Wandering Aimlessly

Okie dokie. I'm doing absolutely fabulously this week. Two for two. Hurrah! You see, Aarti, Shelley and I (well, two out of three of us, anyway, on any given day) get up at 6:30 to work out. Well, Wednesday, being the day after my birthday, I did not get up. I set my alarm for 7:00 instead. Yesterday, I forgot to REset my alarm, so when I woke up, I'd missed our workout. And when I don't get up to work out, no one does. lol. To ensure that I wasn't going to do THAT again, yesterday morning I made sure to change the time back to 6:30. Only it helps to turn the alarm ON when you want it to wake you up. My eyes fluttered open at 6:45 this morning, and then I stared at the clock in confusion for a moment, trying to decide if it really was 6:45 or if my eyes or the clock were lying to me. Then I got up, saw that no one else had gotten up, and got back in bed for 15 more minutes. The tummy chub will not disappear on its own. I have got to get my act together. FOUR WEEKS!! AHHHHH!!!!

Posted by kate at 07:26 AM | Permalink | Comments (0)

So yesterday we decorated the downstairs for Christmas. Christmas lights around the living room, Disney lights along our coat-hook area, pretty ribbons on the hallogen lamp... we didn't get around to decorating the mini American Girls Christmas tree, but hopefully soon. It will complete the look. <.g> We watched the Grinch movie (the new one, not the cartoon... the cartoon is MUCH, much better, in my opinion) and then the Buffy musical. Because Amie and Shelley both like Buffy. And Aarti and I happened to be down there, too.

And now I have to go to Mental Retardation. Second to last class! Not that I don't enjoy the class... it's actually very interesting, it's just LONG. Three hours once a week. I can't sit still that long. I get sleepy. Oh, crap, didn't set Friends to tape...

Posted by kate at 04:58 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)

Strange dreaming occurances are going on. Aarti and Elaina both had autograph-getting-for-kate dreams. Aarti dreamt that she got my *NSYNC poster (the one Chris signed) autographed for me by the other four guys. Elaina dreamt that she met Gillian Anderson and wouldn't leave until she'd gotten me an autograph, too. And they BOTH told me about these dreams last night. How weird is that? lol.

I talked to Elaina last night! I hadn't talked to her in forever. It was so good to hear from her again. She's in California, where I would LOVE to be right now. She wants me to come visit her this summer, and I SO want to... I need money!!! I want to go to the Atlanta concert, I want to visit Elaina in Cali, I want to go to Orlando, and I have to go to the Chicago concert. Where do I get funding for all of this? You think I could apply for a grant? <.g> I could write a book or something! Escapades of a College Student. Think that would fly?

Okay, I have to go to class at the YMCA. So stupid. Grrr. And am I ready to present my paper ideas? Not a bit. Will I do it anyway? Most likely.

Posted by kate at 09:02 AM | Permalink | Comments (0)

Wish my daddy a happy 10,957th day of being legal! Yes, you guessed it (or maybe you didn't...), today is his 51st birthday. I wish I had a picture to post in his honor, but sadly, I do not. Our scanner is incompatible with our new computer until we update the software, so... yeah.

Okay, it was a COLD-ass day today. Waah. Winter is here. =( This morning, all the cars had ice on them. Thankfully it turned to rain by the time my class got out. So it's still above freezing. I'll cling to that knowledge for dear life and hope that it lasts just a bit longer. Walking to class in the winter is miserable. There are only two and a half weeks left until I won't have to walk everywhere for a month. And then, of course, we have the rest of winter after break.... ugh. Oh well. That's what I get for living in Illinois.

Hey, did you know that the line between The North and The South runs right through Champaign? Yes, there is an honest-to-goodness political, ideological, and demographic LINE that divides the North and the South of the United States (we learned about it in our government section of PR), and south of Champaign, Illinois is the area inhabited and run by folks who migrated north from the Southern states, and north of Champaign is inhabited and run by folks who settled from New England and the likes. And yes, the two halves of our fine state are run very differently in their local governments. Which is pretty funny, because there really is a TRUE mix of types of people here in Champaign-Urbana, and not just because this is a huge university drawing from all over the US and world. ha ha. Anyway, I just thought that was interesting. That there's an actual line that can be drawn on a map and seen clearly by visiting the towns in those two separate areas of our state. I think other states around us are mostly North or South. We're just lucky. We get the best of both worlds. <.g>

So I think I did well on my PR exam. I have to present my plan for my MTV paper tomorrow in class... eeek. Maybe I should read some of the articles I will be using. Today marked the beginning of the Graduate Employee Organization's TA walk-out. The building I have EVERY class in was one of the buildings being picketed. So I had to cross the picket line to go to class. Excitement! Tomorrow my 9:30 class is meeting in the Y. I don't know where the Y is. lol. Hopefully I find it!

Okay, that's enough out of me.

Posted by kate at 10:39 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)

Everyone say CONGRATULATIONS to Carolyn! She got an A on a children's book she wrote for her Children's Lit class and her teacher says she wants her to talk to a publisher!! Woohoo!! =)

Posted by kate at 06:07 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)

OH MY GOSH. They have *NSYNC Uno. I thought I was making that up!!! Grrrr. lol. Now I have to see if I can find it online somewhere to check it out. Just to make sure I'm not a total liar. =/ Sure makes things more difficult. I thought I was being all creative and stuff, and it exists! Who thinks this stuff up??

Posted by kate at 02:01 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)

Look what Shelley made me!!!

Posted by kate at 12:38 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)

WARNING: Random musings ahead.

You get a lot of thinking done on those 20-minute walks to and from class. <.g> Today I was thinking about my "musical evolution," if you will. I never considered myself a "music" person, but really, it's been a huge part of who I am since I was really little. I just didn't realize it. I always thought of myself as a movie gal. But when I was six, I built myself a violin out of cardboard and yarn. I would walk around the house pretending to play that violin and singing whatever song I should have been playing. ALL I wanted for my seventh birthday was violin lessons. I played the violin from when I was seven up until sophomore year in high school, when I was forced to choose between choir and orchestra. At that point, I liked my choir director more than my orchestra director, so I stuck with choir. But I was in school orchestras from fifth grade up until I quit orchestra in high school.

My choral life started also when I was in the second grade, with church choir, which I admittedly joined to get out of sitting through the entire hour-long church service. lol. When you're six, that sermon is looooooong. Anyway, I was in church choir until fifth grade, which is when I joined both my school choir as well as Palatine Children's Chorus. I was in Starlight in high school, which was our church "band" (5 singers, a keyboardist, drummer, and guitar player), I was in Madrigals at high school (an a capella group), and I was in high school choir all four years...

So yeah, music was a huge part of my life. I just didn't listen to the radio. Ever. Lol. Not until I got my driver's license, and then I only listened in the car. I had an extremely small CD collection which consisted mostly of soundtracks. It's grown a LOT in the last two years though. ha ha. So basically when I stopped being involved in making music (I MISS CHOIR!! Sadness.), I started getting into popular music. Weird, huh? Okay, that's the end of my mindless ramblings. Just thought it was interesting. And someday I might look back on this post and go "Boy, was I sure a weird one..."

Posted by kate at 12:36 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)

I love my friends!! You guys are so cool. lol. Thanks so much for all the birthday wishes! You all made my day. Heehee. =)

Posted by kate at 08:10 AM | Permalink | Comments (0)

Happy Birthday Me. I'm LEGAL!! Woohoo! And now I must sleep.

Posted by kate at 12:11 AM | Permalink | Comments (0)

Today I went and watched the Merchants of Cool after my class. I just *knew* it was going to start raining right when I was leaving to go home... just knew it. Surprise, surprise. It wasn't a bad rain, just misty enough to turn my hair into a giant fuzzball.

Then I went to the post office to pick up what I *thought* was my DVD from Miggie, but it turned out to be two DVDs from my uncle. Happy birthday me!! I got Legally Blond and Bridget Jones' Diary. Woohoo!!! Very excited kate. =) I AM looking forward to that *N the Mix DVD... hope the postman didn't return it AGAIN. =( That would make me very sad.

Oh, guess what else I did today? <.groan> I bought the JC Bobblehead. <.double groan> I don't know why I did. Haven't got a clue. I think they are kinda dumb looking. And honestly, a little frightening. lol. I didn't want them at all, and suddenly last night I, like, HAD to have one. Then I was afraid they'd be sold out, but they weren't. This is small-town America here. Well, not really. Champaign and Urbana are two designated cities, but apparently there is not the plethora of young, female, teenage blood with disposable incomes down here or something. lol. The lady at Best Buy said that you could buy the whole set online for like $42 and get them all at once, but I couldn't find that anywhere. Not that I want the whole set. Just JC. <.g> I also bought a new microphone for my computer.. maybe I can record stuff without getting the awful hissy S's. That would be nice. We'll see. Aarti bought one, too, and she just said it sucks, so mine might be going back. I ALSO got the What's Goin' On CD, which is good because now I don't feel guilty for recording the song on Meghan's CD. I have no problem recording regular songs onto CDs, but somehow when it is a song that was done for charity... I feel bad. But anyway, I had to spend $25 in order to buy the Bobblehead (so THIS is how Best Buy is raising the $1 million to donate... forcing poor people like us to spend $35 at Best Buy for each stupid little doll!! Grrr.), so I got stuff I'd have bought anyway. Take THAT, Best Buy!

Posted by kate at 06:12 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)

As promised (to Carolyn, anyway <.g>), and to match the lovely picture of myself and Aarti, I present Carolyn dancing to *NSYNC. I *think* this is It's Gonna Be Me, but I could be wrong. I don't know that dance, nor do I know Bye, Bye, Bye. It's one of those. lol. I have better pictures where it's obvious which one she's dancing to, but I don't have them on disk. Sadness!

Posted by kate at 11:13 AM | Permalink | Comments (0)

Shelley got an NSYNC poster. hee hee hee. She said she wouldn't, and she did. It's a nice one, I have to admit. I can see it from my room. lol. She also took this EMBARRASSING picture of Aarti and I. Lol. Can you tell what we're doing? ha ha ha. Um... I'm in the blue sweater. In case you were wondering.

Posted by kate at 12:01 AM | Permalink | Comments (0)

I'm hungry. =/ It's too late to eat. Oh well. Today was uneventful. We went to church, came home, I picked Meghan up and we drove back down to school... I did my Nominal Group Technique for my advertising class and used my roommates as subjects. That was kinda fun. heehee. Then Aarti and I put together her shelves, which was FAR more of a production than it EVER should have been. We put them together, then realized we'd put the top shelf on the bottom and the bottom on the top. Which woudn't have been a problem except for one TINY detail that turned out to be rather important. So we had to take the whole thing apart and put it back together correctly. Lol. That's what we get for not reading directions. Oh well. We succeeded eventually! Tomorrow I have to wake up at 6:30 to work out. Have to. Ugh. I have five weeks to get back into the groove and look GOOD for the cruise. ha ha ha.

Posted by kate at 11:50 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)

Today was a good day. I stayed up WAY too late last night talking with Carolyn (but it was FUN, and that's all that counts <.g>), and then when I tried to go to bed, I just wasn't tired. So I ended up falling asleep a little before 4:00, and then the thunderstorm woke me up about 7:30. Cool storm, and surprisingly, I was wide awake. I think I'm going to regret it tomorrow, though, when I have to drive for three hours to get back to school.

We celebrated my birthday today, and my dad's birthday, and my mom's birthday... and heck, this afternoon I went to Meghan's for her birthday luncheon and celebrated her birthday and HER mom's birthday. It was a day for birthdays, I tell ya! But for my family's collective birthdays we went to Flatlanders, this really YUMMY restaurant. I ate too much. Again. I need to get in shape before this cruise! Ahhhh!!! I have, like, five weeks. I need to get moving on that.

Okay, Saturday's random thought: I am appalled that Britney wore this to a wedding. And who is this lady? I get the feeling I should know who she is, as she shows up with most of the guys in at least one picture, but I haven't got a clue. lol.

Posted by kate at 09:36 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)

Shelley, are you excited? Did you hear them? Joey, Chris, AND Lance got solos!!! Woohoo!! I think those are a couple songs that will be downloaded in our apartment... <.g> I only watched the first half of the Atlantis concert. Then my parents came home, I was trying to finish Meghan's CD, and the phone kept ringing. So I listened to the rest. I'll have to watch it again tomorrow, because they were just SO adorable. And Jess hasn't seen it (speak of the devil... she's walking in the back door this moment. ha ha) and I'm sure she'll want to watch it tomorrow.

Okay, so my cat and I shared some QUALITY time this evening. My parents went to a movie, my sister went to a movie... so it was just Specks and me. We sat on the couch... I studied, he slept. Then he tried to get me to pet him by walking on my books. And purring. And rubbing his whiskers on the corners of my notebooks and bumping my pen while I wrote. He's too cute, I tell you. I forget that I like having him around while I'm at school. That sentence doesn't make much sense... English is not my forte tonight. Anyway, yeah. I love my kitty! Yup, yup. =)

Posted by kate at 11:31 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)

Okay, should have had the tape ready to tape NOW. I just turned on CBS and NSYNC was performing It's Gonna Be Me with that "One, two, three to the four" thingy I love so much. Darn. ha ha. Oh well.

Anyway, did everyone have a good Thanksgiving? Mine was fantabulous. Ate WAY too much, but that's what you're supposed to do, right? My mom tried making me a birthday cake, but she forgot she'd have the turkey in the oven, so she tried baking the cake in the convection microwave... the first layer was still RAW in the middle. The second one she baked turned out alright. So we cut out the middle of the first one (the outsides were okay) and stuck it on top and had a really WEIRD looking birthday cake. Kind of looked like an inverted hat... two layers around the edge but the middle had a hole cut out of the top half. Ha ha ha. But it tasted good!

Today Jess, Mom and I went shopping. AHHHH!!! Remind me never to do THAT again! Every place was NUTS. I hate shopping at Christmas time. We got my dad a DVD player for Christmas and Jessica and I got bathing suits for the cruise, and then we got random other holiday gifts taken care of. The mall was a madhouse, though, and it's going to get worse as Christmas gets closer. Imagine my excitement.

Tomorrow is Meghan's birthday luncheon, so I was trying to make her a CD tonight to go with the gift certificate I got her. You know, so she actually has something to open. I'm running out of songs to put on it. lol. I wanted songs that would be good to play at our party next weekend, but I'm ending up using some not-so-hoppin' songs as well, just because I can't think of anything else party-y. But I tried out KaZaA and it's WONDERFUL!! Very much like Napster. I think I downloaded like 20 songs tonight. lol. Way easier than AudioGalaxy and LimeWire. So I think I will be downloading that when I get back to school as well.

Random comment for the evening: I miss JC smiling. He's got that brooding, sexy look down, but I really enjoy the all-out, toothy grin. And I miss it. It doesn't happen nearly enough.

Okay, I have two hours before the Atlantis concert comes on, so I'm going to get back to studying for my Public Relations exam, which is the DAY AFTER MY BIRTHDAY. Talk about bad timing. Grrrr. Big exam the day after I turn 21. Oh well. I'll survive. Heehee. Always do. =)

Posted by kate at 07:18 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)

HAPPY (early) THANKSGIVING EVERYONE!!! Hope y'all are having a wonderful Turkey Day!

Posted by kate at 10:17 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)

I just decided to share this little episode from yesterday. As you know, I got my wisdom teeth removed Monday. So yesterday my mom had to go back to work, but my grandparents came out to stay with me. I had MTV on most of the day, and my grandmother did NOT understand the concept. Here's an example:

Me (about the 'Goodbye' video with the soldier and the woman and child): Oh, this video is sad.
Grandma: It got sad so quickly!
Me: It's just a music video.
Grandma: It's over already?
Me: It's short... it's the length of a song.
Grandma (a few minutes later): Is this a program you can follow the story of?
Me: It's MTV. It's like listening to the radio, only there are videos to go with the songs.
Grandma: Okay.
Grandma (watching a commercial): I don't think I like this group.
Me: It's a commercial.
Grandma: Okay. I still don't like them.
(TRL came on, NSYNC was hosting)
Grandma (watching the Britney video): There are girls in NSYNC?
Me: No, this is a top ten video countdown. Of all videos on MTV. NSYNC is just the guest today.
Grandma: Okay.
Grandma (watching 'In Too Deep' video): They're so skinny! Which is the one you like?
Me: This isn't NSYNC. It's Sum 41. NSYNC is just hosting... these are the top ten videos on all of MTV by a lot of different groups. NSYNC's video will be on eventually.
Grandma: But this is on all day?
Me: No, this is TRL. It's a show. For the top ten videos.
Grandma: You've been watching it all day.
Me: No, before I was just watching videos. Now I'm watching the Top Ten videos.
Grandma (watching Blink 182, #3): We don't get this channel.
Me: Yes, you do. You just don't watch it. Uncle Chris watches it every time they visit.
Grandma: Channel 3 is regular programming by us.
Me: This isn't channel 3, this is the #3 video.
Grandma: These people won't be very popular. They're awful.
Me: They're #3, Grandma. They're already pretty popular.
Grandma: Well, they're terrible. You can't understand them. They just scream. I like hearing what they're saying.
Me (watching Gone): Here, Grandma, THIS is NSYNC's video.
Grandma: Oh, I like it. See? You can understand what they're saying!

So I'm not sure after all of that she understood the concept of MTV, but she sure tried her hardest!! My grandma's adorable. I love her to death. lol.

Posted by kate at 10:38 AM | Permalink | Comments (0)

Jess got home last night. I'm showing her how this blog thing works. Maybe I can get her to make one too. Heehee.

Posted by kate at 09:36 AM | Permalink | Comments (0)

I just finished reading A Walk to Remember by Nicholas Sparks last week. GOOD book. One of those books that makes ya stay up into the middle of the night to finish reading and then leaves you in tears. At least that's what it did to me. Anyway, I just saw on MTV News that they're making a movie out of it... and Mandy Moore is playing Jamie. She better be good! That's a really... complex role, I think. I like Mandy Moore, but it scares me a little that they're putting a singer into this movie. Hmmm. Oh well. I guess we'll see how it turns out!

Posted by kate at 08:01 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)

Woohoo! He shaved!! He's back to the single line of a goatee. Heehee. Happy kate! They were cute.

I want to brush my teeth. SOOO BAD. I am someone who brushes my teeth three or four times a day at the LEAST, and I haven't been able to brush them since yesterday morning. I haven't eaten anything chewable, either, but all I've been able to use is mouthwash and it's driving me NUTS. Ugh. Hopefully tomorrow...

Posted by kate at 05:14 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)

I was just talking to Emily online and she told me to watch TLC. I don't know what channel TLC is, but I started flipping through. Never found TLC, but I came across NSYNC being interviewed on CBS Chicago! I wouldn't have changed the channel from MTV if she hadn't had me look for TLC, so that was pretty lucky. The boys looked HOT. I missed the beginning, but I came in on JC saying "I just need to say 'Waukeegan Kankakee.' I just like the way that sounds. 'Waukeegan Kankakee'." Lol! SO cute. (Those are towns around here, by the way...) Joey shaved his head!!!! Ahhh!!! Chris was wearing this adorable hat and glasses. Have I mentioned that I LOVE Chris in glasses? JC looked really adorable, too, but I couldn't tell if he'd shaved that scruff or not. Hope so. They were talking about the Atlantis concert Friday. Lookin' good!!

Posted by kate at 11:30 AM | Permalink | Comments (0)

My. Teeth. Hurt. I know all my posts from today have focused on this whole wisdom teeth thing, but I can't help it. Agghhh.

I got called up to do this music survey thing today. I was a bit annoyed that she called me at home at 9:00 on a Monday, but it was actually kind of fun. They played, like, forty song clips (literally) and had me rate them from unfamiliar, would change the station, tired of hearing it, no opinion, like, and favorite. Most of the songs she played fell into the "like" category. I got I'm a Slave 4 U, Gone, Hero... Gone and Hero, I think, were the only two I put into favorites. I can't even remember what else I heard, there were so many. So who knows? Maybe I'll be responsible for shaping the broadcasting menus for some radio stations up here. Cool! Power to the little people!

Posted by kate at 09:53 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)

I'm so sexay! I look like a chipmunk with a toothache. I even get to wear ice packs in a pair of nylons tied around my head. WOOHOO!!! In case y'all were worried, I made it! They gave me an IV to administer the anesthesia. Hmmm. I hadn't realized that's how they were going to do it. Probably a good thing, or I might have been even more nervous. Needles and kate don't mix. lol. I'm a little woozy from the Vicadin, but I can't sit in front of the TV anymore. I can't watch the tube that long. And while my mom is cooking this wonderful dinner... I'll get to eat applesauce, jello, and pudding. Can't wait.

Posted by kate at 04:49 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)

Time until Wisdom Teeth Removal: thirty-eight minutes. Eeeeeek!!! I got up with the normal amount of time I usually give myself to get ready, but I forgot that I wasn't eating anything and wasn't putting on any make-up, so I've got time to spare. I actually did my hair nice, though... reasons were a mixture between having lots of time to kill and the realization that I'm not wearing contacts or make-up and my face is going to be all puffy and I'm going to feel like crap, so I may as well have one thing look nice. lol. And as luck would have it, I'm having a really good hair day. What a waste! Oh well. Wish me luck! =/

Posted by kate at 07:26 AM | Permalink | Comments (0)

*NSYNC (yes, posting about them AGAIN... leave me alone) is going to be on NFL Under the Helmet on Nov. 24... they were interviewed by Brittany Favre. I just read a little section of the interview. It's cute. I think I'll have to try to remember to watch the whole thing. =)

Posted by kate at 01:32 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)

Didn't get to see the meteor shower last night. =( It was CLOUDY. I'm very sorry I missed it. Did anyone get to see it?

Posted by kate at 10:25 AM | Permalink | Comments (0)

Found this question on Topics Blog. (Thanks Krissy!) Carolyn, you should go there if you're having trouble thinking of things to post on. Heehee. There are some fun questions. Anyway, here's the one I picked:

* If your bank account was bottomless for a single day and you could buy all of the things that you've been wanting for the past few months, what would you buy? You cannot include things that you have not thought of previously.

This is something I've been thinking a lot about lately (well, in similar form, as I'm pretty sure I never considered that my bank account might become bottomless for a day). I would, first and foremost, prepay a couple vacations. Or if that's not possible, at least buy the plane tickets. That's the most expensive thing, because half the places I want to go, I could stay with people. I'd schedule vacations to Orlando, Los Angeles, and New York City. I miss Florida SOOOO much. I just want to go back and visit everyone again, see what changes they've made to Disney... Yeah. I'd definitely go there. I haven't been to LA in forever, and I'd love to visit Noelle and Elaina again. Plus, LA is just cool. I've wanted to live there since I was in the fourth or fifth grade and reading Sweet Valley Twins. And New York I only visited for three days last year. That was NOT enough time. So I'd like to go back and redo some stuff.

I'd also buy a spankin' new computer that doesn't have a tendency to die and that does have enough room left to put all the stuff on it I want to have. With it I'd get a scanner and a CD burner. And maybe a cool new printer. My printer came free with the computer I've got now. ha ha. Last thing I'd buy is a CD player with a 3- or 5-disk changer. The CD player I have is one I got for Christmas in the eighth grade... not too high-tech and it's started eating my CD's. =/ CDs tend to skip in there when they won't skip ANYWHERE else, and I've cleaned the darn thing, so I don't know what the problem is!

Anyhow, that's what I'd do for ME with my Bottomless-For-A-Day bank account. Lol. Sounds kinda selfish, I guess.... ha ha. I'd be really happy if I only got my vacation to Florida, though. That would be plenty for me. The other stuff would be fun, but I haven't been to Florida since last March (and then, only for a total of like 36 hours), so.... yeah. That's about it.

Posted by kate at 10:24 AM | Permalink | Comments (0)

Don't forget to look at the meteor shower tonight!! Best time to view it is between 3 and 5 am. It will be the biggest and most elaborate meteor shower until 2099 (and we, presumably, won't be around to see it then...) So this is your chance, folks!

Posted by kate at 05:19 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)

I just bought a jean jacket!!! I have been eyeing this jacket at the GAP for months, but it was $50. And I don't have fifty dollars. Especially not to spend on a jacket I don't really need. Rent is more important. <.g> Anyhow, I went shopping today with Tammy and Emily, STRICTLY looking only for birthday presents for my mom and dad. But there it was, on the sale rack... my jean jacket. For $29. I almost didn't get it. But it WAS twenty dollars cheaper than it had been since I started admiring it many moons ago... and Emily is a bad influence when one wants to go shopping without buying anything for oneself. So I caved. And when I got to the register... guess how much my jean jacket cost?? SEVEN DOLLARS AND FORTY-EIGHT CENTS. Yes, ladies and gentlemen, I got my fifty-dollar GAP jacket for under eight dollars. I about squealed at the salesgirl. It made my day!! Woohoo!!

Posted by kate at 05:10 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)

Another nice day in November in Illinois. I'm getting spoiled here! I hear it's supposed to get cold this week, though. Sadness. I uploaded a bunch more poems and a couple short stories on my Journal page.

Carolyn also updated her blog to include poetry on her Journal page as well as pictures up on her Links page. Check 'em out. I'm on there. <.g> It's an awful picture of me, but I'm there. ha ha.

And, just cuz I can...

Posted by kate at 12:09 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)

I just wanted to say Happy Thanksgiving to the, like, two of you who read this and live in the US. <.g> I'm heading home for the week for Fall Break in about ten minutes. I'm getting my wisdom teeth removed on Monday, so I will be out of the loop for a couple days and probably not updating frequently.

Saw Harry Potter today. It was cute. The three main actors were ADORABLE. I enjoyed it muchly. And that's all I'll say for those of you who have not seen it. =)

Anyhow, the weekend shall begin shortly! Woohoo!!

Posted by kate at 04:29 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)

Abstract DONE. Woohoo!! And I messed around some more with html. Shelley, I blame YOU for this. <.g> I fixed some of the navigation at the bottom of my blog and added a "writings" page under the Journal button. So far it only has two little poems I scrawled in the margins of my notebook during class which really aren't very good at all, but it's a start. When I go home for Thanksgiving (Tomorrow! Woohoo!!), I may pull out my Creative Comp notebook from high school and root through some things, see what I can come up with to make that page more exciting. Anyway, it is time for bed. And I shall leave you with a happy picture. =)

Posted by kate at 11:39 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)

Okay, so this was my day: Studied for my exam. Went to class, failed the exam (or so we suppose). Came home, started my abstract for Children and the Media. Went to the Fun Doctor (aka the Women's Healt Unit at our medical center). Went to class. Came home, worked on my abstract. Went to class. Came home, worked on my abstract. And so we stand.

So... Fun Doctor. I only have one thing to say. You know how people attempt to cause pain somewhere else in an attempt to transfer the pain away from where it REALLY hurts? Yeah... I dug the hell out of my finger with my thumb nail. Too bad it didn't help an ounce.

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

It's funny how weather can COMPLETELY change my mood. It's GORGEOUS outside. Practically 70 degrees, sunny, and the sky is Florida-blue. There's just a gentle breeze. A PERFECT fall day, in my opinion. And funnily enough, it's the middle of November. Who'da thunk? The weather has made me not even care that I possibly did quite poorly on my exam just now. lol. I wrote four pages of my essay on how the University of Illinois was governed, organized, and represented through culture, drawing on the book on Disney's Celebration and New Urbanism as well as the paper on the Hollywood Redevelopment Project to demonstrate and support my argument. It was a damn good essay, if I do say so myself. And then I reread the question and realized that it was asking about how Champaign-Urbana was governed, organized, and represented through culture, NOT how the U of I was. Oops!! My bad. lol. So I quick tried to tie all of the U of I stuff into Champaign-Urbana for the final three pages. We'll see how I did on that. ha ha. Such a shame, though. I was so ON THE MARK with my U of I essay, if only it had been answering the correct question. lol. But my teacher likes me, so *hopefully* he will give me a decent grade anyway. If the test was how well we argued using the readings, I did that... just didn't quite argue the exact thing he was telling me to. College should be all about free thinking, though, right? Right. =)

And Gone is on BET. I have seen it her a few times, which I think is really cool. Crossing genres. Justin should be happy... he thinks he's black anyway. Yay for Gone being #6 on the BET countdown!! Now to write my abstract for tomorrow....

Posted by kate at 11:02 AM | Permalink | Comments (0)

I am exhausted. Like, literally. I'm going to crash pretty soon. Little things are bugging me and upsetting me. I'm irritable and kinda pissy. lol. I have had not enough sleep and way TOO much to do this week. I can't WAIT for my week off next week. Except that I also have a TON of work to do, even though there are no classes, and I am getting my wisdom teeth removed. Sure hope that won't affect my grades on finals... lol.

I have an exam tomorrow. I said that already in an earlier post. I just don't know what's going to be on the exam. I'm a little bit afraid, but tired enough not to care nearly as much as I should. I also have an abstract of a study due on Friday, which I haven't started. Haven't even read the study. Ugh. How do I let myself get so behind? It really shouldn't be that hard... I might just have another late night Thursday night. But Friday afternoon we are seeing HARRY POTTER!! Woohoo!! VERY exciting. heehee.

This is the weekend of doctor's appointments, too. I will be poked and prodded a million different ways. Something to look forward to, huh? Tomorrow starts it all with a Fun Doctor appointment. Catch the sarcasm there. I am seriously debating which will be worse: gynecologist or wisdom teeth. It's a toss-up, I swear. Saturday morning I have an orthodontist appointment at 7:30. That should be illegal. So much for catching up on sleep. We'll save that for when I'm all on drugs. At the orthodontist they will be affixing some porcelain to my teeth so that my new invisalign have something to grab on to to move my teeth down. Sounds pretty cool, actually. That they can move my teeth that much without actually attaching braces. Heehee. And then after my 7:30 orthodontist appointment, I have a 10:45 allergist appointment. More pricks with needles. <.shudder> This should be the last round of testing, though, so NO MORE NEEDLES after Saturday. Thank GOD. And THEN to round off the weekend of doctors appointments, I have the aforementioned wisdom teeth removal Monday morning. Anesthesia. What a good time. Never been knocked out before. Never actually been in the hospital before... new experiences abound! Anyway, this is a big ol' TMI post, I believe. I roll my eyes when my grandmother starts talking incessantly about all her doctors... now I'm doing it. I'm too young to be turning into my grandmother. <.g> I think I need to go to bed. Sleepy!

Posted by kate at 10:45 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)

Today I got a lot of things checked off my to-do list. I went to the speech com media room to see if I could get a copy of a documentary for my paper (have to ask my professor instead), I went to the psych building to pick up my approval form for the research I'm helping with next semester, went to psych advising to get the call number to register for the research and went to the LAS office to get approved for taking an overload next semester. 19 hours. Eeek. The only thing I didn't do was officially declare psych as my double major... woops. And I still have to study for my exam that's tomorrow.

I got this little test in an email this morning, and I thought it was cute. I'm Zoe. I haven't watched Sesame Street recently enough (I assume... I don't remember a Zoe from my Sesame Street days... I remember Prairie Dawn, but no Zoe, but maybe she was there and I just didn't pay attention) to know who Zoe is or if I should be happy or insulted that my personality is like her's, but that's who this test told me I was like. <.g>

Sesame Street Character Test

1) What describes your perfect date?
a) Candlelight dinner for two
b) Amusement park
c) Rollerblading in the park
d) Rock concert
e) See a movie

2) What is your favorite type of music?
a) Rock and Roll
b) Alternative
c) Soft Rock
d) Classical
e) Popular

3) What is your favorite type of movie?
a) Comedy
b) Horror
c) Musical
d) Romance
e) Documentary

4) Which of the following jobs would you chose if you were given only these choices?
a) Waiter/Waitress
b) Sports Player
c) Teacher
d) Policeman
e) Bartender

5) Which would you rather do if you had an hour to waste?
a) Work out
b) Read
c) Watch TV
d) Listen to the radio
e) Sleep

6) Of the following colors, which do you like the best?
a) yellow
b) white
c) sky blue
d) teal
e) red

7) Which one of the following would you like to eat right now?
a) ice cream
b) pizza
c) sushi
d) pasta
e) salad

8) What is your favorite holiday?
a) Halloween
b) Christmas
c) New Year's
d) Valentine's Day
e) Thanksgiving

9) If you could go to any of the following places, which would it be?
a) Paris
b) Spain
c) Las Vegas
d) Hawaii
e) Hollywood

10) Of the following, who would you rather spend time with?
a) Someone who is smart
b) Someone with good looks
c) Someone who is a party animal
d) Someone who has fun all the time
e) Someone who is very emotional

Now total up your points and find your character below:

1 a=4 pts b=2 pts c=5 pts d=1 pt e=3 pts
2 a=2 pts b=1 pt c=4 pts d=5 pts e=3 pts
3 a=2 pts b=1 pt c=3 pts d=4 pts e=5 pts
4 a=4 pts b=5 pts c=3 pts d=2 pts e=1 pt
5 a=5 pts b=4 pts c=2 pts d=1 pt e=3 pts
6 a=1 pt b=5 pts c=3 pts d=2 pts e=4 pts
7 a=3 pts b=2 pts c=1 pt d=4 pts e=5 pts
8 a=1 pt b=3 pts c=2 pts d=4 pts e=5 pts
9 a=4 pts b=5 pts c=1 pt d=2 pts e=3 pts
10 a=5 pts b=2 pts c=1 pt d=3 pts e=4 pts

(10-17 points): You are OSCAR. You are wild and crazy and you know it. You know how to have fun, but you may take it to extremes. You know what you are doing though, and are much in control of your own life. People don't always see things your way, but that doesn't mean that you should do away with your beliefs. Try to remember that your wild spirit can lead to hurting yourself and others.

(18-26 points) You are ERNIE. You are fun, friendly, and popular. You are a real crowd pleaser. You have probably been out on the town your share of times, yet you come home with the values that your mother taught you. Marriage and children are important to you, but only after you have fun. Don't let the people you please influence you to stray.

(27-34 points) You are ELMO. You are cute, and everyone loves you. You are a best friend that no one takes the chance of losing. You never hurt feelings and seldom have your own feelings hurt. Life is a breeze. You are witty and calm most of the time. Just keep clear of backstabbers, and you are worry free.

(35-42 points) You are ZOË. You are a lover. Romance, flowers, and wine are all you need to enjoy yourself. You are serious about all commitments. A family person. You call your Mom every Sunday, and never forget a Birthday. Don't let your passion for romance get confused with the real thing.

(43-50 points) You are BERT. You are smart, a real thinker. Every situation is approached with a plan. You are very healthy in mind and body. You teach strong family values. Keep your feet planted in them, but don't overlook a bad situation when it does happen.

Posted by kate at 04:44 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)

I have an exam tomorrow. I think this is ridiculous, personally. We had an exam on October 25. We had class on the 30th, then no class on the 1st (professor was out of town). We had class on the 6th and the 8th, and again on the 13th (yesterday). Our exam is tomorrow, the 15th. FOUR classes between exams. Four. One, two, three, four. What on earth do you learn in four classes to be tested on??? I also have an abstract of my paper due in that class tomorrow. I'm thinking I will write the Road to Celebrity one, rather than the Tarzan one. Just because. I am completely divided between those two options. I think I might have more to say about Tarzan, but the paper is testing how well we integrate the class readings into our argument, and I think I have more readings about MTV, which would be the basis for the Road to Celebrity. Ugh. I'm SO TORN! Help me decide!

Posted by kate at 11:10 AM | Permalink | Comments (0)

Miggie, a little bird told me you were looking for pictures of The Pants from last night's MJ special. I'm a little short on time, so I couldn't find any *really* nice pictures, but this should give you a good idea: He does look oh-so-good <.g>

Oh, heck. While I'm on the subject (and at the message board where those pictures are anyway), I may as well share this little post. It's SO cute. I agree whole-heartedly. I actually have a very similar list of my own somewhere... ha ha. Now y'all think I'm a FREAK. <.g> Anyway, I present The JC Factor.

Posted by kate at 10:41 AM | Permalink | Comments (0)

I've noticed something about myself that's kind of confounding. Some people inherently annoy me more than others. And it's really not fair. Two people could do or say exactly the same thing and it would drive me crazy for one person and I'd be completely fine for the other. I have no idea why that is. Maybe it's the tone of voice or the attitude projected. I really haven't got a clue why it would be, but there are just some people who can't seem to win with me, and I have to constantly remind myself not to get mad at them. One person, in particular. I find myself telling myself just about every day that that's just the way she is and that I shouldn't take it as a personal jab at me when she talks to me like I have the IQ of an ant. I think that's it. She talks to me like I'm incompetent. And she could be telling me the EXACT same thing someone else told me, but from her, it's insulting. From anyone else, it's fine. <.shrug> And that translates into just about anything she says or does getting on my nerves. I take that back. I like her a lot. She's a good person and a decent friend. She just has some interpersonal communication issues. ha ha. I just find myself struggling to NOT talk to her the way she talks to me. I have to force myself not to get annoyed with her. Ah well. Such is life, right?

Posted by kate at 08:29 AM | Permalink | Comments (0)

Okay, before I stop my NSYNC blabbering, I just have to post one more picture. <.g> Because it is SO CUTE. I have to say, some of my favorite things about JC are his smiling eyes and his not perfect teeth. He has the most adorable smile. ha ha. Alright, I'm DONE talking about this subject. I'm not usually this nutty. I promise. heehee.

Posted by kate at 10:23 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)

I think I am certifiably insane. But if I am, Aarti is right there with me. Heehee. We were learning the Flopping Fish today. Okay, so that's not AT ALL what it's called, but I haven't a clue what it really is called. You know that move where you're on the ground and you kind of... flop like a fish? Lol. I don't know how better to describe it. [Update: I have just been informed that it is called The Worm. But when we do it... it looks WAY more like a flopping fish than a worm. ha ha] The thing that prompted it was watching Diary of Britney Spears on MTV. She tries it in there. And she tried it in her VMA commercial this year. Well, anyway. Aarti and I were trying that. Which put us in hysterics. Some pictures were taken, which will NOT be pretty. Ha ha.

We have also <.gulp> been trying to learn Pop. I know, I know, we are SO STUPID. Lol. We've got most of it down... we just need to make it look GOOD. We're far better at Pop than at the Flopping Fish. <.g> Shelley took some pictures of us trying to dance to Pop as well... these are going to be frightening when they get developed! God, and if I ever, ever, ever by some random and completely insane chance ran into nsync somehwere... they would NOT know I tried to learn their dance. HOW EMBARRASSING. I am SO NOT all about being a freaky fan. Of course, everything on this blog would say otherwise... lol. But seriously. IF (and that is the biggest "if" ever) I were to run into one of the guys, it would NOT be in a fan situation. I wouldn't want to meet them in an environment where I am the fan and they are the celebrities. I would want to meet them someplace where we are equals and my fandom is NOT an issue. And in that case, since they would not know I am a fan, my trying to learn Pop will never be brought up, so ALL is good. <.g>

I need to stop talking about nsync so much on here. My entire life really doesn't revolve around five men I've never met and never will meet. Really, it doesn't. ha ha. They're just so much fun to talk about on here... damn. I need to stop being so dorky. Ha ha.

Posted by kate at 09:55 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)

I'm all confused. I just heard "Girlfriend" is going to be NSYNC's next single. That was on the radio all summer by me! Well, not ALL summer. Ha ha. It waited for the CD to be released. But when Jill picked me up from the airport after our Washington, DC trip (which was... July 28th?), it was on the radio on the way home. That's the first time I heard it on the radio. I think it was out on the radio before "Gone" was. I guess I just assumed the radio station gown here in the corn fields weren't playing it, and then I forgot about it. Is it possible our radio station jumped the gun and played it before it was supposed to be released? I don't know how all of this stuff works... how they decide when and where to play what songs. <.shrug>

Here are some sexay photos from the Miami concert. Hoo boy. JC in camouflage.

Oh, I need to go to class!! We're watching the CLIO Awards, I think... should be FUN! Woohoo! But I'm gonna be late, late, late if I don't leave now.

Posted by kate at 02:01 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)

Happy Monday. I just got back from ushering the final men's exhibition basketball game. They won like 106 to 57 or something. Lol. And guess what? One of my supervisors is a huge NSYNC fan. Lol. Don't ask how that came up... I have NO idea. ha ha.

I exchanged Reblogger for BlogBack. My commenting device should be up and running again, so comment away!! I thrive on your comments. You wouldn't want me to shrivel up and die now, would you? Don't answer that...

Carolyn has a blog now!! Woohoo!

Posted by kate at 10:17 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)

Okay, one more post before I go to bed. I've been on a JC kick for the last couple hours straight... not that that's anything new, but still. Thought I'd jot down my little experience from last night. I was at home (as opposed to here at school) and I fell asleep to the TV, which I had put on sleep timer. I'd been sleeping for probably a half hour, forty-five minutes, and all of a sudden the realization that I was hearing JC popped into my dream. Enough to wake me up. I opened my sleepy eyes and tried to focus on the TV. The Celebrity Remix of "What's Going On" was on MTV, and JC was singing. He literally WOKE ME UP. Isn't that CRAZY?? Anyway, on that note... it's Bedtime for Bonzo. G'night!

Posted by kate at 12:24 AM | Permalink | Comments (0)

FUN interview!!

Here are some of my favorite questions:

(about an ex-girlfriend)
CG: Did she make you cry?
JC: Uh-huh. Yeah.
Awwww.... I'll give him a hug!

CG: Have you ever broken the rules?
Justin: Once in kindergarten, I peed my pants on purpose because the teacher wouldn't me go to the bathroom. Everbody was like, "Justin peed his pants!" and I stood up on my seat and I'm like (switches to squeaky voice) "That's right! The teacher wouldn't let me go to the bathroom!" I was the peeing Ferris Bueller.

CG: "I think I look just like..."
Joey: "I'm Chris, and I look just like Fievel the mouse!" (everyone totally cracks up, because it's true.)
Justin: "My name's JC, and I think I look just like Madonna!"
JC: (explaining) I don't look like anyone famous. I look plain.
Chris: I'm Lance, and I think I look just like my dad."
JC: "My name's Joey, and I think I look just like Blossom." (laughter)
Lance: Mine's easy. "I'm Justin, and I look like Ryan Phillippe."

CG: "When it comes to meeting girls, my best pickup line is..."
Joey: "I'm Chris and I say, 'You want tickets to the show?' "
Justin: "I'm JC, and I meet girls by using my quietness, my mystery."
Chris: How 'bout this one: "I'm Lance. You know that third song? I produced that." (laughter)
JC: "My name's Joey. My pickup line is (switches to cartoon voice) I can do the Bobby voice." (laughter)
Lance: "I'm Justin, and I don't need a line. I just sing a bit and all the girls are like "ohhhhh.' "

(They each wrote anonymous questions to each other)
CG: "Justin: Have you ever looked in the mirror naked and done the shake-it dance and thought you looked good?" And they define "shake-it dance" as "move your hips from side to side." (Everyone practically dies laughing)
Justin: That questions is so Chris. My answer is: Every morning when I wake up. Right after I get out of the shower, I do the shake-it dance.

CG: Okay..."Joey: If a plane crashes on the border of Canada and the US, where do they bury the survivors?"
Joey: Aha! You can't bury survivors in the water! (everyone cracks up)
CG: What?! Where'd the water come from? The point is, you don't bury survivors!
Joey: Don't write that, please, I suck! I thought they were dead!
Poor Joey!!

So those are just highlights. Read the entire thing here. (Or the link at the top of this entry... goes to the same place <.g>

Posted by kate at 12:11 AM | Permalink | Comments (0)

The girls of Apartment #17 turned all domestic today! Yes, we COOKED. Well, Aarti and I did, anyway. Shelley wasn't feeling well and Sarah was at dinner with Brad. It took us, like, three hours to make dinner, but it turned out really well. We made pumpkin soup from scratch. We took pumpkins, skinned them, cut them up, and made soup out of them. Really yummy. We also made knoedl (however that is spelled... bread-like stuff). You are supposed to wrap it in cheese cloth, tie it up, and boil it, but we had no string (unless we wanted to turn dinner into a Bridget-Jones-esque fiasco) and no cheese cloth, so we used paper towels, no ties. Lol. It worked relatively well.... tasted good at least! We also "made" sangria. It came pre-mixed, but we cut up all the fruit. Also very yummy. I am enjoying my introduction into the world of wine. Tried two different kinds at our Prelude to Thanksgiving Saturday night.

And for after dinner... The Cocktail Hour.

Example:

Posted by kate at 11:03 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)

Long day. <.yawn> Got up far earlier than is natural for a Saturday morning to go to the orthodontist. I got my first set of Invisalign. The things are COOL. lol. When they told me I needed braces to fix the front of my bite (my teeth are relatively straight, it's just that my top and bottom teeth don't hit, so I can't actually bite anything small with my front teeth... which could cause receeding gums... which is a bad thing), I freaked out. I did NOT want to be a 21-year-old college student in the midst of a job search and interviews with braces. And who knew you could actually pull teeth DOWN with something that is removable? I have to get these little porcelain knobs put on my teeth next week so the invisalign have something to grab on to, but it's still WAY better than a mouthful of metal.

But my teeth hurt. Oww. Poor me. =( lol. My cousins from Kansas and Wisconsin were all at my Grandma's today, and my aunt was like "Instead of a birthday party, we should throw kate a pity party," because apparently I kept making these pained faces. I didn't mean to! It was good to see everyone, though, and Weston (whose 13th birthday is 2 days after my 21st) and I shared a birthday cake. I mean that as in both of our names were on it, not that we each had half. lol. We actually got made fun of for the smallness of the pieces we cut. It was a cake made to feed 16-18. There were 13 of us there, and there was half a cake left. lol.

On a different note... here is a fun link. Tonya called it Spot the Popstar.

Posted by kate at 12:27 AM | Permalink | Comments (0)

I'm home. Yay! Doing laundry as we speak. I got to see my dad's new office today. It's NICE. Big and spacious. Good move. Then we went to IKEA and got Aarti some shelves (and got us some yummy cookies), and then we went to Woodfield and did a little browse-shopping. I bought a birthday present for Emily, but that's it. Then we came home and made carmel apples. We're working on setting up a blog for Aarti now. And Carolyn is making one too. WOOHOO!! I have more blogs to link to mine!! Yay! =) But we are getting veeeeeerrrrrry sleeeeeeeepyyyyy. Nighty night!

Posted by kate at 10:22 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)

Good morning! Today is going to be a good day, I think. One of those feelings. <.g> My exams are over (until next week...) and it's just about the weekend. I'm going home. Aarti is coming with me, which is cool. We're going to stop by my dad's new office (they just moved... exciting!), then go to IKEA to get Aarti some shelves, and maybe Woodfield for a little shopping, and then home. Mom's making dinner. I can't wait! My cousins Katie, Becca and Weston are at Grandma Peggy and Grandpa Jim's this weekend, too. (Oh look, here's Gone at #3 from yesterday's TRL... they cut a LOT of it today. Sad). Anyway... I'm looking forward to this weekend. Can't wait to see everyone. We're having a Prelude to Thanksgiving, since none of my aunts and uncles come back here for the real Thanksgiving. Ooo, maybe we'll celebrate my birthday early, too! <.g> Maybe not. ha ha. Still have 2 and a half weeks to go. Then I'm LEGAL. Wohoo! Okay, going to do my hair so I look cute for my dad's office. =)

Posted by kate at 07:52 AM | Permalink | Comments (0)

Woohoo!!! Guess what I did ALL BY MYSELF?? I posted PICTURES in my entry about Atlanta! They're abnormally large, for some reason... don't really know how to change that. Hmmm. Oh well. They're there at least. <.g> The concert pictures were taken by Carolyn with my camera. I would be so lucky to have seats as close as hers were. lol. Next time! =)

Posted by kate at 09:57 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)

Have you ever gotten that feeling that's triggered by your senses (the way the air smells, a song on the radio) that throws you back into something you've experienced before? I'm not talking about deja vu... this is more like being there again, only not. A snapshot of your past. This morning when I walked out of my apartment, I was in Florida. I'm not talking about memories. God knows I have hundreds of those engraved in my mind and my heart (and scrapbook <.g>), but those are of specific events. "This one time when..."-type of stuff. This was throwing me back in time to something I'd done a hundred times, but to no one time in particular.

From the color of the trees to the seas of crunchy leaves decorating the sidewalks, it's apparent that we are smack dab in the middle of a full-fledged autumn. But today when I walked outside, it was February, maybe March. And I wasn't crossing Busey and walking down Green Street, but rather I was strolling up the long sidewalk past the back of the Lion King show on my right, Pride Rock on my left, and Cast Services just beyond. I was making the 10-minute trek from the cast parking lot to the Outdoor Foods Base backstage of Disney's Animal Kingdom. The temperature of the air was in the low 60's (somewhat atypical for an Illinois November but just about normal for a spring Florida morning) and there was the gentlest of breezes trying to keep my hair from staying tucked behind my ears. It smelled like Florida. The sky was blue and the air was fresh and clean. It's days like this morning that make me want to pick up tomorrow and move back to Orlando. This is what I was talking about a "snapshot." Just a glimpse of something I did every single morning. It only happens with that kind of normal, everyday stuff. A flash. Of course I have memories, which are longer, more detailed recollections of specific events, but it's those snapshots that get me. The "I could be doing this right now" thoughts that make me long for that time a year and a half ago.

Perhaps it's because I'm reading The Celebration Chronicles for one of my classes, but I have been wanting, needing, to go back to Florida lately. I've had dreams about being there. I've had tons of these little "snapshot" experiences. I'll be driving down Lincoln and all of a sudden I'm transported to Osceola Parkway. I'll be strolling on the Quad and all of a sudden I'm walking by the Clubhouse at Vista Way. Why do my senses and my memory conspire against me to cause me to miss being in the Sunshine State soooo much?

Posted by kate at 12:17 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)

WHEW. I made it through today. Big sigh. Now I just have to make it through tomorrow... deep breath. I can do it! I can do it! This was my day: 9:00-10:00 Children and the Media. 10:00-1:00 study for psych. 1:00-2:00 Public Relations. 2:00-3:30 Psych exam. Which I failed... damn. WHY does he ask such OBSCURE questions??? "What was Patterson's method?" I have NEVER been asked to know research by JUST the researcher's name. Never. And I've taken a lot of classes where we've read studies. At least tell me what Patterson was studying and I will be able to tell you her method. YEESH. Anyway, 3:30-4:00 Study for Advertising. 4:00-5:00 Meeting with grad students about research. 5:00-9:30 Usher men's basketball game. They won. It was an exhibition. Heehee.

So tomorrow I have my advertising exam. I had BETTER do better on it than I did on my psych exam today. And all I want to do is write my story. <.pout>

OOOOOOO!!!! I just remembered!! There is a Disney Moments parade in Chicago on the 17th!!! YES! I'm soooo excited. I miss Florida and Disney SO much. =( But I am WAY excited to see the parade! It goes down Michigan Avenue. Woohoo!! Happy thoughts. =)

Posted by kate at 10:46 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)

Tonya says I need to post an Ode to Atlanta entry. So here it is. For all the world (or, you know, the four of you who read this <.g>) to know how utterly psycho my friends and I are. lol. Um... I have a feeling this is going to be a LOOOOONG post. I get wordy. ha ha.

ODE TO ATLANTA
Jessica (my 18-year-old sister) wanted to do something cool with her high school graduation money. She was talking about going to the NSYNC concert in Kansas City (after, of course, we had been to the one in Chicago in June...). But my friend Carolyn (who I had met at Disney) lives in Atlanta, and Carolyn is the biggest NSYNC fan I know. And I hadn't seen her in a while, so Jess and I decided to go to THAT concert, instead.

I had to work, so we had a late flight out Friday night. I forget what time it was, but I do know that we arrived in Atlanta around midnight. Carolyn was there to meet us. She had been sitting in the parking garage at Permiter Mall's Nordstrom all afternoon, because on Saturday morning, Chris Kirkpatrick would be there for his FuMan Skeeto Invasion Tour. Chris is Carolyn's favorite. And I mean her favorite. So she picked Jess and me up at the airport and we went back to the mall, where about 30 people were already in line. But never fear! Carolyn had saved us spots as, like, # 7 and 8 in line or something.

We met some nice people and some kinda crazy people. At about 2 am, Tonya and Allison, two of Carolyn's friends, showed up and ran over to us FRANTICALLY. They had seen Chris in the hotel's bar. That's right, they (and we) had rooms at the very same hotel NSYNC was staying at. So, of course, Carolyn just *had* to go get something from the room. Right then. lol. So we headed for the hotel, having our spots in line saved by sleeping bags. Yeah, it worked.

We got lost on the way to the hotel, but ended up making it eventually. We didn't see Chris. =( We made it back to the mall around 4-ish. Slept for about half an hour, then got up to look pretty for Chris. The people at Nordstrom were SUPER cool, giving us water and stuff. We finally got let in to the store around 10 or so and had to wait in line in THERE some more. This radio guy Woody was being nutty and they were filming the line and projecting it on this huge screen in the parking garage, where about 500 fans were waiting to meet Chris. Woody got Carolyn up to "practice" meeting Chris with this cardboard cutout of him some girl had brought along. Carolyn was embarrassed, we all thought it was hysterical. We each had nametags. Allison's said "I'm with Stupid" with an arrow. Carolyn's said "I'm Stupid." Mine and Jess's weren't as creative. lol.

Anyway, so finally Chris arrived. We got autographs. When I went up there, I was like "Hey, what's up?" and he was like "Not too much, how are you?" and I said "I'm great, how are you?" and he said "I'm great, too!" and he was done signing... so I said "Thank you SO much!" and he winked and told me to have a good day. Pretty generic conversation. When Jess went up, he saw her name tag (mine had been hidden by my hoodie) and asked her where Stupid went. Because Allison and Carolyn had been before us, and he recognized that all the nametag people were together. So, yeah. Carolyn liked that a lot. =)

After that, we got lost on the way back to the hotel. Again. When we got there, there was a line of people waiting for NSYNC to check out. Here's where the crappy timing comes in. Carolyn was supposed to meet this lady at the soundcheck at 2. It was like 1:30. The lady had at least one soundcheck ticket for Carolyn. Well, we were waiting to see the guys check out. Jess REALLY wanted to see JC. We saw Lance and Joey leave (and got some stalker-esque top-of-their-heads pictures, as we were standing in the parking deck looking down at the sidewalk where their buses were parked), and we saw Chris arrive from the mall. We were waiting and waiting for JC. We HAD to go to the soundcheck, because we were already way late, so we did not get to see JC. Or Justin, but we didn't care about him. lol.

Jess and I didn't have soundcheck tickets. We were hoping to maybe find some. Carolyn's friend T came up to us, and she'd gotten two tickets. One for herself and one for Carolyn. We couldn't find the lady Carolyn had been SUPPOSED to meet, so Jessica and I went to the CNN center while everyone else went to the soundcheck. Bummer. Turns out if Carolyn had met the lady, the lady had had TWO extra passes. So if we hadn't been waiting to see JC at the hotel, both Jess and I would have gotten in. Double bummer. We missed JC at the hotel because we left for soundcheck and we missed getting into the soundcheck because we were at the hotel. <.sigh> Sadness.

When Carolyn got out, we went back to the hotel to change and went to the concert. We missed ALL the opening acts. Woops! Oh well. We'd seen them in Chicago, anyway. We had much better seats than in Chicago. In Chicago, we were just about at the back corner of the stadium. Here, we were in the balcony, but we were about halfway between the two stages (so about 1/4 of the way back in the stadium). The concert was AWESOME. Woohoo!! Afterwards we went back to the hotel... NSYNC went to California to film the Teen Choice Awards... and everyone was on their merry way.

So, that's about it. Jess and I flew home Sunday afternoon. We'd had NO sleep all weekend, but it was fun. There, Tonya... Happy? Heehee. Now I need dinner, and I need to STUDY. Eeeeeek!!!! Psych exam in 19 hours.

Posted by kate at 05:54 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)

It's already 5:00. Where did the day go? I spent it studying for advertising. And as soon as I get off the computer, I'll be spending the rest of my evening studying for child psych. And tomorrow is going to be Hell Day. Plus, I have to think of a paper topic for my final project in my Persuasion and the Arts class. I'm going to write out my ideas here so that I don't forget, since I talked to my professor today. I have two possibilities. We basically have to incorporate four of the readings into a media example. A lot of what we have been talking about is self-fashioning and creating identity... how what we consume defines who we are. Another topic is how one media transfers audiences to another. (Necessary background <.g>)

Possibility One:
How MTV creates stars. A few of the readings we had to read this semester dealt with how MTV works... how someone gets to be on MTV and how MTV works with that singer/group in promoting them and basically telling the audience who to think is cool, who to listen to, etc. The media example I would use would be NSYNC Road to Celebrity, since it covers all their big MTV moments from the beginning through now. The argument would be (like I already said) that MTV creates its stars and tells American youth who to listen to. I would incorporate readings on formulating identities, on the history of MTV, on youth's connection to MTV, and a documentary called The Merchants of Cool , which talked about MTV's marketing strategies and how MTV created Limp Bizkit. The documentary was very cynical... I don't think I would be so much. <.shrug>

Possibility Two:
Disney. Disney is the ULTIMATE at transferring audiences between media. From the theme parks to the Disney Channel to ABC to ZoogDisney.com to the Disney Store to Disney Adventures Magazine to their films to CDs to Radio Disney... basically they've got it covered. My media example would be Tarzan and I would talk about how this film was talked about through Movie Surfers on TV, how it was shown on ABC, how its merchandise is sold in the Disney Store, how there are Tarzan shows at Walt Disney World, etc. The readings I would incorporate would deal with audience as a commodity, a Tommy Hilfiger reading that talks about mass customization (comparing the two), probably a reading on how Lifetime got its audience, etc.

Any thoughts?? =)

Posted by kate at 05:19 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)

Is it really sad that it's only Tuesday and I'm already looking forward to the weekend? <.g> I feel like my entire week is already spoken for, so why not, right? I hate feeling like I have no time. Ugh. I remember this past July, like around the 15th, the ENTIRE rest of my summer was planned out. Every single day. And I moved down here August 18, mind you. It was like... where did my summer go?? Now I'm beginning to feel that way again. So much to squeeze in before the semester's over and I feel like I've got no time. Can't we slow things down a bit? Ah well. I'd wanted to surf around a little this morning and find some fun links to share, but I need to finish reading for my 9:30 class. Sorry. heehee. Happy Tuesday, anyway!

Posted by kate at 07:53 AM | Permalink | Comments (0)

Okay. STRESS!! I just realized I have to usher for the mens basketball game on Wednesday. On top of having class from 1-4 and a meeting from 4-5, ushering will go from 5-10. I have an exam on Wednesday and another one on Thursday (the Thursday one being most important). I have to meet with Amie (my mentee... if that's a word) Tuesday afternoon for at least an hour, but she usually wants to stay much longer than that. I have literally 250 pages to read for my Tuesday/Thursday Persuasion and the Arts class, on top of rereading all the psych articles for my exam Wednesday AND reading my advertising book for Thursday. AAAACK!!! Basically, I have *today* to read and study for everything. Ugh. Why do I torture myself?

I needed to find a happy JC picture to make myself feel better. So, in honor of having seen the new "What's Goin' On" video...

Posted by kate at 04:23 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)

Spankin' New Music Week on MTV means good videos all week long! Woohoo!!

Posted by kate at 10:56 AM | Permalink | Comments (0)

GOOD morning. Got up, worked out... got Shelley to work out with me... woohoo!! And the goodness of my morning is directly proportional to the goodness of the music videos I see. <.g> "Gone" (self-explanatory... starts the morning off right!), "I'm a Slave 4U" (It's grown on me. Shut up), All-Star Remix of "What's Goin' On" (The new video, not the disaster one... mmmm. JC. Need I say more?), "Hero" (Probably my favorite song at the moment), and Shakira "Wherever, Whenever" or "Whenever, Wherever" (whichever... lol). See? GOOD morning! <.g>

Okay, what do I need to do today? Children and the Media at 9. Come home, finish copying notes from last Wednesday. Finish reading Gender Differentiation. Public Relations at 1. Social and Cognitive Development at 2. 3:30-4, do more psych reading while waiting for 4:00 meeting about the research I might be helping with next semester. Come home, finish reading psych. Read tomorrow's Persuasion and the Arts. Email at least 3 places about internships for the summer. Okay, I've got a game plan. <.g> Time to head to class!

Posted by kate at 08:29 AM | Permalink | Comments (0)

Isn't this a cute picture? It's nothing new, but I just love it. Because... well... I love Disney, I love NSYNC, and it's always fun when two things I love come together so cutely. Heehee. Do you like my new page? Isn't it fun? I got lots of links and fun stuff on my sidebar. Took darn long enough! And I didn't finish my reading. Oh well. I have two more days to do that, right? Yup. Okay, bedtime.

Posted by kate at 10:57 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)

Alright! Woohoo! I've crossed off three things on my To Do List. And one thing isn't really urgent, so I think I'm doing just fine. <.g> Went to look at an apartment with Shelley. The place was NICE, but it's kind of far. :/ The extra three blocks would give me more exercise, which I guess is always a good thing... and on a day like today (which was absolutely GOREGOUS out), it would be great. I'm just thinking ahead to January when it's 7 degrees out with a windchill of -8 or something. Brrrrrr. So hmm. But it was big and spacious and nice. We'll see.

Posted by kate at 04:52 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)

Today will be productive. Yes. I've begun by reading one chapter in Gender Differentiation. Go me! There are still three left... darn. The first half of this book was so much more interesting than this half is. I'd so rather read about preschool children than apes. I will not work on my story until my To Do List is completed.

To Do List:
1. Read at least two of the three remaining chapters in Gender Differentiation
2. Read psych article for Monday
3. Reread psych Aggression articles (at least two)
4. Go look at apartment with Shelley and Meghan
5. Work out
6. Start reading persuasion article for Tuesday?

Posted by kate at 11:15 AM | Permalink | Comments (0)

So it's almost 2 a.m. My productive day was anything but. ha ha ha. I did get more of my story written, however, and I figured out a sketchy plotline for the (supposed) remainder of this thing. Now I just have to sit back and see where the story takes me. It's always fun writing these things, because I usually have little to no idea as to where the story is going. It surprises me as much as it would if I was just reading it. And then I NEED to write because I'm dying to find out what will happen next. Which is what puts me at two o'clock in the morning having accomplished nothing on my to-do list. Sleep. I need sleep. And I'll just HAVE to be productive tomorrow, right? Yes.

Posted by kate at 01:50 AM | Permalink | Comments (0)

Only Love

You thought you knew, but you had no idea.
You thought it was all about the smiles
The cuteness, the fact you were needed.
You thought it was all giggles and big blue eyes.
Simple. Fun. Rewarding.

Now you know differently.
You’re wiser. More grown up for it all.
Now you see the fussing, the messes.
The fact that you can’t even take a shower without someone else there.
It’s hard. You’re tired. And you’re responsible.

Completely and utterly responsible.
You have another life in your hands
To shape and mold, and it’s your job to do it right.
Don’t make a single mistake. Not one.
Don’t let the stress show. No one can know you’re exhausted.
No one can hear your soft crying in the blackness of night.
You asked for this.

Through the tears and the screaming,
The neediness and the worry,
There are the things that make it all worthwhile.
That one look of complete and unconditional love.
The smile, the tight grasp of a finger.
Your heart melts when you see that tiny face, hear the tinkling laughter.
You asked for this. There are no regrets. Only love.

Posted by kate at 01:16 AM | Permalink | Comments (0)

Okie dokie. Productive day = NOT productive. At all. It's 7:20 and I have done not one lick of homework. Woops. I've worked on my story a little... maybe I'll actually finish it someday. Meg and I are going ice skating. Wheee!! No one wants to come with us. Hmmm. Anyhow... yeah. That's it. Yes.

Posted by kate at 07:25 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)

I am having a ton of trouble forming coherent sentences today. Example: "Ohmygosh! I... already told you... yeah. Um... I was going to... nevermind... yeah. Yeah. So... yeah." Who knew the English language could be so difficult?

Posted by kate at 04:14 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)

Alrighty. My productive day hasn't continued to be quite so productive. But it's only 2:00. There's plenty more day left, right? (Left, right.. ha ha... didn't mean to do that, but it's amusing me... lol). Anyway. I went out to lunch with Greg and Meghan, then came home intending to do homework. I cleaned my room instead, which did need to be done anyway, and then Shelley got me to make an About Me page for this thing. So, yeah. There's an About Me page. lol. It's purely random and not much to get excited over, and perhaps one day I will actually sit down and be creative with it. But now, I NEED to get productive and read about gender segregation for my psych exam on Wednesday. Woohoo!

Posted by kate at 02:12 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)

Today has been a productive morning, and I aim to keep it that way throughout the entire day. I got up early (okay, early for a Saturday) and worked out while I watched Diary of Britney Spears. If that isn't inspiration to get in shape, I don't know what is! Then I went to Weight Watchers and I lost two pounds! Woohoo! I'm on my way to being slim, trim, and buff for my cruise in December. And it is a beeeea-utiful day outside today. Do you think if I opened my window, more annoying bugs would sneak in through the hole in the screen? Hmmmm. Might be worth it to let some of that nice breeze in. Screw it, window's open. lol. Now, in order to continue on my Path of Productivity, I need to get off the computer and READ, READ, READ. I have two exams this week. Eeek.

Posted by kate at 10:44 AM | Permalink | Comments (0)

Just saw Monsters, Inc. Cute movie. The little girl was ADORABLE. Awwwwwww. Then we snuck in for the last 20 minutes of On the Line. Heehee. LOVE the dubbing. I think the best parts of that movie are at the end. Got to see Joey being the crazy fan, caught some quality dubbing ("We really *messed* him over"), AND we got to see the Chris and Justin cameo thingy, which in itself is worth the $5.50 it would cost us to see the movie. But I have a killer headache, so I'm going to take my Advil and try to eat some dinner, because maybe that will help. =(

Posted by kate at 07:43 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)

Did you know that you can't receive mail if your name isn't correct? Which is odd, based on the masses of mail we still get addressed to the people who lived here last year, but perhaps things are different with junk mail. I could SWEAR that I have gotten mail sent to kate Starbuck before (when I lived at home), but again, maybe things are different for a house than for an apartment? Who knows. But apparently putting fun last names in place of real last names is something the post office frowns upon. Which is such a shame, because fun last names are so much more... FUN!

On a different note (yes, more random musings...), why does MTV feel the need to inject conflict into everything? I'm taking a persuasion and the arts class and we're talking a lot about MTV lately. The main subject here is how indentities are created, and it was brought up that the Real Wold and Road Rules aren't exactly what they seem... that a lot of the conflicts brought out in those shows were not big deals and were just expanded upon and highlighted, or else they were created by the directors. That seems just wrong. And then I was watching TRL yesterday and they had this whole "Battle of the Boy Bands" thing going on. Nsync and BSB were competing for first place, and they had this girl on the phone who was all "The battle will only end when people stop buying nsync CDs" and "Nsync will break up first because they were just thrown together... BSB is a family" yadda yadda yadda. Why can't we all just get along?? They're not the same. Get over it. Yeesh. I am a pretty solid Nsync fan, but I like a lot of Backstreet Boys songs. Nsync doesn't seem to dis BSB... at least not in what I've seen. So why is it a big deal? I'd expect BSB's song to be #1 being that it just premiered like two days ago. Gone has been on the countdown for over a month. Anyway. Just thought that was funny how TRL is making it into a huge Battle and everything. Pitting NSYNC fans against BSB fans.

Posted by kate at 02:33 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)

I just discovered who I would be if I were a fairy. Did you know you can find your fairy name? This discovery can be made at http://www.whiteelephant.ndo.co.uk/fairies/ . My name's Voodoo Auroraweb. I'm not so thrilled about the Voodoo part, but what am I gonna do? That's my name. I'm an energy bringer seen only in the mists of early morning. And I live in places hexed and tainted by black magic. Wonder what that's trying to tell me?

Posted by kate at 02:18 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)

Okay, just because I can, I'm posting again. Hmm. Maybe I should put something somewhat meaningful in here. Or, you know... just something. Anything. Words would be good. I'm watching Friends right now... taped it because I had class. Yup. Oh, it was stinky that on the United We Stand concert they played on TV tonight they did not even show *NSYNC's performance. Not at all! You'd think they would have been one of the big performances. Random musings.

Posted by kate at 10:28 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)

YESSSSSS!!! It WORKED! Woohoo! =)

Posted by kate at 10:13 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)

Test...again...

Posted by kate at 10:12 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)

Test number five... someday this will work...

Posted by kate at 09:53 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)

This is a test. The fourth test I've tried, actually. I don't believe the other three have gone through. Hmph.

Posted by kate at 09:27 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)