Home.

No wonder there are so many churches in the south; as soon as you step outside, you experience immediate baptism by immersion, ushered into the church of the hot and sweaty. We are a glowing, moist congregation.

I wrote a love poem about a chair in atlanta:

Where You Once Were

vinyl and thigh must, at time of parting,
detach with a lingering grasp;
the separation is announced
with reluctant sighs

an impression, a well of past recline,
pools with the hot tears of a love lost.
both participants, animate and inanimate,
are marked by what has passed.

stagnant winds and heavy air, too,
preserve the memory.
until a new form is discovered,
where you once were will remain.

I have just rolled in to my apartment, dropped my suitcases, whipped up a cup of tea and now, a breath and then...homework.

burning!

I am in Atlanta, where it is sweltering. I went on a run this morning to capitalize on the low altitude only to find I am allergic to trees and its a sauna outside. A delicious sauna. Megan is babysitting and she gave me a map and a list of coffee shops to explore. My favorite thus far is javamonkey, with its dark interiors, easy wifi acess, and extensive tea list. Too bad I missed the part where they tell me how to use my little tea pot. The result: scalding tea all over my lap, table, and hands. Ouch. I figured out the tea pot, though. Apparently, you set it on top of your cup once its done brewing and it empties into your cup through the bottom. Brilliant, once you know not to touch the bottom of the tea pot. Check. Also, I am eating a cinnamon buttermilk muffin. I like it.


The playlist is largely Justin Timberlake, which is another contributing factor to my enjoyment of this establishment (you know you love him; he's gonna have you nak'd by the end of this song).

Get out of the city and into the sunshine.

Some pictures, including but not limited to: pie, fourth of july indoor picnic, cute kids in a furniture fence, my summer CSA produce (veggies galore!!), and a pretty mystery plant...does anyone know what it is? It came in my CSA bucket but I am dumbfounded.

July may just kill me. I have a crazy full schedule, wrapping up a whirlwind summer semester, and a lovely full social schedule. School applications are due, Amy is coming, Laura is home, a weekend trip to Atlanta and Asheville, final exams and projects! But it is all wonderful.

Final day at Whole Health: Friday the 13th. That's funny.

New top school: Georgetown! Could DC be my new home for the next four years?

Highlight of the day: CSA box came with rhubarb and I made a fantastic rhubarb jam, which I served with a ricotta pound cake at my chemistry study group. It was delicious and I can't wait to have it for breakfast. (Mmmm cake and jam for breakfast!)

Summer is buzzing by like a fly on a ... well, like a fly flying by. I guess.

Went on a hike, got a blister, walked the last 6 miles in my socks. Awesome.

School is great. Crazy, but great. Its the first time in a long time that I actually feel really good at something.

I am watching a Lady Gaga interview on Fuse (yes, yes I am) and I am kind of obsessed with her because she is ridiculous. She takes herself SO SERIOUSLY. I am like, dude, I think you are wearing part of an old bike or maybe its a trombone around your neck as jewelry, how can I listen to you say phrases like, "The music belongs with the people." Really, with the people? Good to know.

Other favorite phrases:
I have not yet defined my aesthetic.
Was I tormented in HS? Yes.
I'm a closer.
To me, music is a spiritual experience.
Its the yang to the yin of fame.
My little monsters (fans), I know what they need (referring to giving them pieces of her old wigs).
My show is like an exorcism.

I mean, it all sounds a little cliche for someone trying to be so original. Nothing personal, Lady Gaga, you just make me laugh.

"I don't know what happened in your life that caused you to develop a sense of humor as a coping mechanism, maybe it was a leg brace or corrective boot in your childhood, but anyway I am glad you are on my team."

-30 Rock

Yeah, that's me. Leg brace, kickball season, 4th grade. Let the riotous laughter begin.

Shirley Maclaine in Steel Magnolias is the most amazing thing ever.



Ever.

"In a spirit of mutinous resistance, she climbed the steep, grassy slope to the bridge, and when she stood on the driveway, she decided she would stay there and wait until something significant happened to her. This was the challenge she was putting to existence - she would not stir, not for dinner, not even for her mother calling her in. She would simply wait on the bridge, calm and obstinate, until events, real events, not her own fantasies, rose to her challenge, and dispelled her insignificance."

- Atonement

Last night I dreamed I was in the 1800s at a large party for Harriet Beecher Stowe, who I was, apparently, obsessed with. To show my affection, I made her a cake, a spicy Stowe cake. I can't recall all the details but the event was some sort of conference where I really had no place being. I slipped up to Stowe, told her how wonderful I thought she was and that if she had time, I had made her a cake. It wasn't until the end of the night that she declared she wanted some cake, so I whisked up the stairs (in my ball gown complete with hoop skirt), cut her a generous slice of cake, and topped it with Devonshire cream. And then, with everyone watching, she took a heaping bite...and loved it. Naturally. Thus we were declared friends forever.

My glasses spontaneously broke. There is one stem missing but thankfully I can still balance them on my nose with the other stem...Awkward but effective.

Another funny bonfire moment: At some point into the night, a boy jumped over the fire, which was startling because he ran right by us and then just leapt. A few minutes later, this little Asian girl asked me to move over and then she ran to leap over the fire. I gasped, and then screamed, "But you're short!!" as she leapt, because really, there was no physical way she would make it over. And she didn't. Thankfully she was quick on her feet and was able to keep her momentum moving forward and thus fell out of the fire. But kind of funny that I didn't choose to say, you know, Be Careful! or Jump High! Nope, You are Short was my warning.

Hung out with some Mormons tonight...got hit on by a Mormon boy. I felt kind of bad for the bait and switch (sorry kid, I'm protestant). He insisted I take his number. Turns out the whole event is was basically a giant singles/mating ritual. Good times.

Average time to walk to school: 15 minutes
Average time to read a chapter: 2.5 hours
Average time to do Chem Homework: 2.5 hours
Average time to do lab preparation: 3 hours
Average time to fall asleep: 3 femtoseconds

So week two of school has revealed a truth that we all know: I don't have a slow speed. As I look toward what the summer has in store for me and I see that I have to schedule a week long seminar class into the break in between the summer and fall semester, I realize that I will not have a true break until Christmas...heavens!

I think I attract interesting people or, maybe, I just see everyone as interesting. My Chem professor is a strange bird and yesterday he distributed a poem he wrote about chemistry. (Our extra credit on our exam is to learn the chemical formulas of the substances he mentions in the poem). Amazing! I totally had a Jim moment where I was looking for the camera to see if this was really happening. He read it aloud to us and we responded with a round of applause (brown-nose). It just makes me laugh so hard. I bet he will appreciate my lymerics.

Destiny

I am trying to come to grips with the fact that growing-up does not mean you ever know what you are doing. I treated myself to a movie yesterday - The Prince of Persia. It is my favorite kind of movie - light, action filled, with elements of the fantastic. And threaded with the theme of destiny.

I know I make fun of myself for being clumsy. I mean, I am a pretty easy target. But there are times when the epic inevitability of my clumsiness is just too much to take. Escaping my house after a less than productive afternoon, I walked to the grocery store, which is just a mile or so away from my house. As I bagged my groceries in the bags I brought (one made by Ms. Verch - thank ya ma'am!), I thought to myself, hmmm, I will carry my eggs by hand, so as not to break them. Unfortunately, one the way back home I straight out fell. Don't know what happened, there was nothing on the ground, I just fell. So there I was, on the side of the road, eggs cracked and broken, knees cut and bleeding. I walked home leaving a trail of blood and egg yolk, like some sort of twisted Hansel and Gretel.

Geek Out

It is time for me to embrace my inner geek. Little did I know a return to school would release my pent-up OCD; organizing notes, color-coded flash cards, knowing all the answers = yours rockin' truly. Yeah, I have already been made fun of in class for being type A. Just because I was the only one who did homework for the first lab when it wasn't required. I am thorough, ok!?! I watched Cloudy with a Chance of Meatballs, and felt affirmed that it was okay to be crazy and a geek. So that girl walking down the street with her ipod, fanny pack, and a stack of index cards bigger than your head? Yeah, that's me.

I just realized that when my landlord called me asking if I heard any parties over the weekend, he was asking if I had any parties over the weekend. Which is ludicrous. I do watch BBC movies late at night, is that crazy enough for you? Apparently the people below us moved out and broke their lease because of my raucous habits, aka cello playing, sewing frenzies, and old movies. Really kids? Have you met me? I am an old woman.

In other bad news, my lab practicals in Anatomy are spelling dependent, meaning I have to be able to spell. Which makes sense, but does not bode well. And tomorrow I find out the score of my Chem placement exam, which won't drop me from Chem but the prof might suggest that I step down to a lower level. Fat chance, lets just hope I got 1/3 of the questions right.

Day Two of School: Everything is okay. Except I have a lot of studying to do. LOTS.

Okay, but really. Today was the first day of Chemistry and the prof is amazing. He is from the Dominican Republic, has a great accent, and a great sense of humor. I will never be able to fully explain his awesomeness, but I will give you the best quotes from the lecture:


"I am like a diver, I can smell a rotten problem. I go straight in the ocean to kill the octopus."
"I am not here to destroy your dreams, I am here to add gas to your wings. I am a poet."
"I am like a hawk!"
"You don't care about magic?"
"Rum is the spirit of life."
"Even Marijuana growers use the scientific method to make the pot stronger. That is what I call American ingenuity!"
"You think Chemistry is dry? Bullshit."

I didn't even take notes on Chemistry, I just wrote down his jokes or his attempted jokes. I think there is still something of a language barrier. Instead of "I wasn't born yesterday," he said "I didn't wake up this morning." Ha.

LAST DAY!

Lessons from the farm:

Christa! Don't forget your gloves!

Christa! Don't forget your hat!

Christa! Don't forget your water!

Christa! Don't forget your suncreen!

I am exhausted from four hours of weeding, scratched from nettles and raspberry bushes and sore from digging holes, and my ankles (only my ankles) are sunburned. How did that happen?

I made up this lymric while I was weeding:

I am tired of weeding this thistle
Though it gives me time to whistle
It would go by fast
If we used a blast
Why don't we weed with a missle?

I love the farm.

I thought this was creepy.

But then I saw this and this.

I'm gonna wash that man right out of my hair...

Today I, yet again, washed my hair with something that is not shampoo. I think it was my body wash since I would have noticed the little exfoliaters from my face wash. What a mystery.