Midnight Mahjong

Following my previous Playful Kiss flick, it was only natural that I seek out other forms of eastern television drama. The results: Ipartment. It seems to be a Chinese take on the American sitcom, Friends. Of course, I've never had experience with the latter, but nonetheless! It's utterly hilarious. 4 boys and 3 girls live in an apartment together (but not really together... they're like, across the hall... but connected. I don't really know). It's basically about their relationship with each other. Sometimes it's kinda hard to understand, because there are various puns and references that one would only understand with previous experience in China. When these come up, there is a side note at the top of the screen, but the subtitles go by so fast, it's hard to peal your eyes away long enough to actually get an understanding.

I feel like I had something really important to write about... Oh. I remember. I talked to my roommate about switching rooms. It was really hard, because I actually like her a lot. However, everything about us is different. She's cold, I'm warm. She sleeps to tv, I sleep to silence (or my music). She likes adult cartoons and horror movies... I despise them. I continue to ask her to change things, and yet she's never asked anything of me. So I explained all of this to her, and told her I wanted to room with my chinese friend (since the two of us have pretty much everything in common). I hated telling her. I feel like she was really upset, even though she acted like it was okay. Especially after all of the random comments we've had about being roommates (like when she walked in the room and thanked me for being an awesome roommate after hearing everyone on the elevator complain about theirs). I'm praying that God will treat her with kindness for my selfishness, and give her a roommate who is more suited to her. I'm sure we'll continue to be friends.

Still, I feel like there was something else I needed to say! Well... I guess I'm super excited about my Haruhi Suzumiya DVD coming in. Mom and Dad came to visit yesterday. It wasn't long, but it was really fun. I was so happy to see them again! We went out to eat at a local chicken restaurant (the only thing we could find that might not be considered fast food). There were cats all over the gas station that was next door. All I could think of was when the SOS Brigade was making their movie, and they found Shamisen. Now, if I ever need a cat, I know where to go. Or... There is this adorable cat by the boy's dorm. He's super skinny... If I had money, I would totally buy him some food. The poor little guy. Makes me cry T_T

I feel like homework is piling up. I need to finish it all tomorrow night. That way... I can have the entire three-day holiday to do whatever I want. You need to do these things early, so you don't have to worry about them later. No matter what! Otherwise, what else would you be doing? Playing Midnight Mahjong on your laptop? What would that achieve? If you did that, you would be stuck in your room all of Monday, struggling to get everything done before Tuesday, when you could be hiking down the trails looking for Big Foot. It's all a matter of priority! You just need to work. It's gonna happen eventually.

The internet in our dorm is killing me! It's so slow! The other buildings are amazing. While I wait for my other classes, I can load and watch 2 parts of Ipartment. Here? Nothing. Not even half of a movie will load. I'm hoping that it'll get better over the weekend, if everyone else is gone for vacation.

I need to go to sleep. I need energy for tomorrow. Finishing homework and such... It'll be tough.

Fighting!

PB&J Minus A PS2

Following the previous post, I am obliged to tell of the events of the past week. Other than being completely stressed out, I was able to eventually calm down and enjoy everything around me. During a dorm meeting, I stumbled upon a girl who happened to be standing near me. She looked to be foreign, so I asked where she was from. Luck of lucks! She was from China! And she spoke mandarin! Yes!!! I had found a way to practice my chinese, a skill I was afraid I would lose when leaving high school. As a result, I was introduced to the other international students. The other day, several of us went to Wal-Mart together. I even got to stop by Gamestop and get myself some ps2 games! 4 games for $40! Now all I need is a ps2. It was so strange being in a group of people who spoke a different language. It was hard for me to keep up, so I usually just zoned out and listened for words I understood. Every once in a while, they would all stop and stare at me, at which the boy, the main translator, told me they were talking about me. It was so incredibly... fun. I was the little white kid that got adopted into the asian family. My chinese basically sucks, but it gets better every day, now that I have the opportunity for real practice. Plus, none of them have ever had a peanut butter and jelly sandwich. Give and take, my friend.

Interacting with other people is really hard. I don't like getting to close to people, because the end result always seems to fail. But that aside, I am so happy here. I like the adventure, and being able to walk through the crowd without recognizing anyone. I can be whoever I want to be. Now... If only I could find John Smith...

Turns out there wasn't as much to say as I thought there was. Well. I'll just end it here, then. A bit of advice for those of you who walk on the dangerous side: its never to late to pick up quilting.

Kitten Eyes at 2am

I am sitting here awake in my bed because I cannot sleep at 2:00 at night. My mind wants to sleep, and I keep reminding myself of all of the homework that I need to do tomorrow. My friends will probably want to do something, but I'll be so busy. My morning will be slept away at the result of my staying up. And yet, here I am, simply for the fact that I have come to an epiphany. I have realized something: I cannot fall in love. It is impossible. And the reason is as thus follows. I have become... one of them. That's right. One of those fanatic girls that refused to date anyone but Edward Cullen. However, I can retain my dignity in comforting myself with the fact that my fiction love interests are nothing like the doting vampire that we have all come to know and envy. In fact, they are rather the opposite. Characters like Mr. Darcy, Kyo Sohma, and (a new addition), Baek Seung Jo. The ones who's smiles are so rare, your heart simply melts when you get the chance to see it. Ah, but my newfound fan-girl characteristics aside, I honestly believe I have taken a turn for the worst. In other words, I have done a complete 180 from what I once was in Jr. High (180, you ask? Why not 360? Well, because that would take me right back to where I began! Math... It has taken over my life.). For those who my have known me, I was utterly desperate to fall in love. It was a dark time. I would always feel the extremes: squealing joy and heart-wrenching pain. Never a settle 'middle'. Now, I look back on those times and chuckle to myself. I hate talking about it, because I realize how ridiculous I was. But now, I am a knew 'ridiculous'. Instead of begging for love, I loath it. And yet, I want nothing more than to be in love. The Taylor Swift kind, where your screaming and fighting and kissing in the rain, where it's 2am and I'm cursing your name. Where I hate somebody so much, there is no other option than to fall in love with them. Yeah... The kind that doesn't exist. Over the years, I've begun to harvest a passion inside me. I hold back screaming on a daily basis. So many things get me fired up. But you would never know that about me. Maybe... maybe the person who finally hears my cries... Hah. Its times like this that I feel like Jane Austen. Does the name sound familiar? It should. She wrote Northanger Abbey, Emma, Sense and Sensibility, and, of course, Pride and Prejudice. Beautiful, passionate love stories. Clearly, a reflection of her own, no? Then again... who else could write something so surreal without the help of previously failed love? Jane was never married. In fact, she swore that all of her characters would never have to suffer what she had suffered, and everything would always end up perfect for them. Ah! So the truth comes out. The characters... they have to fall in love. No matter how unrealistic. Otherwise, it wouldn't be a very good story, would it?

And thus, herein lies the fruit of my problem. I... am not a fiction. This really isn't even about the pathetic fangirl phase. long as I remain stubborn and cold, keeping a tightly closed lid on my life, I cannot fall in love. I have already screwed up perfect things due to my unbelievably stupid nature. But, as I have said many times before, I digress.

Is this really why I got out my computer at, again, 2am?? *sigh*. Unfortunately. There is more to say that is not on the subject, but perhaps another sleepless night. The computer screen has lulled my eyes into a watery glaze. If I don't shut them soon, they may very well melt. That reminds me of a joke...

Owl-What kind of eyeballs are the best?

Me- uh...

Owl- Kitten eyeballs, because they are the squishiest.

As most things do, it made sense while I was sleeping...

Overload

How on Earth is this gonna happen? My Wal-mart list keeps growing longer and longer, and my wallet is getting thinner and thinner. My time is becoming more valuable down to the minute, but without a job, how will I ever be able to keep this up? It's only the first day, so this stress will go down eventually. Right? What on earth is the point of doing art? I swear, it's the most expensive schooling experience, and the lowest paying career. How am I going to buy all of these ridiculous supplies? I need some by the Wednesday, but getting to town is going to be a stretch. I can only hope that I am able to find some of these art things without having to drive an hour away to the nearest Hobby Lobby. This is insane. I'm just a college kid.

I honestly don't understand the Freshman Fifteen. I was literally only able to eat one meal today. I almost fell asleep in the library waiting for dinner to be open. Eventually I'll be able to work that out, but still. One of my classes is at the bottom of a crazy-steep hill. Working off any weight that I gain will be easy. I've only been to the gym once, but I feel like I've done more work outside of it than in.

First day of class, and I'm already falling apart. I feel like I can't do anything productive, because I don't have a car. A bunch of people have come up to me, offering me their services. However prideful I am, I'll have to accept their help. *Sigh*. I keep telling myself that things will be better once I have job, but then again, how can things get better if I'm even more busy? So much for a social life.

Okay. I'm done with my self-pittied rant.

Stay cool.

John Smith

I have discovered a new drug: Korean Television. I found an adorable looking one on Netflix a couple weeks ago. However, yesterday when I began to crave something new to watch, the name of the flick escaped me. What could it be? I searched the corners of Netflix's storage system, typing in phrases such as "romantic comedy", "television series", and even "japanese school girl movies", but to no avail. I even tried the same thing on google images, hoping I could find the image that had originally caught my eye. Eureka! After hours (if not minutes), I found the title of the cutesy show I was searching for: Playful Kiss. If you are able to watch this charming comedy about a girl with below average grades who is (of course) in love with a smart, attractive jerk without smiling to yourself for at least an hour and 17 minutes, then I would strongly question how much happiness you find in life. Either that, or I would question my opinion of awesomeness o_o Nonetheless! It was great. I'm only on episode 2, and judging by the comments left by my processors, it will only get better.

Today, I was riding my bike, taking the long way back to my dorm. As I rode along the sidewalk, something caught my eye. There was a tree about 4 yards away from where I was, and in that tree, a big, beautiful hawk. I mean, this thing was gorgeous. I tried hard to ignore the small scissor bird that flew around, working as hard as it could to interrogate it. I hopped off my bike, and plopped down on the ground. I probably watched it for about 10 minutes before it got annoyed and flew off. But it's deep, amber eyes reminded me of why I bought Skava, my small, blue parakeet, for my birthday so many years ago. Birds really are lucky, aren't they? To be clothed in such fine feathers, and have the natural instincts that every other creature on earth yearns for. But who am I, a human, to envy? I can only be thankful for such beauty.

Today I had the dorm to myself. It was the most glorious day I have thus beheld. I slept until noon, a rarity in my life. I then proceeded to sit in my bed, laptop at hand, and watch (you guessed it!) Playful Kiss. I just can't get enough! I am now half-way through, and unable to stop (in fact, once I'm done writing, I'll begin episode 9)! I didn't leave my room until 5, in which I decided it would probably be a good idea to eat something other than Special K bars and lemon aid. Every time I go to a meal, I sit with somebody different. I figured this would be a good way to scope out the population. I met a guy today, from a place near my hometown. He seemed nice enough, though we are completely different people. My favorite person to meet thus far was a boy named... uh... John Smith (I want to protect his identity!). When I asked him if he was an alien, time traveler, or an esper, his reply was "no...?" When I asked him if he was normal, he said "I hope so". It was then that I realized: he was the one. When I inquired on his name, the answer I received was quite... average. My other friend jokingly compared it to John Smith. More evidence, no?! He is the necessary ingredient I need! The one whom will complete the puzzle! Ah, but I am trying to hard. Now... if only I could find him...

I figured out that when I rub my fingers across the plastic edges of my computer, it feels like it's vibrating. And on that ADD note, I'll end this unbearably hard to write post. A strange blast-from-the-past song just popped into my head. To youtube!

Fare well wherever you fare

WINNER

Even though today was free of the tedious and pointless activities that colleges often plan in order to accommodate new freshmen, more has happened today that is actually worth my writing space. There was no TV tonight, so I actually had enough sleep to be capable of dreams. In my dream, the popcorn company was giving somebody and 30 friends a free trip to Disney World. You just had to find the coupon that said you won. Of course, I didn't know this in the dream. For a while, I thought the 'WINNER' sign would be inside the kernels. Then my friend told me it was on one of the adds that the company put inside the bag (that is to say, there were little plastic rectangles with advertisements inside each bag of popcorn). That made way more sense than biting each kernel in half to see if there was an indication of my winning inside! Then I stopped eating the popcorn, which was good, because I was getting sick of it. The last time I dreamt about eating popcorn in my sleep, I thew up. Not a pretty story.

I went to the Library later and read a bit. After looking at the clock three hours later, I decided it was probably about time I was hungry. I mentally prepared my stomach to take in some substance as I walked over to the cafeteria. I figured I would probably just eat alone again, since I didn't know where any of the people I had met were. When I obtained my food, I scanned the spread of tables, looking for a spot that wouldn't be totally awkward. But then something caught my eye. There was another kid sitting alone. On his face, we wore circular red glasses, with a unique bronze lens. He looked interesting enough, so I made towards him. He didn't look like the type of guy who would be saving the three extra chairs closest to him, but in order to avoid being rude, I asked if I could have a seat. I think I caught him off guard, but then again, it's hard to say. He was fairly different. We talked about manga and anime a lot, but we also got into a little astrology. I suppose we're friends now, but... By the end of the conversation, I had given him my first and last name, my birthday, my religion, my hobbies, and my hometown. I couldn't even get his name. I'll just call him Kyon or something. Meheh. He's very interesting. But we'll see about that.

After lunch, I went to the other library. I wanted to check it out, see if it was better stocked (as far as fiction and mangas go). It was a fruitless venture (one that is evident in the sweat that soaked through my shirt). However, I did see one of my friends, which was very fun. Our dorms are very close, but we probably won't get to see each other very often. I'm so glad that I was able to meet her!

The other day, I met a guy outside the book store. I was going to get my bike, but I noticed something bright green sitting on the brick 'tree island' (for lack of a better term). It was this freaking awesome little lizard! I stopped to stare at it, when he walked up. I had seen him around, but didn't know his name. Apparently, he felt the same way, since that was exactly what he said: "I've seen you around, but I don't know what your name is". Hehe. I introduced myself to him. We inspected the little green lizard, which would blow up it's throat into a beautiful red bulge. We both agreed that it was awesome, and that we wanted it. Unfortunately, like most colleges, we were only allowed to have fish. A shame.

Also yesterday, a 'mentalist' came and gave us a little show. I must say, I was unable to figure out his secrets... The only conclusion I can come to is that he met with people before hand and bribed them into performing how he wanted them to. And yet... Well, I don't know. If he had chosen me as one of his performers, maybe I would have believed him. Though he did remind everyone that he had no special powers. Everything he did was psychological. But how did he do all of those tricks with the blindfold? I'll discover his secrets!

If you're living on your own, and you only have a few dishes, then you should always be sure to wash them right when you're done using them. Otherwise, if you drink milk out of a cup, and then merely rinse it out, thinking it will be ready for use the next day, you may very well be wrong. Remains of the milk could very well be left in the cup, and sticking your face near it will probably result in some terrible smells. I'd like to say (for your entertainment) that I learned this lesson the hard way. However, I didn't. Every time I use my dishes, I wash them. I just thought I'd warn you.

Hakuna Matata

Cinderblock Beds

Yesterday was moving day. My family and I woke up extra early, so that we might get to the dorm before my roommate, and hopefully obtain the better bed (by the window). And yet, even with all of the extra efforts (driving for hours, sleeping on "quality" beds, and waking up with the sun), my plans were still thwarted. Drat. Instead, I'm sleeping on a bed supported by cinderblocks. Oh well. There are certain advantages to having the bed closest to the door. For instance, right when I swing the door open, I can plop right into my thick, welcoming comforter. Or when I leave my toothbrush in my room, I can just open the door and reach around the corner to grab it. Even more, if I want to just drop something off, I can just toss it inside without having to walk all the way over to 'my side' of the room... But who am I kidding? The bad far outweighs the good. The air conditioning wouldn't be constantly blowing in my face, and I could look out the window whenever I please. But I digress.

However paranoid my mother appears, I have taken heed to her warnings about computer thief's, and am resorting to doing all of my online interaction in a secret corner of the library. While in my dorm, my laptop remains hidden. It drives me crazy, but maybe she's right. I'm not willing to take chances.

I met my roommate for the first time yesterday when moving in (right after she put her belongings on the coveted bed). Since I'm so bad at actually having conversations with people for to long over the internet (I get bored.), I hardly knew anything about her, namely her sleeping habits. She's a very nice, social girl. It seems like she just wants to have some fun. However, she sleeps with the tv on all night. Lets just say, I was tossing and turning all night to the muffled sounds of Cartoon Network. *sigh*.

This morning, I took my own tour of the school, finding my classes and hoping to meet my teacher. The latter goal was never accomplished, but I was able to do some other things I was interested in (breaking out the laptop being one of them).

Since the lights were turned off early in order to watch tv last night, I read my bible in the morning instead of at night (a new habit I may end up getting into). In my journey to read through the entire bible, I've only just started Ezra. As far as history goes, the Jews were just released from exile, and allowed to return to their own land, and re-build Jerusalem. They were still 'conquered' by some random empire (I can't think of who they are at the moment. Babylonians? Assyrians? Something along those lines), but the government was letting them keep their own religion and customs. There were lots of letters from attendants to kings, from kings to Jews, and so on. Very cool first-hand accounts. More on Ezra later.

I've been sitting in this library for a while. It's about lunch time, so I should probably get going. Until next time, don't forget to water your plants and feed your dogs. I miss my cat.

Live long and prosper!

Hello, lovely readers, and welcome to yet another blogging attempt! Not that anybody would actually know, but my blogging history is longer than I would like to admit. There are a number of abandoned and forgotten blogs that I have started floating out in the big, empty cyberspace, subject to my laziness and boredom. Yet in this blog's case, there are certain advantages in it's favor. Not only do I feel that there is an objective in writing (that is, letting the people I left back home know that I am still alive), but I am now freed from the captiveity of a desktop. I have fallen in love with my laptop and the leeway it gives me (is it just me, or are there to many "Ls" in that sentence?). I am now capable of doing things I'd never dream of doing with the old desktop! That list primarily consists of laying in my bed while I write.

But who wants to hear about my numerous "blogging failures" or my hope for a success? I don't. And I'm sure as frass sick of writing about it. But I do feel the need to apologize in advance for the contents of what I write. There will no doubt be countless parallels, reflections, and comments on all things manga, anime, and Japanese. Whether you're Cassi, and you find anime completely stupid, or your my mother, and are utterly confused by it, I am sorry. It's just one of those things, you know?

Since I haven't even left the city yet, there isn't much to write. My days have consisted of packing, playing on my Mac, and trying to beat Birth By Sleep in a limited amount of time. Completely exhausting, I know. I find myself going to bed at 2 every night, and waking up bright and early to the too-bright sun that filters through my east-facing window.

And it is because of the fact that my writing space is being filled by such pointless procedures that I must end this post before everyone dies of boredom. But stay tuned! Someday I may reveal the secret Crabby Patty formula, and explain what exactly a Hufflepuff is. And nobody wants to miss out on these exciting shenanigans. Until then, keep singing songs in your head and laughing at things that happened years ago.

May the odds be always in your favor!