Weekend Preview?

This weekend I'm going with the Cycling Team to race at Georgia Southern. I have never travelled anywhere with just guys, let alone 10-15 of them.

I think tonight's meeting was probably a good indicator of what my weekend will be like.

Scene: Room full of boys and Livia

*Fart*
Laughter

The end.

Guess I'll have to make sure I pack the immature sense of humor. :-p

Bandwagon

I'm going to jump on Melissa's ranting bandwagon:

1) If you want something done, and I work for you, give me proper instructions. "This needs to change" doesn't cut it. If you don't like how I did it, fix it yourself. None of us are mind readers. And none of us thinks it's funny that we have to keep changing what we've already done 5 other times. And I'm not going to stay late and work my ass off for a deadline if you keep changing your mind about what you want. Here's a suggestion to making a deadline: perhaps look at the work before the day before it's due. Revolutionary concept, I know.

I can't imagine 2 more years of this.

2) Everyone judges, this I know. But try not to judge what you don't understand. Especially if you're dumber than me. That does not fly.

3) It's incredibly amusing to hear clueless people wax philosophic about life. Until you realize that they're the "best and brightest" of our generation. The future of this country is fucked.

4) If you are in a class, and you miss what the professor says, try to figure it out on your own before you ask. Also, trying listening: you may find that it helps in understanding what's going on. Before you ask a question, think to yourself: is this something I could figure out on my own? If it is, do it, and quit wasting my time!

It is unbelieveable to have higher degrees and still be so retarded.

But, besides those things, I am having a great day. More random thoughts:

1) I'm ecstatic that I don't look like a 12 year old boy with a mosquito head.

2) I am a workout fiend. Well, not so much. But definitely moreso than I used to be.

3) Sinus infection count 2006: 1 to date

Spoiled

I worked late many nights last week. Will definitely was working on his bonus points. He picked me up a couple times from work so I wouldn't have to walk back. On Wednesday, Will surprised me with a yummy dinner of chicken parmesean, broccoli and cheese, garlic bread, and my favorite beer (yeah, I know it's supposed to be wine but maybe I'm just not that classy). All that was missing was airplane napkins ;-)


Brings to mind the Joss Stone song:

I'm spoiled
By your love boy
No matter how I try to change my mind
What's the point it's just a waste of time
I'm spoiled by your touch boy
The love you give is just too hard to fight
Don't want to live without you in my life
I'm spoiled

Overworked, boyfriendless and rainy

When I started grad school I promised myself I wouldn't be one of those people who were there until 7pm at night.

That lasted all of 5 weeks. We have a contract deadline Tuesday and since my stuff depends on other stuff getting done, I got to stay pretty late all week. Yay me.

Collegiate cycling started this weekend, so Will is out of town this weekend... and next... and pretty much every weekend except the cruise and easter until the end of April. It's funny because when we first started dating I only saw him on the weekends. Spring semester I only see him during the week. I think I preferred the former, but probably wouldn't be thrilled to go back to that format at this point.

Today is yet another rainy Saturday. What is up with that? Yesterday was beautiful, but how would I know since I work in a room without a view. I have a long ride planned for sometime this weekend... but of course it's going to be cold, rainy, or both. I need to go anyway, though because next weekend I am going to go race with the cycling team at GA Southern and I haven't been on my bike for more than 25 miles in quite some time. Definitely need to rectify that before going to a 40 mile race.

No, the reason I'm going is not Will (I try very hard to not be like that), but I figure it's a win-win-win situation. I get to ride, they get a girl to race, and I get to spend time with Will. Although it's not really "quality" time. Should be fun, nontheless.

I've been meaning to sit down and write about the "Cartoon Controversy" but have barely had time to form my thoughts. Look for that soon.

Shout-out to my roomie Melissa, who got accepted to Georgetown, even though she thought she wouldn't! I knew you could do it!

Amazing

It's amazing how people slowly reveal their true character and personality through the little things... or, sometimes the huge things. I've also noticed recently how some people deceive themselves into thinking they are one way, when the world perceives them as completely different. I wonder what people think of me.

I'm incredibly blessed to have not just one but several "real" friends... not the ones that as time moves on you realize wouldn't put as much effort into you as you would into them. And I hope to always be thankful for that, because I realize I know many people who conduct themselves in a manner that suggests that friends, good friends, are easy to come by and just as easily replaceable.

Amazing the things you learn as life goes on.

Ticked.

Yep.

Tons of fun anyway, though.

Here We Go Again

I was on a roll... sorta. Sure, I hadn't been riding weekends (damn weather), and I missed this past Monday cause we actually had class for once, but other than that I hadn't missed a single spinning class workout since I started.

Here I am, because as usual this time of year my sinuses have begun to act up, and I woke up with the most awful earache ever. Since I know an expert in post nasal drip, I called my coach/emotional and mental advisor on the way to the workout.

In this day and age, and with such access to medicine and health care (sorta... and thanks to my mom's new job) there's no reason my lifestyle should be compromised because the plumbing in my head is messed up.

I will beat this (even if it means getting surgery)

And the weather won't stop me anymore, either.

Uphill, both ways

Being a girl is hard.

Being a girl at this school is even harder.

How do they know this stuff?

Me

Your Birthdate: March 13

You're dominant and powerful. You always need to be in charge. While others respect your competence, you can be a bit of a dictator. Hard working and serious, you never let yourself down. You are exact and accurate - and you expect others to be the same way. Your strength: You always get the job done Your weakness: You're a perfectionist to a fault Your power color: Gray Your power symbol: Checkmark Your power month: April

What Does Your Birth Date Mean?

Will

Your Birthdate: March 25

You excel at anything difficult or high tech. In other words, you're a total (brilliant) geek. It's difficult for you to find people worth spending time with. Which is probably why you'll take over the world with your evil robots! Your strength: Your unfailing logic Your weakness: Loving machines more than people Your power color: Tan Your power symbol: Pi Your power month: July

What Does Your Birth Date Mean?

Freaky.

Two of My Favorite Things

Will took me to an early Valentine's dinner at Canoe on Friday. Best. Meal. Ever. Even though I felt a little out of place. I had new york strip with mashed potatoes and cabernet. It was awesome. I finally found the perfect cow. For dessert we had this chocolatey thing called "Love Cake" that was just as awesome. Weird thing is there were some families there out like they were out for Friday night dinner. What do kids eat at a place like that?

My second favorite thing: the beach, the sun, the ocean. This past weekend Will and I booked our cruise to the Bahamas. I found a great deal through one of the many travel websites that I monitor. We're heading down to Cape Canaveral on March 22. Thursday we're touring Cape Canaveral in the morning then boarding The Fantasy and heading to the Bahamas! I can hardly believe that I'm so fortunate. It's even more exciting because we'll be at sea on Will's birthday, which quite possibly is the coolest thing ever.To all those who referred to us as boring: How do you like me now? Still jealous? You should be.

All Hurry and No Rest...

...makes Livia forgetful. Usually I am pretty good about remembering things (such as my keys) but I must have lost my mind the past few days.

Saturday night, upon my return to campus at 1am, I discovered that I had no keys. It occurred to me that in my hurry to catch my ride to the aquarium, I probably left them in my desk. One trip with Will to the ASDL confirmed my suspicions.

I forgot to take Elise's video tape back to her Friday.
For several days now I was supposed to bring in Friends Season 1 for Shuo.
I forgot my buzz card in my desk drawer yesterday.
I left my wallet in my room today.
I got my wallet... then I left my computer at work (in the drawer).
Just now, I discovered that my cell phone had fallen out of my purse and was still in the car.

I wonder how much time I've spent in the past few days making trips to retrieve the stuff I've forgotten. It's so frustrating because it's usually not something that happens to me. My brain function must be deteriorating. I'm probably just trying to fit too much running around in on too little time and energy.

But, isn't that how it always goes?

Siriusly Awesome!

I wasn't necessarily picky when it came to choosing the option for my new baby (yes, it lacks a name, just like my bike). No, I didn't really want a sunroof (hardly ever used the bug's), nope, a superly nice stereo wasn't necessary. Neither was a 6 cd changer (my ipod made cds obsolete). So, the one I ended up with is pretty basic. Manumatic (yes, I gave up manual driving cause of the darn city traffic and yes I miss it), air conditioning, power locks, cd player... all the stuff that's pretty standard. It was missing the essential tape player (used for ipod hookup) though. It did, however, have one thing extra though, that I thought I wouldn't use.

Satellite radio.

After doing some research on FM transmitters, I was disappointed. So Will said he'd buy me a month of Sirius satellite radio to try out. If I didn't like it, I could get a transmitter for my birthday. His Dad has XM, so he was convinced I would love it.

And, as much as it pains me to admit it, he was right (just this once, don't let it go to your head!) I haven't missed the ipod a bit. I can burn my favorites to cd in case I ever need to, but so far I haven't. In fact, it's so good I've really only listened to 4 of the 180 channels. What else do you need when you have 2 NPR channels, BBC world news in English and Spanish, 2 comedy channels (definitely my favorites, behind the news of course), Discovery (haven't even listened yet) and every kind of music you can imagine.

Of course, being the news junkie that I am, I doubt I'll get around to exploring the music channels anytime soon. Although I did enjoy some opera (Rigoletto) with my Grandma this afternoon.

Seriously. It's awesome.

Mother Nature Hates Me

My workout plan for this semester includes 3 rides a week (rides that I should never miss) and extras on top for good measure. That means 3 indoor spinning classes (Monday, Wednesday, Friday) and one day on the Silver Comet (Saturday). Two weeks about I made 2 spinning classes and a Silver Comet ride. Last week it was just the 3 spinning classes. I really want to go to 4+ a week...

Of course, the weather has been gross almost every Saturday. Mother Nature is doing it on purpose! :-p

Congrats to Jen S. for getting a new bike... and thanks for reminding me of the joy that I felt when I first got mine.

Now if only I could spend more time on it. :-p

A Change of Pace...

Normally I just use this for writing about what has been happening lately or what’s on my mind. Recently, what has been on my mind has been increasingly related with politics and current affairs in the world. I haven’t written much about that on here… not purposefully, but mostly because I haven’t had time.

Yesterday Elise said that she’s going to stop reading the news because it’s simply too upsetting. And Will says he doesn’t understand why I continue to read things that I know will make me mad or sad.

I will continue, because I think being informed is important. I think the beginning of making a difference is being informed, so I will continue. But, I’m going to post my thoughts here, as a way to vent a little of my frustrations and just make known what I think.

I already know, due to past events, that this is going to make people mad. I want to state right now that what I write here, unless cited, is my own opinion. As an A-mur-i-kun, and contrary to what many of our leaders would have you believe, I have the right to express my opinion. You, as a reader, also have a right to express yours. That being said, please leave any thoughts as comments, I welcome both agreements and disagreements. Part of being informed is knowing both sides of the coin. I don’t, however, want any comments having to do with whether it’s inappropriate to post my own opinion online. Sure, it can be insulting, but it’s a freedom that I am (supposedly) guaranteed here.

Along those lines I leave one of my all time favorite quotes from a movie:

“America isn't easy. America is advanced citizenship. You've got to want it bad, because it's gonna put up a fight. It's gonna say, "You want free speech? Let's see you acknowledge a man whose words make your blood boil who is standing center stage and advocating at the top of his lungs that which you would spend a lifetime opposing at the top of yours. You want to claim this land as the 'land of the free'? Then the symbol of your country cannot just be a flag. The symbol also has to be one of its citizens exercising his right to burn that flag in protest. Now show me that, defend that, celebrate that in your classrooms. Then you can stand up and sing about the 'land of the free."

- Michael Douglas in The American President

P.S. I’m sure you can infer my opinion on the Jyllands-Posten Muhammad cartoons controversy. I find it incredibly amusing that to protest, they turn to violence. This also can be connected to my opinions on stereotypes and the fact that they are, sometimes, very accurate.

I think it was the car question

You Are 70% Boyish and 30% Girlish

You are pretty evenly split down the middle - a total eunuch. Okay, kidding about the eunuch part. But you do get along with both sexes. You reject traditional gender roles. However, you don't actively fight them. You're just you. You don't try to be what people expect you to be.

How Boyish or Girlish Are You?

That surprised me, because I feel like I've been increasingly more girly over the past few years. But the car question must've done it... last time I bought pased on looks, this time on power (yay for my v6!)

Back In the Saddle

I suppose you could say I fell of the workout wagon. I was doing so well. I doubled the amount of miles I had put on my bike in 3 months last summer (as compared to 9 previous months of ownership). I was making most spinning classes.

... and then I got sick (again)... and didn't get well.

Now, 2 weeks after taking dramamine 3 times a day, I can say I've gotten back on. And it feels good. I was worried for a bit. I never had a problem with motivation, and all of a sudden I couldn't seem to make myself go. Thankfully, motivation wasn't the problem (it was taking sleeping pills 3 times a day).

I really missed working out, but riding my bike in particular. This past Saturday was a beautiful day and I really enjoyed the ride. Which has really helped me be excited about trying to get back to (and surpass) the shape I was in. It seemed like a daunting task, but I had forgotten how enjoyable riding is and how much better I feel when regularly excercising.

Now, my challenge is staying well enough and keeping my sinuses in check so that I can stay on the wagon/saddle.

Out With the Old, In With the New

At the end of Christmas break my Dad turned to me and asked if I could have a new car, what would I get? He told me to start thinking and crunching numbers. The Beetle was intended to last through college, after which I would join the "real" world, make some money and get something new. Well, my detour to grad school left two options: fix the Beetle up so that it lasts through the end of grad school, or trade it in for something new.

That got me to thinking. Man, would it be nice to have a new car. Plus, the Beetle needed at least $2000 worth of repairs... not including labor. That, along with the fact that it was only worth $3700 and nearing 100k made me start car shopping. My dad suggested a Mazda3, and I remember how well it did on Topsis, so I started there. I considered the 6 also, and started doing comparisons versus everything in the same class... honda accord and civic, toyota corolla and camry, ford focus, vw jetta and passat, etc etc.

I settled on test driving a 3 and 6 (but leaned more towards 6... I remembered how much I loved it at the car show), so off Dad, Will and I went to Jim Ellis last Friday afternoon. After 2 hours of test driving... first a 2005 4 cylinder Mazda 6, a 2006 Mazda 3 and a 2006 6 cylinder Mazda 6. I can now say that I understand why their slogan is "zoom zoom." Unfortunately, I loved the v6, which means bigger price tag.

I ended up getting one from a dealership my brother recommended. It's the first car where I've considered performance as seriously as any other metric (in fact, I chose to spend more for the nicer engine as opposed to moonroof and cd chager) and boy does it show. Everything I drive it, I smile. And it's not hard on the eyes, either.


One of the best parts, though, is that I totally did everything myself. Well, except for the male support that every girl needs at a dealership. It's only my name on the papers, which is awesome. I feel like such an adult... up next, a "real" place to live!

Plus, this car is so nice compared to my other one, it's a huge step up. I even forgot to be sad to part with my little Beetle... even after all we'd been through.

Some of the features I adore:
215 hp (makes it very zoomy)
6spd automatic... but still manual in a way
Climate control
Satellite radio (1st month as a trial, thanks to will!)
Auto-dim mirror
Audio control things on the steering wheel
Nice stereo system
Power seats
HUGE trunk!

and I'm sure I'll find many many more!

... ok, so I'm being totally superficial. Oh well :-p

Code for Dramamine

I was really struggling last week. Completely exhausted all the time, even though I am logging more sleep than ever (am actually logging... if I average 8hrs/night for 1 month, I get something from Will... that something tbd). I could've been so productive last week, but I found myself just hanging around, usually napping. I was confused about what it could be: Am I just burnt out? Depressed? Is Kristy rubbing off on me?

Then, on Saturday, a discovery. The medicine I had been prescribed to take 3 times a day for 2 weeks has a label on the back of the bottle (where one looks for instructions, naturally) that says "may cause marked drowsiness, do not operate heavy machinery." Today, when I was looking up what is in it to see whether I was eligible to donate blood and it's just generic dramamine.

Yep... I'm taking dramamine... all day long. Well, at least it's not something more serious.

This weekend was pretty fun... until Monday. Dinner, Friends watching, Jaime's graduation party, babysitting, Mansion party, Swim club movie thing. Then Will woke up sick Monday morning and shortly after Hurricane Bill (aka the roomie who flooded the apartment) struck and the rest of the day was spent cleaning up. I myself played the part of FEMA this time, except I was actually useful (retrieved my Dad's carpet machine from Dunwoody) and by the early evening we weren't splashing about anymore.

The Mansion party was pretty fun. Two guys on my fixed wing design team went along, which was surprising. I thought both the band and dj weren't very good, but the company was good and it was nice to see people I hadn't seen in a while. And, extremely amusing to watch all the "shenanigans" that took place. And they're on video.

And now it's the soggy start of another week and it looks like I'll be pretty busy, so I should probably get going on something... like taking a nap, cause I just took my medicine.

The Do-Gooder

What Famous Leader Are You?
personality tests by similarminds.com

I'm not sure about that example thing, but otherwise seems to be correct.

Grad School: Week One

Well, this week has been relatively calm, with the exception of some money stress (thank you Tech for not paying me for another month!) It really is extremely surprising, since unlike other more fortunate majors, AEs usually get slammed with reading and homework from day 1. None of this 'let's go over the syllabus and call it a day stuff.' And not this happened in any of my classes, but 2 of the 3 were cancelled this week. So it made for not only definitely the easiest first week I've ever had, but also one of the easiest weeks I've ever had at this school. Period.

Just in time, too. Because I am dealing with some serious lack of motivation, man am I burned out issues. This week did come with the usual what classes do I take drama. I signed up for fixed wing, adm 2 and design seminar like I was supposed to, but struggled with propulsion and spanish linguistics. I heard many bad things about propulsion, including that it wasn't very useful... plus it's Fridays 3-6, so the decision to not take it was somewhat easy. Although I still fear the wrath of Doc on this one.

Spanish was more difficult. For the first time ever I found myself dreading going to that class. Never has this happened with a language class before... not even when they were 3 hours long. The class I went to, Spanish Linguistics, is taught by a woman from Spain and sounds extremely interesting. However, there is a fair amount of work involved with the class, including a project that comprises nearly half the final grade. I just didn't feel like doing the work... which was really disappointing, because I try to never let that stand in the way of a great class.

But, after some chats with my favorite people, we all agreed that I should ease up on the course load to give myself time to adjust and to also recover from last semester. There you have it folks: for the first time since I can remember, I am taking the easy way out and not pushing myself.

As hard as this is for me to be ok with, I feel that in the end it will be the right decision. After being sick almost all of 2005, I'd like to focus more on myself and my health this year. That includes not having to stay up late to finish work, not stressing out so much, not running around like crazy, sleeping enough and excercising regularly.

Now if I could only find the motivation... Melissa is probably waiting for me to lose what she has to gain!