they do and I really think honesty is the best policy. Let's be open and keep it real! 

4) Join and/or start an online or in person book club. I know this is super general but hey, I'm keeping it easy here. Ideally, I would like to join an in person book club for gals in Columbia, but unfortunately I haven't found any. I'm considering starting one, but we will see where I decide to concentrate my time...This can definitely help out with number 1 though.

5) Write letters! 

6) Save $100 a month. Okay, for some of you this may sound ridiculously easy. For me, it's actually a pretty big challenge. Right now I'm making $13,500 a year (keeping it real here- yes, that's how much I roll in per year)...it's great and I am SO thankful for it, but it is borderline impossible to save. This is an important goal though because I will have no set income for June and July, especially if I do manage to go to language school, and we are still going to need to do things like, I dunno, eat and pay rent. Dominic's income is obviously a monumental help and he will probably be paying the bulk of the bills in the summer, but neither one of us can do it all alone. So a little savings would be a huge help! 

That's it for me. Let's tackle a new year with open arms, hearts, and minds.

Week 15 Christmas and...wait...what day is it?

So you would think, considering that it is winter break and I don't have a lot going on, that I would be spot on with this whole blogging thing. Turns out, I'm never quite sure what day it is anymore. The only thing that keeps me mildly grounded in the real turnings of the world is Dominic's work schedule, but considering that he works weekends and nights and mornings etc. I still get confused...But hey, it's still week 15...

This past week was quite eventful, of course, because it was Christmas and we had visitors! Dad, Yvonne, Sissy, and John all arrived on Sunday and stayed until Wednesday. It was a good Christmas, without the running around characteristic of most of my previous Christmases, but it was definitely different and of course there were still some faces I missed seeing. This was my first ever Christmas Eve not spent with Granddad Naughty and the rest of the Cox Clan, and of course it was my first Christmas without my Mama! It was nice to have Joe, one of my new anthropology grad school friends spend the day with us this year. It is always good to spend the holidays with new friends! Thank you guys for coming out for Christmas in Columbia and helping Dominic and I have a real Christmas with wonderful food, family, and friends! Oh and I have really, really enjoyed Belgian waffles the past two mornings (we got a Belgian waffle maker for Christmas!).

Wednesday, after everyone left, the apartment felt so empty. It feels so big when it is just Dominic and I but with everyone else it felt so full and cozy and bustling. I spent Wednesday and Thursday cleaning and reading and mostly just doing a general cluster of things that all run together. Yesterday Dominic and I had a great time going to Barnes and Noble (one of our favorite past times!) and one of our favorite little stores downtown, Aardvark's.

So what have I been doing since my trip to Chicago and between Christmas and other things? Reading and screwing around, mostly. I have already finished one book- the fourth Sookie Sackhouse installment- but those are always quick reads. They aren't quality literature by any standard, but I can't help but enjoy them. I've started Mothers and Others, by Sarah Hrdy (that's not a typo- no "a"), to keep my mind turning in the anthropological sense, but I've read a lot more of Samuel R. Delany's Dhalgren, which I only started yesterday. This book is weird but I like it a lot so far- though I really like weird when it comes to fiction. This one seems to be a kind of a cross between Murakami, a little bit of King's Gunslinger, and a whole host of other weird that I haven't quite picked up on yet...it is sci fi but the back of the book bills it as "magical realism" which is more accurate. It is not for the sexually squeamish though- the main character, who does not remember his name, has already had sex with two complete strangers, a man and a woman, in the first 50 pages.

Ah, reading fiction makes my brain feel so much better- refreshed.

Of course, it is imperative that I put a huge shout out to one of my greatest friends and send out a warm CONGRATULATIONS on your ENGAGEMENT Miss Morgan!!! Eugene is a great guy and you are a wonderful gal, you two are amazing together. This is such an exciting time for you- enjoy every minute of it!

So I am pretty freaking excited that Dominic and I are going to be having more visitors in the next few weeks! I just want to say, for the record, if I haven't said it before, that we have some pretty awesome friends. Mikal is driving here this weekend and arriving tomorrow to spend New Year's Eve with us! And Anna will be here from January 9-11. So we have plenty to look forward to in the coming weeks. Plus, Anna is flying into Kansas City so it will be fun seeing one of the cities I have been hearing so much about for the first time.

I know this is all going to go by quickly, just like every day of life speeds by faster than the last, so I am going to take my time and enjoy every minute of reading and visiting and relaxing before the bustle of the semester starts up again. I have some work to do (I like to have productive things to do so I don't feel completely like a bum) but I actually have plenty of time to do it in...wow that feels weird.

Okay, Christmas pictures (the first nine of which I snagged from Yvonne)!

Restringing the classical

Star Wars Monopoly!

Christmas Morning

Dominic working on his family's oyster recipe for Christmas appetizer...I'm working on Grandma Ginny's corn pudding. John made the ham (sooooo good) and the squash casserole, Sissy made chocolate pies, and Yvonne made potato salad and breakfast (oh and so many goodies and desserts!). Joe brought some really great Missouri wine and Dad made sure there was plenty of beer. It was quite the meal! 

This is going so well!

Shots!

Enjoying the oysters

Mr. Kitty REALLY loved his Christmas present from Aunt Karma and Uncle John

Dominic liked his too :D 

And Ripley was reunited with one of her favorite laps!

Marti played until she needed a nap

Joe reading up on some Buddhism

I hope that everyone had a very merry Christmas, wherever you are and whoever you were with. And everyone have a great New Year's Eve! Party Hardy ;) 

Week 14 First Week of Break and Merry Christmas!

So I have no viable excuse for being late this week, except that yesterday I just...meh...didn't feel like posting. But no worries! I have watched enough Jenna Marbles videos today to get myself super motivated! She has quite the dirty mouth but I still love her. I also watched a few videos with the My Boyfriend Does My Makeup tag on Youtube. I think this would be a super fun thing to do but I would be somewhat afraid of getting my eyeball poked out...

This past week has been really, really awesome. Most of what I'm going to share is kind of trivial and probably boring to most people...but...hey it's my blog so...there. I can do what I want! Actually yeah that's not really a super true statement...but you know what I mean...

Friday Ripley and I drove to Chicago for the weekend. Going to Chicago is ALWAYS a fun trip and Sissy and John are the best hosts. It was a great recharge/celebration trip for the end of the semester. And it is exciting for me to be this close to Chicago and to have the opportunity to spur of the moment visit Sissy! It is a 6 1/2 hour trip, but compared to the 16 hour drive to Richmond it is a breeze. It is also quite scenic. I ate fantastic food all weekend (John made this Texas chocolate cake which was really, really bad news for me because I COULD NOT STOP EATING IT). Sissy and I even got to do a little Christmas shopping at Lincoln Square which I always enjoy, and I went with her see some of her students sing Christmas songs. I checked Facebook once Sunday night but other than that the weekend was a complete detox. It was perfect! For some reason I didn't take many pictures, but I do have one of Dude in Ripley's bed:

Monday night I drove home to Columbia and the drive was a lot of fun. Chicago was gray but southern Illinois had some light snow. Missouri was gorgeous. There were so few cars around that I managed to get some really cool (at least I think) pictures. Here are a few...

When I got home Monday night Dominic and I went out to eat at Outback with our neighbors Andrew and Steph. They are some of the nicest people I have ever met and they are quite an adorable couple.

Tuesday I spent about four hours cleaning/getting ready for family that is coming on Sunday. Yeah that's alllll gonna be dirty again by then. DOH. Then Tuesday night Dominic and I spent quite a bit of time finally working on our Christmas cards. Tis the season!

Wednesday Dominic and I had lunch with Jeremy downtown. Then Dom headed to work and I went Christmas shopping. This included spending some money on myself because I had a 30% off coupon at Kohl's and I needed some new clothes!...I got a shirt that looked kinda ugly on the rack but I put it on and though "Dang that's actually kinda cute!"(for $3 too!). Teehee. Yeah I'm sure you didn't need to know that...but here a purple shirt I snagged and of course I have wasted no time wearing it:

I went home wrapped presents and got so excited that there are a lot of Disney movies on Netflix now that I watched Pocahontas. Totally forgot that Mel Gibson was John Smith in that movie...

I also got a package yesterday that was so charming and pretty when I opened it that I had to share!

Oh and Mr Kitty wants some too:

Thank you Miss Morgan! It made my day :) And you should have heard me squeal when I saw COOKIES. I need to get better about sending my packages out at a reasonable time. You know, so people get stuff around the actual holiday/birthday. I'm not a huge fan of New Year's resolutions, but that's going to be mine (seems pretty doable too, right...?).

Today we woke up to snow! I was very excited about this until I took Ripley on her walk. Um, snow is less fun when that Missouri wind kicks in. I had my Popeye face going most of the walk.

However, Ripley LOVES the snow, so after it stopped today we went out in the field and she enjoyed running around. Here is an action shot! 

The rest of the day I have been reading and watching Youtube videos and just generally screwing around. This is my screw around day. I will get back to doing productive things tomorrow. Or at some point. Meh I have things to do but...you know...it's break and stuff.

Also I discovered this article this past week that I think is a really good read for just about anyone: 6 Harsh Truths That Will Make You a Better Person

OH and Dominic has trimmed his beard this week to a beard of absolute perfection. He was already getting weekly compliments on it before he shaped it up so beautifully! I tried to snag a picture but it was hard getting him to stand still...

Well, that about sums up the highlights of my first week of break. Next week will be even more exciting because we are going to have so many visitors! I am very excited :D

Since I won't post again until after Christmas, I hope everyone has a very merry one, with lots of love, family, friends, and good food. And safe travels to those hitting the road!

Merry Christmas everyone!