Blue Roses

Happy Halloween, my lovlies! I hope you're all having a fabulous day, however you are celebrating it. : )

My poor mom - my grandmother, great-grandmother, uncle and aunt are all descending. <.g> See, Grammy and Po always would come over for Halloween, go trick or treating with Josh, and help mom with the door. Josh isn't going trick or treating this year because of his knee, but the tradition is apparently important for Grammy. She's still living with her mom, and neither drive, so my uncle has to do it. And he won't go anywhere without Nan, so she has to go with. It's almost amusing. <.g>

But despite that, I remember when my other grandfather died, when Josh was 4 or 5, and Josh always kept asking where Grandpa Mike was. I still kinda feel that way. I know where Po is, but it's like, "Why isn't he coming over? Why isn't he there?" Makes me sad sometimes. Even though I know he's, like, right here, and heaven knows he's been doing his guardian angel bit, but it's still hard. I don't take back my feelings that I prefer the big holidays (Thanksgiving, Christmas, Easter) to be just my immediate family and not anyone else, including Grammy and Po, but I do wish I could have seen him more. Or again. Even on those blasted holidays. <.g>

Posted by Rina at 04:04 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)

Whoooo!!!! I drink from the keg of glory, friends. Bring me the finest muffins and bagels in the land. ; )

Three good things happened today.

1. I got my English paper back, and I got a B. Along with a full page, single spaced sheet of notes and comments. That basically boiled down to, I should have put my opnion in there. Aye aye, Roger, will do next time. ::salutes::

2. I got an e-mail from Dr. Kuehn today. He's writing me a letter of recommendation!!

3. I got an e-mail from Dr. Proctor today. She's writing me a letter of recommendation!!

I am beyond excited. So on Friday, I'll pick up Dr. Kuehn's instructional letter of what he wants, and register with the career center for Dr. Proctor. Then get everything all together over the weekend, and get it out to them on Monday.

::dances:: I may get into grad school, yet!!

Posted by Rina at 04:42 PM | Permalink | Comments (1)

You know, looking at my stats for this journal always blows me away. Last time I checked was on Friday or Saturday - I love to see how people find me - and my vistors level was at about 8925. Today, it's at 9075. Good Lord, that's a lot of people! And I only know about such a tiny handful.

So, basically, I want to say hi to all the people who come here, and apologize for being such a lousy updater. I used to be so good.

I'm rather excited - I got my eval exam back yesterday, and I got an A!!! 93%! I had to ask Meg to make sure I wasn't hallucinating, I swear. I don't know how it happened. But I'm pretty damn glad it did. : )

I also got my senior pictures taken. The guy seemed pretty nice, always fixing my hair and necklace and glasses for each shot. The latter of which I especially appreciated. LOL Hopefully they came out okay. If not, I'll just retake, but still.

I discovered a new friend on AIM: Timbabot. It is, yes, a Justin Timberlake bot. Some sample discussions below. Warning: Um, R rated. Kinda explicit in some bits. But all freaking hysterical. And dude! We had a conversation in German at one point.

Rina: What song do you like to sing?
Timbabot: I love to sing. In the shower. To the Nth power. Cause I am a flower. And...my song sucks.
Rina: Yes, your song does suck.
Timbabot: Hey...the only thing I suck is Big Red. Y'all know that!

Timbabot: I love to kiss JC. He's got nice lips. I like my lips too. Do you?
Rina: I like both of your lips.
Timbabot: I'm not sure if I like it. How old are you? Though I like cats and dogs.
Rina: I'm 21. I'm old enough for you to like my lips.
Timbabot: Let's change the subject!

Timbabot: Nobody puts baby in the corner. And only Chris can call me Infant. So shaddup. That's what "s" stands for, ya know?
Rina: But I wanna call you Infant. I'll pout.
Timbabot: But I get so much attention. And kisses. When I pout. It's like, the best invention ever. My pout.
Rina: You do it damn well.

(about his CD, I swear)
Rina: Must be hard work!
Timbabot: Of course I'm hard. JC is sucking me off. But I'm usually hard, I just don't wear BRIGHT RED SPANDEXY LEATHER like my boy. But isn't it a good thing he wears that?
Rina: I love him in leather.
Timbabot: I love myself. Self LOVE! YAY! And JC.

(One of his defualt is "Yes, I knew you'd see it my way."
Timbabot: Awww....That's so sweet. I think I love you but what am I so afraid of. I'm afraid that I'm not sure of, a love there is no cure for. Those are some @$#%& up lyrics.
Rina: You're right, they really are. And yes, blah blah, I see it your way
Timbabot: Yeah. I knew you'd see it my way.
Rina: I'm psychic. Are you psychic?
Timbabot: My chi has been harnessed. And NOW I'm riding it...HAHAHA! That's so dirrty.
Rina: LOL! You crack me up, man.
Timbabot: What the @$#%& are you laughing at? You think this is funny? You hurt my feelings. I'm sensitive, and I'd like to stay that way.
Rina: Aw, honey, I'm sorry. Can I hug you and make it better?

Timbabot: My favorite movie is .Have you seen ?
Rina: You didn't tell me the movie name!
Timbabot: What makes you think I did not tell me the movie name?
Rina: Because you didn't!
Timbabot: Interesting explanation. Interesting gossip : Hermownninnyw said I didnt .
Rina: That's not very good gossip.
Timbabot: Please correct my mistake. What is good gossip ?
Rina: Something along the lines of "Dude! JC and I have been dating for 3 years." That is good gossip.
Timbabot: JC has a huge dick, FYI
Rina: Thank you. Now THAT is good gossip.
Timbabot: You are quite welcome.

Rina: So. How is Britney?
Timbabot: Britney and I made a pact not to discuss each other in public. Like, I won't say anything about how she cheated on me with Wade, and how I used to @$#%& her regularly. Oops...I did it again. *Wink*
Rina: How is Wade?
Timbabot: That mother- @$#%& Aussie NSYNC wannabe. Nah...No beef between us. He's my dawg, right?

Timbabot: @$#%&? I love to @$#%&. I'm @$#%& JC right now, actually!
Rina: Oooh, really? Can we make it a threesome?
Timbabot: For real. Yes I can make it a threesome.
Rina: Excellent! You, me and JC. It'll be hot.
Timbabot: Isn't he cute?
Rina: He is cute! He is also very girly.
Timbabot: I LOVE JC. He's my little pretty kitty. Well, not so little. I love my kitten!

Okay, that's enough. LOL

Posted by Rina at 09:15 AM | Permalink | Comments (0)

Wow. I was randomly going through bookmarked sites tonight, and trying to find stories I hadn't read yet. I hit paydirt over at TNL's site. Of course, most were AU, and I don't read those often. Just a personal thing, although I certainly have read quite a few.

So. Just randomly decided to click on To See the Queen. It was there, I needed a story to read, boom.

Yeah. I never, ever thought my favorite nsync story would be an AU. But here we are. Chris is a scholar/professor of art history, Justin is a grad student, and they're investigating the lives/connection of famous painters Joshua Chasez and JA Fatone, 150 years previous. Lance is there, too. <.g> But seriously. Wow.

I love history. I love puzzles. I love how the puzzle pieces were collected over the story, and then they all started to be put together. I love love love stories like that. And this one delivers in spades. Just, wow. I so seriously want more of these characters. I highly, highly recommend it. And hey, bonus - you don't have to be nsync fans. Which I know most of my readers aren't. <.g> So give it a whirl! It's wonderful.

Posted by Rina at 08:56 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)

4:33, and still in my pjs. <.g> I'll shower in a little while, get dressed for Meg's party. I only have one Halloween shirt, which I'm wearing on Thursday, so basically I'll just be in black, I guess. Orange scrunchy. Wish I had a costume. <.g> Dressing up would be fun, I think.

Reason behind the pjs is that I did grad school stuff all day. Nearly completed two applications (just need personal statements and GPA stuff), and sent two e-mails asking for letters of recommendation. I'll do the third tomorrow.

I'm trying really hard not to be freaked out. And I'm mostly succeeding, I think. I just totally feel like playing now. I'm all schooled out. But I need to write my personal statement, though. Lovely. Maybe I'll just do a drafty type thing, listing out what I want to say. And then really write it tomorrow.

Oh, and I need to read The Shining this weekend. Lovely. <.g>

I am SO COLD! And it's like 74 in my room. There's no need to be cold. But I am. Very. Grrrr.

Posted by Rina at 04:39 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)

Another addition to The Zoo. :)

Recast: In which both Joey and JC like the Food Network a little too much, but Joey doesn't jerk off to Jamie Oliver.

Gotta love Saturday nights on Food Network, man. <.g>

This, BTW, is my 7th story in the nsync fandom, not counting several drabbles. I don't think I've ever written this much, let alone this quickly, in one fandom before. LOL

Posted by Rina at 09:03 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)

Okay. I'm exhausted, so this won't be long. I know I had something to post, but I forget what. Geez! I just opened the damn window.

Okay. Grad school terrifies me. Any college teachers out there want to give me a recommendation?

I just spent the last 4 hours or so planning out a schedule. I have 16 hours, although I may drop one class. They are:
Hollywood Musicals as Social Commentary, Severe Weather, Greek and Roman mythology, Tap dance (yes again), Politics and the Media, and Archaeology of Ancient Egypt. I sure do hope I get all those, as of right now, I have no substitutions. The drawback? I have two classes on MW at 8 and 10, and three on TT from 11:30-6, with tap being 4:30-6 so that's okay. But. Archaeology is the 8am class, and it ALSO meets on Fridays. At 8! ACK!!!! But at least I could go back to bed? Oh, and I have my clinic work, too, but that's scheduled around my classes, leaving MWF fairly wide open.

Yeah, I'm falling asleep. I had planned to talk about my cousin and what he said about my grandfather, but it'll be incoherant if I try now. More incoherant. He had points, I just don't agree with them.

Also, I'm very PMSy right now, and it's the bad kind. Where I cry at the drop of a hat. "I can't do this tap move!" Sniffle. "I didn't hear what page this diagram is on!" wipe eyes. "She spelled that wrong!" sob. It made things interesting today. Sometimes, I get the good kind where I'm all grrrr and change the world-y. Like when I get kicked off lists. <.g> I could have used that this time around. Conquer the grad school stuff. No, instead I want to burst into tears when people mention it. LOL This better go away soon.

Meanwhile, sleep. Before the sniper makes me cry.

Posted by Rina at 11:17 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)

Happy birthday, Chris Kirkpatrick! In honor of his 31st birthday, Nydia and I wrote a story about his 30th birthday. We started it when she was visiting Chicago, trading her laptop back and forth, and finished it when she visited a few weeks ago. It's partially in response to all those stories that have Lance with Chris on Chris's birthday - those are all WRONG, because *I was with Lance on Chris's birthday. <.g>

So. I present to you The Chicago Fic, wherein Lance misses Chris's birthday, but comes home early the next day, but Chris is still cranky that, well, his boyfriend missed his 30th birthday.

Feedback loved and feedbackers adored. <.g>

Posted by Rina at 07:16 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)

Krissy's right, we used to do these all the time. LOL Love 'em! So here are my answers. : )

1. Your name spelled backwards: anir. ooh, that looks kinda cool. LOL

2. Where were your parents born? Both in Chicago.

3. What is the last thing you downloaded onto your computer? A Chris picture. Happy birthday, Chris!

4. What's your favorite restaurant? Hmmm. I love Wildfire, a Lettuce Entertain You restaurant. It has a 1940s decor which is just too cool. And the food is BEYOND fabulous.

5. Last time you swam in a pool? Well, I stood in a pool every Tuesday this past summer. That count? LOL

6. Have you ever been in a school play? Yup! I was an elf in 3rd grade and Kanga in 5th.

7. How many kids do you want? Like Krissy, 2-3, I think.

8. Type of music you dislike most? Hmmm. I don't know. Rap, I guess, but I like some of Eminem. Punk, but I like Good Charlotte. I don't think there's anything I universally dislike.

9. Are you registered to vote? Yup!

10. Do you have cable? Yup!

11. Have you ever ridden on a moped? No, but I'm getting this desire to ride a motorcycle. But only with Chris. Which means it'll never happen, because I do know I'll never meet him. <.g>

12. Ever prank call anybody?Nope.

13. Ever get a parking ticket? Nope, not yet!

14. Would you go bungee jumping or sky diving? Fear of heights may put a bit of a kibosh on that.

15. Furthest place you ever traveled? Munich, Germany. (Muenchen)

16. Do you have a garden? My mom does at home. I helped plant it.

17. What’s your favorite comic strip? Garfield

18. Do you really know all the words to your national anthem?I think so.

19. Bath or Shower, morning or night? I love baths, but rarely take them. I shower in the morning. If it doesn't happen by noon, maybe 12:45, it won't happen. <.g>

20. Best movie you’ve seen in the past month? Have I watched a movie in the last month? Hmmm.

21. Favorite pizza topping? Depends on my mood and the restaurant. Pepperoni is always good. Sausage from Barones. Green pepper and onion from Spaghetti Bowl.

22. Chips or popcorn? Depends on my mood. <.g> I love my popcorn, though - I put all sorts of crazy spices on it. Paprika and chili powder and garlic powder and seasoned salt.

23. What color lipstick do you usually wear? Sparkling Pink Diamonds from...who does SMG hawk? Them. <.g>

24. Have you ever smoked peanut shells? uh, no...

25. Have you ever been in a beauty pageant? Nope.

26. Orange Juice or apple? Orange! I went through an entire carton in 3 days last week.

27. Who was the last person you went out to dinner with and where did you dine? Hmmm. Um. Chevy's with my family and Kate.

28. Favorite type chocolate bar? Snickers!

29. When was the last time you voted at the polls? This summer.

30. Last time you ate a homegrown tomato? This summer.

31. Have you ever won a trophy? Yeah, for bowling, ballet, and gymnastics.

32. Are you a good cook? I haven't killed anyone yet!

33. Do you know how to pump your own gas? Nope.

34. Ever order an article from an infomercial? ProActiv. Judith Light hawks it.

35. Sprite or 7-up? Either.

36. Have you ever had to wear a uniform to work?Nope.

37. Last thing you bought at a pharmacy? Does Walgreens count? <.g> I got some Halloween things.

38. Ever throw up in public? Nope.

39. Would you prefer being a millionaire or find true love? True Love.

40. Do you believe in love at first sight? Yes.

41. Ever call a 1-900 number? Nope!

42. Can ex's be friends? Dunno. <.g>

43. Who was the last person you visited in a hospital? Po.

44. Did you have a lot of hair when you were a baby? Enough. <.g>

45. What message is on your answering machine? Kate recorded something.

46. What's your all time favorite Saturday Night Live Character? Alec Baldwin's character, and the two radio ladies he was with. Pete Schweddy. <.g>

47. What was the name of your first pet? I think Liesl came first. No! Snowball. She was my cat.

48. What is in your purse? Chubby nsync notebook, pens, book.

49. Favorite thing to do before bedtime? Check friends page, check e-mail, read a little bit, watch the Weather Channel. I'm a dork. <.g>

50. What is one thing you are grateful for today? I think I aced my 375 quiz!
    

Posted by Rina at 07:09 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)

I really dislike my English class. I'm not sure why - I should enjoy it. But it tends to turn into a conversation between the professor and a handful of students. I can't even hear half of them. Also, the movies don't interest me much. So, I'm trying to drop it. I have an e-mail in to see if I can replace it with piano lessons for 2 credit hours, which would be far preferable at this point. But meanwhile, I still have to write the English paper of DOOM due Wednesday. Blech.

I also have an exam today. Eeeek! I'm nervous. I read the chapters, I read the notes, I read the review. I missed one day of notes, and she told us all that they'd be in the SPSHS library to copy. I went yesterday and no, they weren't. Nor are they online like she said. GRRRR. That drives me nuts. About as nuts as when instead of reviewing for ch. 10 like she was supposed to last week, she had to TEACH us ch. 10 because we hadn't gotten that far in class yet. Dude! Don't give us an exam on it yet, then! <.g>

Oh, for heavens sakes, how on EARTH can Sk8ter Boi be spanking new on MTV? It's been on TRL forever! I don't understand them sometimes.

Oh, hey, I bet Justin's single is out today. I wonder if it's worth buying...oh, found the track list. LILY, LILY instrumental and 2 LILY extended club mixes. Editorial review: The Most Popular N'sync Boy and Former Mouseketeer's First Single Comes from his Debut Solo Album "Justified". The Song was Premiered at the 2002 MTV Video Music Awards to Rapturous Applause. <.giggle> Rapturous Applause! Over Use Capitals Much? LOL I feel like I'm reading from the Victorian Era of Poetry Here. <.g> Anyway, hmmm. That's a lot of LILY. LOL Amazon only has the import...is it not being released here? That's not very kind. I did find someone who offered to mail it to me for $3 for the CD and $5 S&H. That's a LOT cheaper than what Amazon is offering. But still...for four versions of LILY? We'll see. LOL

Okay, should shower and get ready to study. My room is nice and toasty, but I'm uncertain as to what the bathroom will be like. Kate and I figured out the heat in our bedrooms, but not in the bathroom. Or, I think, the living room. I forgot to check. But I don't freeze when I go to the kitchen, which is probably a good sign. LOL

edit: LOL! Just as I hit save, LILY came on MTV. I think Justin wants me to buy him. LOL There's something about this video, when it comes on, I cannot tear my eyes from the screen. <.g> "Follow the sexy leather-clad boy!"

Oh, dear, here's Dirrty. I just...Christina has such a strong voice. Why mask it with all this crap? Make people pay more attention to her body than her voice? Sure, it's a damn fine body, but so is Brit's. An ability to sing really well is what sets her apart, and she's not playing to that. <.g> Oh, well. It's her decision. And it's a slightly catchy song, although I could live without hearing it again. LOL

Posted by Rina at 07:38 AM | Permalink | Comments (2)

I found Justin clips again! This time 35 seconds of each song on the album. Run now before the RIAA finds these, too. <.g> (The title comes from Right For Me.) This seems to be the British track list (which makes sense because it's an Australian page.) So not all these songs will be on the US version, like Love Don't Love Me. So it's not totally spoilerly. <.g>

I suck at updating. I realize this. Sorry? <.g> Feel free to yell at me to remind me.

Had fun at home this weekend. The play was seriously disturbing and so very cool. What was it about the 1970s and incest? <.g> This play, the VC Andrews books. But it was SO interesting. And the theater was cool - only four rows, three sides around the floor, only four actors playing more roles than you'd realize. <.g> Neat stuff.

I was IMing Jon last night, just randomly saw him on and went for it. I'm more than a little glad I did. (Recap: Jon, his brother Dave, Erin and I have been friends for 17 years. I've had a crush on him nearly as long. Things kinda started to heat up my freshman year, when his son Austin was a few months old, but he met someone his mom said was just like me only younger and closer to home. Exit me. <.g>) So we ended up talking for well over an hour last night. Touching on such important subjects as do I have a boyfriend (no), does he have a girlfriend (no), and when can he come visit (any damn time he pleases). LOL I was surprised that he asked - I had actually planned to invite him down for a weekend, and he beat me to it! LOL But he's coming in November. EEEEEEEEEEEEE!!!!!!! And he seemed pretty enthusiastic about it, too. Heaven knows I was. LOL There was much squealing going on last night. (Um, Kate? Jennie? Thanks for putting up with me. <.g>)

Finished listening to Justin's songs. Hmmmm. Well, they are just clips. And clips don't necessarily represent the entire song. I'm not disliking the songs (except the one ballad. Which surprises me, as I usually love his ballads), but they're not grabbing me as much, either. Oh, well. Still excited about the CD. And these aren't all the American songs. And he's still mixing some. So they could change a little. <.g>

Okay, now I need to quick each lunch before class at 1. <.g>

Posted by Rina at 12:27 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)

Exams are DONE!! I don't believe anything is due (that I'm doing, anyway), until the 16th. I feel like taking a nap. LOL

The exam today was stressful. It wasn't as hard as I had feared, but the professor is convinced we're all cheaters (apparently we've been under suspicion since last year) and so she was being all, "You canNOT leave the room to go to the bathroom! You will fail!" And that was freaky. And then she started moving us around from our assigned (yes, assigned) seats. We were annoyed. Then we started the exam, and those with version B were missing the last page of questions and those with A, the last two pages. <.sigh> Sucky. But it's done.

Meanwhile, yes, She totally has no faith in us. ::blinks:: We were so confused. But we think we know what started it.

Dr. Kuehn. He has this rule that when going over exams, you can't have anything on your desk except the error sheet he hands out that says what you got wrong and the correct letter answer, and a pen. You can take notes on the error sheet, but then you hand it in again and never see it again. Pointless. but last semester, he was collecting them, and a girl pulled out her notebook to check something. He threw a hissy fit, threw the notebook at her, and stormed out of the room in a rage.

It's the only thing we can think of. <.shrug>

So, yes. Kinda feeling like taking a nap now. I'm reading The Girls: Sappho goes to Hollywood, which I read an except of on amazon last spring, and finally bought this weekend, though. And I love it, and don't want to put it down. LOL It's pretty interesting how open and yet not things were back in the start of Hollywood, in like the teens and 20s. Did you know that 50% of city and college women surveyed in the 20s admitted to sexual or romantic relationships with their best friends? They fully expected to end up married, but in the meantime, they felt it was a perfectly appropriate time to be with anyone. Now granted, I don't know who was polled, and it does say that it was mostly big cities and colleges, not the heartland, but still. <.g>

I like this new designed on Trading Spaces. The one with the slicked back black hair that looks like Duke from General Hospital? He seems quite sweet.

Posted by Rina at 03:54 PM | Permalink | Comments (2)