2.28.2002

i got tonight off--ted said there was nothing on the schedule, so i was able to relax at home and visit with my parents...good times.

three things of note:

- heard back from clint. we're going to give this whole meeting up thing another shot when i'm in d.c.

- i will be going to a colloquim held in the newsroom of the new york times. !!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

- i miss you too joey! :)

my mother taped the west wing last night. i will now enjoy my hour of washington revelry.

2.27.2002

my entire body ACHES. but what a trip it was...

we talked to lars monday night and set up how we'd be getting in touch when we got to providence. he was going to call us while we were on the road and direct us to somewhere where we could meet. he was going to get his ticket for john and his friend pete was thinking about coming as well. so everything is all set and i'm very excited to make the trip, see the show and have fun.

we didn't hear from him until around 6:30 because he got out of work late. normally, not much of a problem. however, since we'd arrived in providence around 5:15, michelle and i had spent an hour and twenty minutes driving all around the city. no rhyme or reason to where we went, just a random selection of streets. we stopped at "the best local market"--eastSIIIIIIDE marketplace--and finally wound up at a wendy's. we met up with lars around 7:30ish at the providence place mall and headed to pete's house before the show.

lars hadn't bought his ticket. pete was still undecided about the show. and when i called lupo's to see if there were still tickets available, it was sold out. but lars said he knew someone down there who might be able to let him in, so we all piled in the car and drove down.

of all the luck, pete knew someone who could let him in, but lars couldn't. so, after a bit of "well, err...what should we do?" deliberations, they said they were going to hang out in town and would meet us around 12:30.

john was disappointing. severely disappointing. i don't like him with the band and i don't like feeling like he's becoming a rock star. michelle and i stood there for maybe two songs and decided that we'd try to catch the guys. the show wasn't good and we felt bad about leaving them, so we figured we could all just hang out. so we left lupo's (where it's clearly marked no re-entry) and ran to where the car had been parked--and now was no longer there.

so we don't know where the guys are, we can't get back into the show, and we are two college women in downtown providence alone at night. this was a concern. we walked down towards PPAC and found a bar called mama's and were trying to look inside to see if they were there and the bouncers were trying to convince us to come inside and told us that there was no way we'd be able to find the guys because there are a million bars right around that area (funny, we didn't see a million other bars...). we got away quickly and wound up going to the met cafe. paid our $5 cover, walked in and watched a set with a really unknown band. we were the only people there who weren't friends with the band members. but it's warm and dry in there (because, naturally, it was raining a bit outside) and we had something to do to kill time until meeting up with lars and pete.

but the guitarist of the band freaks out after two songs and walks offstage, yelling that it's pointless, why should they bother, rockstar angst angst angst rage rage rage. so they end the set and we have to leave.

now we're down $5 each, we still have an hour to kill and we don't know where to go. so we walk back to lupo's and explain to the bouncer that we're aware of the no re-entry policy, but we've come down from vermont, our ride isn't due back until the end of the set, we just witnessed the breakup of a band and we haven't gotten a break ALL NIGHT. would he please just let us back in?

after grumbling about how he should punish us for listening to bad music, he let us back in and we chilled at the bar for the rest of the set with mcclane, a guy who works for abercrombie and is on the lookout for new music. michelle started to talk to him by asking for a cigarette and we wound up talking to him for the rest of the show. awesome guy--funny, hot and a sweetheart to two girls he's just met. we wound up giving him our email addresses and told him to drop us a line and we'll fill him in on more bands he'd like. amusement...

the show gets out at midnight, and we wait outside for a bit until it begins to rain. then we're huddled at the door to lupo's and we see lars and pete and proceed to tell them all about our adventure. lars' face was priceless--"you LEFT john mayer!??!?! what happened!?"

wound up going to a bar, drinking and talking about sports for awhile before heading back to pete's. good times.

the rest of the night was spent in drunken revelry, with some grand theft auto 3 thrown into the mix. we were all ridiculous--i wound up taking a shot of this fantastic german peppermint schnapps--and normally i have major problems with shots. but it went down beautifully and was really good (note to self: find this stuff). pete has the most adorable dog ever and it was fun to just relax and talk and have fun with everyone.

yes, it was very good to see lars. :)

we woke up around 9 this morning, after saying goodbyes, michelle and i drove back to quincy and then i drove back to vermont. i'm relaxing for a bit before i have to drive back to burlington. i'm exhausted and they SURE AS HELL BETTER APPRECIATE THIS!!!!!!! i think i'm crashing at school tonight and driving home tomorrow morning.

so all-in-all opinion of the rhode island road trip? despite all of the turmoil, i had a wonderful time. i don't know how michelle and i managed to keep our sanity and sense of humor, but we did. we wound up just laughing through it all, which was a relief. if she hadn't been there, i would have lost it numerous times! what a team, i tell you...fine holiday fun.

i like oatmeal.

2.26.2002

hola from quincy land...

in fine "vickie visits" tradition, the past couple of days have been fantastic. michelle and i left st. mike's sunday and drove down to fair haven to say hello to my parental units, then drove to quincy. we busted out all of the classics (some truly classic--billy joel--and some not-so-classic--color me badd, anyone?--but old school janet definitely dominated) and spent the hours singing, laughing, and MAKING SURE NO ONE PASSED ME IN THE RIGHT-HAND LANE!

we spent last night hanging out at jess'--she's one of those people i'd love to be able to spend more time with. she's fantastic and so much fun--and also there to engage in some nice, serious discussion, then following it up with her recitations of slam poetry...it was a delightful evening.

went on the great quincy bar search tonight--went to four different places before we could actually get a drink at uno's...would have been able to go to the first bar if they accepted out-of-state licenses...grrrrrrrrrrrrr...

but it's been great fun. it's nice to be able to relax and have a good time...and michelle's fam has adopted the"you can do it yourself" rule for me, which makes me very, very happy. i'm a part of the family, and it feels great. :)

tomorrow will be a good time as well. we're heading down to providence and meeting up with lars before the show...his friend pete might witness all that is mayer as well...then staying at pete's house tomorrow night before we all head to our respective homes wednesday morning.

i have several wishes for the evening:

- i hope john's live show with a full band is as good as his solo shows...

- i hope everyone enjoys the show

- i hope michelle has a good time and knows how happy i am that she was up for a little rhode island adventure (yet another reason why she's one of the best friends in the world)

- i hope everyone has a great evening. :)

2.24.2002

when i count down from ten
you'll feel the lead in your lids
you've no need to resist,
and wake up refreshed
hah!
--jeff buckley, haven't you heard?

2.23.2002

john mayer sold out at higher ground. so instead of simply seeing him down the street from our school, we're driving 4.5 hours to see him! logical, eh?

actually, it works out really well. we're leaving tomorrow to see my parents, then continuing down to michelle's. spending time there, seeing some of michelle's friends and visiting with the fam (yay!), then heading to providence on tuesday and seeing the show and hanging out with lars. we won't be super rushed, and i wasn't overly keen on the idea of seeing john twice in two days anyway. i just thought it worked out well so it was something we should try. but i'm happier with how it appears to be working. :)
i am so impressed...joey created a blog! i am exceptionally impressed. :) now people will be able to see what crackheads we actually are...

to thank the sports department for everything we've done since patrick has been off galavanting at the olympics (still bitter i wasn't given the opportunity to go--hehehe), the managing editor of my fine place of non-paying employment paid for us all to get dinner tonight, so we ordered from bourbon st. grill. i'd always wanted to try the stuff there, so i was psyched. i ordered my cajun chicken sandwich and crawford asked me how spicy i wanted it.

"how spicy does it get?"

"1 to 10. 1 is tame, 10 is eyes bulge out of the sockets tongue is on fire."

now i like spicy stuff. and i figured that there's no way it can really be ridiculously spicy, so i went with a 7. i thought it would be safe but still spicy enough to give me a kick.

i took a bite and a half of this thing and pretty much downed my pepsi. then went to fill my bottle with water. tongue is still on fire and my face feels all flushed.

i think a 4 would have been more than enough for me, let alone a 7. so now i'm eating the roll and the lettuce (but only the spots without any spicy sauce on it). if i actually had any taste buds left, i'd be sure that the sandwich is quite good and i highly recommend it.

work has been going remarkably well the past couple of days (trust me, i knocked on wood after typing that). everyone's in good spirits, i feel like i'm not constantly waiting for myself to mess up and people have been really great on the phones. carlton down at the herald is great--i like it when i talk to someone again and they remember who i am and are really friendly.

met jj cioffi at the rice/cvu game today (yes, the game that just about everyone agrees rice should have won, joey, including the cvu players) and he seemed pretty nice. it's always rather odd meeting these people--i've watched jj since i was a little kid and feel like i know the guy even thought i obviously don't--but he was nice enough to me, so i guess it was cool. and i got to take a look at the gutterson fieldhouse rink from one of the press boxes, which was cool--hey, little things make me happy, so shut up. ;)

i technically have four more hours of work before i'm finished (but we've already heard from most of the high school games and i think all we'll be waiting on is hockey--which crawford's covering--and the mayflower semis down south, so maybe--hopefully--i'll get out early) and then it's relax until john mayer on monday. i spoke to my father while my mouth was on fire and he told me he and my mother were going to visit on monday around 7 p.m. and take me out to dinner. since, as i said, my mouth was on fire, i responded with "ok, sounds great, looking forward to it." my parents then laughed about how their daughter is a moron. i responded with "dude, my mouth is on fire--do you think i have any coherent thoughts right now?!?!?"

you can always judge how much work i have to do by the amount of blogging i do...

2.22.2002

on behalf of all journalists and journalists-in-training, i need to say that this is absolutely wretched.

this goes to show that not even journalists are invincible. talking to my mother on the phone, she made sure to talk about how i should learn from this.

ah yes, only a few months til i'm out there too...not pakistan, but out there nonetheless...
i love the fact that, in the midst of all this "scandal" at our school, people try to paint the defender (and, at times, yours truly) as the villain in all this. because we strive to reach the standards of "real news" we're constantly blasted for not reporting, we are criticized. hmm...this presents a dilemma. do we cover the real news or do we stick with fluff? we're criticized either way...

i'm not upset by any means. in fact, i'm actually proud, in my own backwards way. we've managed to shed light on things no one really expected us to be able to shed light on. people are talking about the defender and are getting pissed off about it, but that means it's affecting them. people are paying attention.

not too shabby.

2.21.2002

"what is that feeling when you're driving away from people and they recede on the plain till you see their specks dispersing?--it's the too-huge world vaulting us, and it's good-by. but we lean forward to the next crazy venture beneath the skies."
yesterday turned into the "v rebellion day," although i did not intend for it to be quite as complete as it was. i woke up around 1 and spent almost the entire day at home with a body that felt like lead and no desire to do much of anything. i called all of my professors and left voicemails, and they called back to tell me i sounded horrible and should rest. so i did.

and, even though i felt rather stupid afterwards, it felt nice to call someone simply to say hello and say that i was alone in my house, sick, bored, and wanting to talk. :)

i'm currently racing through "on the road." i don't know why i didn't read it sooner--it's absolutely brilliant. there was one passage where sal and dean are rushing from virginia to new york to virginia again and everything's going at a fever pitch. while i was reading it, i was trying to race through the text, make some ramen (hey, it was 12:30 at night and i was hungry) and do 12 things at once while reading, and the pace i was doing everything at fit so well with the pace of the book at that point--it was just awesome. kerouac's style is what i aspire to and think i can reach if i keep trying, but then he throws this imagery into the mix and has such an eloquent control of words and i'm left with my jaw hanging open (quite literally). absolutely gorgeous. i'm going to read this again sometime when i can just settle down and soak it all in.

break begins for me after literary seductions tomorrow. i feel like it's already begun--we're watching film clips, it's not like it'll be a strenuous class--and all i have to do is get through the f and relax before the mini-roadtrip with michelle. this weekend we're planning the trip and we're also planning our european adventure after graduation. i'm especially excited about the idea of europe right now, with my whole kerouac-ian frame of mind...

but speaking of europe...when we get back from break, the eric boy will be off to live in scotland. today is the last day i'll be working with him here at fair user support...i'm obviously very happy for him about scotland, but he's made work all the more enjoyable lately--we're getting along famously and he's fun to have in the office. work will be much duller without him around. but i think everyone knew he'd go back to scotland at some point--i first met him after he came back from studying over there and you can just see him brighten up at the prospect of living there. it's going to be good for him.

2.20.2002

at 1:46 a.m., i despise all of my professors for the workload they have piled on me. i curse the gods for making me feel sick, and i prepare to rebel tomorrow.

2.19.2002

i sent an email clint's way to see if he's at all interested in meeting up when i'm in D.C. for ACTF...i figured it might be fun to try the whole "let's meet up" thing one more time--so this time we wouldn't just be playing phone tag all week! we'll see if i even hear anything back, but hey, worth a shot, right?

yet another example of how i have too much spare time on my hands while working at user support sometimes...
so.

paper is finished--i don't think there were any shockingly glaring errors anywhere--i tried so hard to get everything done, but i desperately need break. i feel like i'm on self-destruct mode with the pace i've been going at lately. yet i find it funny that i'm looking forward to a schedule of working at home during the day and working at the free press at night...?!??!

but i have two or three days of fun and relaxation. i get to see one of my favorite singers two days in a row, enjoying a mini-roadtrip with joey. :) it will be lots o' fun and i'm very much looking forward to it.

it's very nice to know that i have at least two weekends where i don't have to worry about the defender...ah...bliss, i tell you...
paper's not done yet, i must finish tomorrow. i've been running around all day doing journalistic stuff and i think i just need a few hours of rest so i can focus, crank out the rest of the paper, save it to disk and run it to the printer.

note on my computer when i came home: (BONZACK HAS A HUGE PROBLEM BECAUSE THIS EDITORIAL ISN’T GETTING WRITTEN BECAUSE I’M TOO BUSY DROOLING OVER MY EASTERN GIANT OPERATION…) LOVE YOU SMOOTHIE- NIGHT, Princess Joey :P

i'm working on the editorial to end editorials for father mike and michelle. :)

paul was playing my secretary this evening...lars called the lab and paul answered it with something along the lines of "v's office"...i could get used to that kind of greeting on the phone. forget "hello, defender." :)

paper will be lovely, just need to sleep so i can finish making it lovely...aurgh.

2.17.2002

i'm sitting here trying to write my editorial, and i'm going nuts. i've had two pretty decent editorials, so i feel like i can't falter now. only with the previous two, there was actually something i was interested in saying. this week, i'm not feeling overly impassioned about much of anything. and i do have an issue i'm trying to discuss, but it's just not coming out! the words are on the tip of my tongue, but they just refuse to go onto the page.

blearg. is it break yet?

speaking of break, the plans for the "vickie & michelle only slightly stalk john mayer" tour are in development. we will see him at higher ground on the 25th and head down to lupo's for the show on the 26th. i'm going to write a review of the higher ground show for the defender, which is good because i'll finally be able to write something for the paper and i'll also be practicing the review writing process...and then going to lupo's will be fun because it'll be a new place to check out and lars said we have to meet up.

yay...
i'm liking the new design on howie's site...sure as hell beats the really odd bubble/circle scheme howie was sporting recently. and the orange makes me happy.
i don't know exactly what it is that's changed. tonight i put on my long blue dress, last worn my sophomore year, to go to a formal/dress-to-impress/whatever-the-hell-you-want-to-call-it event. last time i wore this dress, i had a blast--dancing, socializing, just having a kickass time. but tonight was just another example of getting all dressed up with the hopes of having an amazing time and instead leaving disgusted and wishing i'd had more to drink. grr.

covered the high school gymnastics championship this evening over at uvm. definitely an...odd experience. but i covered it, and ted said i did a good job with the story, so hey, whatever. i've got full clearance to enjoy my fun miniroadtrip over break--yahoo...fun times. now i just have to find out how much tickets are at lupo's...

holy shit. the day before st. patty's day, remy zero is playing there. WORDS CANNOT EXPRESS HOW BADLY I WANT TO SEE REMY ZERO.

this must be looked into.

2.15.2002

"i always say that after graduation i'm going to live in a box on the mean streets of burlington. you're welcome to join me if you wish."

"but we don't have any boxes!!!"

nothing like graduation talk...

i have some of the most hilarious professors imaginable. i don't know what the hell that was in my literary seductions class today--all i know is that it wound up being a discussion about english teachers training their students to read the way the professors want them to and then an opportunity for dogs and whales to be drawn on the blackboard by a professor. i was laughing so hard by the end of class but wondered afterwards, "what the hell was THAT?"

tgif. participating in happy hour this evening. mmm...my darling long island iced tea, how i've missed you...although i've also grown particularly fond of sour drinks. midori sour and amaretto sour are both now ranking high on my list of favorite beverages...

2.14.2002

i'm glad i wore the red sneakers. :)

valentine's day didn't turn out so badly afterall.
valentine's day. bah humbug. ;) i wore black today, but, for those who are paying attention, i wore my red sneakers. i'm not completely bitter, just mostly. ;)

pat brought eclairs into work today and they are sitting

right
next
to
me, looking tasty. i'm not going to overindulge, even if it is v-day.

i signed my first official autograph today. rick printed out the press release and asked for my autograph because when i'm all famous and living in new york or cali, he wants to have my signature from back in the day. i laughed and signed it: to rick--my first autograph! don't you feel special? v.

it amused me.

2.13.2002

HAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA

Drink me!

Which drink are you?


that is too perfect for words.

2.12.2002

i just went for a walk around the academic buildings to check out some labs, and found myself standing in the portico right outside cheray. i stopped for a moment because the cold air felt great and helped wake me up a bit (three hours sitting at a computer waiting for phones to ring gets rather monotonous), and as i looked at the academic quad, it hit me that i'm graduating in exactly three months. and, while it's been on my mind constantly over the course of this year, it hit me that it feels (in some respects) like yesterday that i looked at the academic quad thinking that i would be spending four years on this campus. and how i couldn't imagine being here that long. the brick buildings were foreign to me and, because of that, they were intimidating. and i wondered who worked in the offices, who attended the classes and how things would turn out for me here.

now i realize that in approximately 90 days, i'm going to have to leave and find myself in a new environment of imposing buildings, unknown offices and people i've never met.

three months, and i don't have job prospects (yet), i have no idea of where i want to live, and the career choice i think i want to go into (theatre criticism) is one where there isn't really a big market unless i can crack into a paper in a city with a thriving theatre scene. or i can just do regular journalism, but i'm so exhausted with it (with d and f--i know i don't want to do sports) that it's not nearly as appealing as it used to be. maybe i just need a new scene and whatnot to get the thrill back, but because i've been editing, i haven't had a chance to really report anything for the past year and i wonder how many good stories i could have written in that span of time, instead of sitting in front of a computer fixing typos and lining boxes up in quark.

during a random little argument with my father last semester, he made a comment about how i'm too sensitive and that if i'm going to be a journalist, i need to develop a thicker skin. i shrugged it off at first because i knew he didn't mean i wasn't cut out to be a reporter, he was just mad. but the thought is in my head now, and i wonder if he was right. do i have what it takes to fight to get an interview? can i get into a story enough to spend hours researching a story? do i have what it takes?

i used to say yes without blinking, but now i'm not so sure. i know i've said it before, but i feel like i'm 21 going on 45, an old, jaded veteran of journalism. i need to get back into it again--find the reason i wanted to get into journalism in the first place. because right now, i'm just going from task to task, going through the motions to be done with my day so i can start it up again. i didn't even feel a big rush when i saw my byline in the f the second time--the first time, i admit, i really did, i thought that was snazzy.

what i think i need is to have one week where i just don't do anything with it. no defender, no f, no work. just a chance to relax, write whatever i want to write or not write if that's what i want to do. not have to answer questions for section editors, not have to meet a deadline for a story, not have to go to class.

break would be the obvious choice for such a time, but it's already looking rather hairy. it's right when basketball playoffs start up, ted wants me in the sportsroom as much as possible, i have to make money at home, and i have to plan for defender. and i really should be in the f because it'll help cut down on my hours i have to work for the magic 140--and, if i get those hours done early, as soon as i finish the necessary internship hours, t told me i can be completely done with the f so i can enjoy the last weeks of college.

so i think i'm going to compromise. i'm going to take a couple of days during break and be stupid and have fun. john mayer is going to be at higher ground on the 25th, then at lupo's in providence on the 26th--a monday and tuesday. so what i'm going to try to do is go to both shows--take off tuesday for a trip down to providence to catch the second show and, if things work out, try to meet up with lars? come back for work at the f wednesday, then work at home in the mornings and the f at night thursday friday and saturday. come back and relax on sunday, resume classes the following monday. i think that might be enough to give me a little sanity break but still help me get necessary work accomplished.

i was telling my mother while we chatted on the phone today, and she told me she thought it was a wonderful idea. i don't know what it is, but she has been so amusing as of late. she never would have viewed that favorably, but lately? it's a transformation. after the awards ceremony at ACTF, she told me to "go celebrate, drink a little and kiss a boy." the other day, she told me to "go party." and today? she's saying she approves of my thoughts of running around in a car to see a singer two nights in a row and driving hours because it'll be good for me?

ok, random stream-of-consciousness is over...
my exceptionally unscientific oscar predictions:

Best Picture: In the Bedroom, A Beautiful Mind, The Lord of the Rings, Gosford Park, Moulin Rouge
i'm going to go with LotR here. oscar voters love epics, and with 13 nominations, LotR has a lot of steam behind it. A Beautiful Mind might be close, but looking at the track record of voting, if it's a long movie with lots of extras, landscape shots and drama, oscar is likely. :) and because it was a kick-ass movie
Best Actor: Russell Crowe (A Beautiful Mind), Sean Penn (I Am Sam), Will Smith (Ali), Denzel Washington (Training Day), Tom Wilkinson (In the Bedroom)
russell crowe, no doubt. he's been winning everything, his performance has been given rave reviews by critics and the public alike, and voters love to be able to give back-to-backs.
Best Actress: Halle Berry (Monster's Ball), Judi Dench (Iris), Nicole Kidman (Moulin Rouge), Sissy Spacek (In the Bedroom), Renée Zellweger (Bridget Jones's Diary)
sissy spacek. while i haven't seen in the bedroom, so many people are so certain she'll win that i'm going to go along with their "expert" opinions. but part of me wishes it would go to either nicole or renee because i absolutely loved both their movies and their performances in said movies.
Best Supporting Actor: Jim Broadbent (Iris), Ethan Hawke (Training Day), Ben Kingsley (Sexy Beast), Ian McKellen (The Lord of the Rings), Jon Voight (Ali)
where the hell did ethan hawke come from? he swooped in to steal hayden christensen's nomination (yes, i'm bitter). as far as i'm concerned, anyone but ethan can win. a lot of people are saying jim broadbent (i really want to see iris--note to self), but i'd like to see ian mckellen continue a LotR sweep. i'm going to go with mckellen on this one.
Best Supporting Actress: Jennifer Connelly (A Beautiful Mind), Helen Mirren (Gosford Park), Maggie Smith (Gosford Park), Marisa Tomei (In the Bedroom), Kate Winslet (Iris)
they'll probably follow the golden globes with this one and give it to jennifer connelly. that's my prediction. but i'd like to see kate winslet get it because i've always liked her.
Best Director: Ron Howard (A Beautiful Mind), Ridley Scott (Black Hawk Down), Robert Altman (Gosford Park), Peter Jackson (The Lord of the Rings), David Lynch (Mulholland Drive)
peter jackson. i will be angry if anyone but peter jackson gets this award. the man deserves it, so give it to him.
Best Original Screenplay: Amélie, Gosford Park, Memento, Monster's Ball, Royal Tenenbaums,
i expect amelie will get it because everyone has gone crazy over this movie this year. i'd like to see the royal tenebaums get it, though.
Best Adapted Screenplay: A Beautiful Mind, Ghost World, In the Bedroom, The Lord of the Rings, Shrek
going with my LotR gut instinct here, although they might give it to a beautiful mind. but with all of the tolkien controversy with the adaptation and whatnot, i think it'll go to LotR.
Best Foreign-Language Film: Amélie (France), Elling (Norway), Lagaan (India), No Man's Land (Bosnia & Herzegovina), Son of the Bride (Argentina)
amelie. like any of the others stand a chance.
Best Animated Film: Shrek, Jimmy Neutron: Boy Genius, Monsters, Inc.
shrek, hands down. everyone seemed to be able to get a kick out of it. mature, cute, silly, it's definitely going to win.

so there you have it, i'm going to stick by these and we'll see how i do once oscar time rolls around. damn, i almost make it sound like i know what i'm talking about, huh? :)
oooh, academy award noms when i wake up!

best supporting actor, hayden christensen for life as a house

i will post my oscar predictions once i have knowledge of nominations...ah, dear awards season...
i am absolutely livid.

i should have been out of defender by 11 at the latest tonight. instead? 2 a.m. a couple of notes:

- changes made by paul or myself should be made before an editor leaves for the night.
- text should be justified - one of the first rules of layout.
- large holes on pages should be filled with content. not my responsibility.
- FRANK ZAPPA IS DEAD. therefore, he cannot be playing at higher ground on wednesday night. a tribute band, however, can and will play there wednesday night.
- if you list an event, please specify where and when it is being held.
- if you use a source, attribute said source.
- if one does not have the correct information for the security log, do not leave it as is and not inform editors of this. it is called false information.
- check the spelling of names, PLEASE. if you spell someone's name three different ways in one story, assume TWO OF THOSE SPELLINGS ARE INCORRECT.
- spellcheck.
- do not write "today" in a story. newsprint lives forever, so they say. so write the date.
- do not make me stay in the lab until 2 a.m. when i don't need to be there. is that so much to ask???

wednesday's class will be tons o' fun. but at least i have a fun new decoration for the lab--the zappa incident. i added to the proof, "SPECIAL GUESTS: jerry garcia and jim morrison. ONE NIGHT ONLY."

could you imagine if the zappa thing had gone to print?!?!? crikey...

ok, now i sleep because i have to be back there at 9 finishing everything. AURGH...

2.11.2002

jesse gets the gold star for the day, even though he's off in boston, he's still a wonderful big brother.

so, yeah. don't know exactly what to say about today. it's been interesting. defender people scored points for being cool and understanding (paul on the phone with bethy, who answered my phone: "is she alright?" in his paul concerned voice), i scored points for speaking my mind, and as far as the outcome? we'll just wait and see. in many respects, it's a foolish situation anyway, but i'm a foolish girl and i'll just take it as it comes. and keep in mind some of the choices that were made.

c'est la vie. back to my editorial. i think we're going to be out early tonight (knock on wood).
utter confusion.

2.10.2002

vh1 had a segment during one of its shows today talking about tim and jeff buckley. michelle called me downstairs and i squealed.

now i'm in defender, trying to get all this stuff done as quickly as humanly possible so i can visit later.
i picked up a copy of the sunday free press so i could get a clipping for my portfolio...it's neat to see my story in there--but the one thing i've learned thus far in my internship is that i have no real desire to be a sportswriter. everyone in my department is cool and i enjoy it enough, but i don't get the thrill of writing about sports that i had last year when i was sports editor of the defender. i was sitting at champlain, refs were tossing their jackets right by where i was sitting, the champlain people were tossing key rings onto my deskspace and i just wasn't into the game at all. granted, my mind was elsewhere, but i digress.

michelle, meg, lars and lars' two friends came down to visit me at the free press yesterday evening and save me from a really boring day for a few minutes. we wound up wandering around the little bookstore right by disc go round (i'm sorry, "downtown discs") because it was warm in there. lars asked if any of us have read marcel proust. i laughed. yes, yes i have. about 15 lines of it, anyway...

weekend assignment for literary seductions is to read gatsby. niiiiiiice.

audiogalaxy is finally working on my computer, i'm currently getting tim buckley.

2.09.2002

mormans rule.

if you want to play a fun game next time the olympics roll around, take a drink everytime you see a new flag during the parade of nations. sure to be a fun time.

2.08.2002

lars is coming to smc tomorrow, and i'm going to be stuck at the champlain college basketball game and then the free press.

AURGH!!!!!!

at least i definitely know i'll be able to see him sunday...and hopefully maybe a little tomorrow, depending on when he arrives...
liz mentioned josh clayton-felt on her blog the other day, so i decided to check out his music...thank you for another musical tip, liz! amazing music...i downloaded as much as i could last night and fully plan on buying "spirit touches ground" when it is released (feb. 12--BUY IT!). pity he's no longer with us. right now, "dragonfly" is my favorite track, but they are all astounding. i haven't heard an artist i fell in love with immediately in a good long while...

defender is frustrating the hell out of me. i don't have enough time for it all, i feel like whatever i do just isn't good enough, and if paul tries to "just remind" me of something one more time, i will have an overwhelming urge to tell him that i want to "just remind" him that i don't want to do it anymore. AURGH!

met with buff today for a press release. amusement. now i clean my room because it looks like a bomb hit it.

2.07.2002

i think i just might be able to go.

"what's amazing is when you can feel your life going somewhere, like your life just figured out how to get good, like, that second."
--my so-called life

DEADLINE IS NEAR: ATCA Midwest Young Critics Seminar - Cincinnati, Ohio - March 7-10, 2002

The deadline is almost here for writers interested in the ATCA-sponsored seminar in Cincinnati for young theater critics. Anyone planning to attend the March 7-10, 2002, program needs to contact the coordinators by Monday, Feb. 4. Other than modest out-of-pocket expenses, the seminar is free.

Coordinators Jackie Demaline (Cincinnati Enquirer) and Rick Pender (Cincinnati CityBeat) expect the seminar to appeal to critics with less than seven years of experience who live within driving distance of Cincinnati - Illinois, Indiana, Michigan, Ohio, Kentucky, West Virginia and Western Pennsylvania. Others are welcome if they are willing to fly to Cincinnati at their own expense (the Greater Cincinnati-Northern Kentucky International Airport, CVG, is principally served by Delta Airlines). Participants need not be ATCA members: If you know of young critics who would benefit from the seminar, please urge them to contact Pender or Demaline.

Pender and Demaline, both ATCA members and critics with many years of experience, will be joined by Larry Bommer (Chicago Reader, Chicago Tribune, Chicago Free Press) as mentors. Participants will be asked to submit 6-8 previous reviews in advance of the weekend to familiarize mentors with their writing. During the seminar, participants will see at least three plays, write about them, share their writing with mentors (in one-on-one sessions) and fellow participants, and have time for discussion of other critical and professional issues.

Cincinnati has a thriving theater scene. On March 7-10, the centerpiece of our viewing will be two plays by Carter Lewis - the world premiere of Men on the Take (the Rosenthal New Play Prize winner at the Cincinnati Playhouse) and the local premiere of Women who Steal (Ensemble Theatre of Cincinnati). One or two additional performances will be chosen from productions of Othello (Cincinnati Shakespeare Festival), She Loves Me (University of Cincinnati College-Conservatory of Music), Ten Little Indians (Cincinnati Playhouse), Woman in Mind (Ovation Theatre Company) and a ballet of Dracula (Cincinnati Ballet).

The Crown Plaza Hotel, located on Sixth Street in the heart of downtown Cincinnati, has graciously provided rooms at no expense for seminar participants. Some meals will be provided; participants are asked to bring approximately $100 for several meals in moderately-priced restaurants.

Participants should plan to arrive by 2:30 p.m. on Thursday, March 7; seminar activities will conclude by 1:00 p.m. on Sunday, March 10. Participants wishing to see a matinee at one of several theaters on Sunday afternoon will have that option.


mary sent me notice of this--i want to go. i already contacted rick and jackie, left messages about it. i don't know if it's at all possible--i can't really swing airfare and spending money--but i really, really, really want to.

listening to: rainy day, guster (from my unofficial "life as a house" soundtrack)
user support discussion topic of the day: whether dinosaur spagettios taste better than regular spagettios. after eric figured out how to heat the dinos, we found that they do, in fact, taste better.

sophisticated college discussion at its finest...

2.06.2002

the first defender came out very, very well. it's sparked a great deal of discussion, that's for sure...

hey, you wanted real news...

2.05.2002

i don't know if it's just that i'm too tired to really give a damn or what, but today has been one of those days where i feel completely invincible. i'm enjoying work, laughing at the calls i have to try to respond to, i'm awake (for the time being) and i'm happy.
and every dream, every, is just a dream after all
and everything stands so still when you dance
everything spins so fast
and the night's in a paper cup
when you want it to last
- heather nova
i've decided to give up on the notion of sleep. at least, no sleep until sunrise. it's been too long since i was a vampire, and, although i've found it's almost like riding a bicycle, my schedule seems to be telling me that there's no reason to sleep while it's dark outside.

first defender is at the printer--shouldn't be any problems (knock on wood). i think the naysayers who bashed the defender for not publishing real news are going to be very surprised. and frankly, i'm looking forward to the response to my editorial. you want us covering the news, you've got it, buddy. :)

today is going to be a busy day. i'm working here until 5, then working f-style from 7 to 11. at some point, i need to write a 2-page response paper about proust's swann's way for literary seductions, but i haven't even really opened up the book yet. this will be an example of bullshit at its finest. and i already told paul to stop by the sports department tonight to make sure i'm awake. i thought we decided that there would be no more 5 a.m. defender mondays...
let another semester of defender officially begin...

2.04.2002

all i've wanted to do for the last day and a half is sleep. this does not mix well with defender production days.

i'm currently a zombie, hopefully the paper will be a success.

that is all.
ACTF was another fun, much-needed week. it was great to get away from everything for a few days--defender, classes, free press, all of it. i was able to spend as much time as i wanted doing what i love to do--write, see theatre, meet hilarious people and just have fun. i didn't have responsibilities. i could stay up all night drinking or talking or writing in my journal and it didn't affect me or my work negatively.

it's not Real Life, and that's why i love it. everyone does crazy, irrational things and the justification is simply, "hey, it's ACTF. why not?"

during the past two regional festivals, i've been nothing but happy with who i am. here, i struggle with relationships and never feel like i have enough time for everything i want to do. i'm still, much as i try otherwise, shy. i can't walk up to a complete stranger and start a conversation, but there, i can.

i'm such a wise-ass there. i'm assertive and i make acquaintances relatively easily. it's interesting to see what people who meet me there think of me--it's a chance to see how the others perceive me and if i'm happy with how they perceive me. during a conversation with lars last night, he told me that i'm a big ray of sunshine and someone that people just want to know because i make things seem better somehow. it was one of the nicest compliments i've ever received.

coming back from the festival is hard, because getting back into the swing of things is a pain in the ass. i'm exhausted, i know i have a million things to do and the people i've been spending time with are now states away from me. it's somewhat depressing to know that i only get five days out of the year to live in that somewhat-warped version of reality.

but at the same point, if it was any more than that, the novelty would wear off. i can't stay up all night and write forever while having conversations about theatre or anything with random people because i'd get tired, the writing would get boring and the people would start to piss me off eventually. the thing about ACTF is to remember how i felt during those days and try to apply it to the rest of my life as much as possible. trying to bridge the gap, i suppose.

now that i've waxed philosophical, the basis summary of the week: a blast. met a ton of cool people (personal favorite is bobby, who, by the end of my time at the stonehill party last night, was proclaiming, "I LOVE THAT GIRL!!!" reminded me of joe o'leary--great guy. going to be a great actor.), wrote and wrote (both the critics' workshop and in my much-neglected journal--it felt so good to have a chance to jot down my thoughts), saw people from last year and got to know st. mike's people better this year (while we've always been friends, i now adore christine--i got back from defender tonight and had a note from her on my desk--such a sweetheart). we st. mike's people have such a good reputation at the festival--by the end of the week, if i told anyone i was from st. mike's, they would start going off on how nice and fun and supportive and alltogether kickass we are. made me happy.

i was able to spend more time with lars over the last few days, which was great. he's a great guy. :) he's going to try to get up here this weekend because meg wants him to come along to a rave in montreal--what i would give to not be working--and he told me that he's got to get the time off at work, but that he wants to come up here. i hope he can.

i'm going back to washington in april--won the workshop again. i honestly didn't think i would--all three of us had different qualities to bring to the workshop, and there were no guarantees. i'm proud of baz--she worked her arse off in the workshop, and it showed. i learned things about writing from her that i don't think she realizes. and the other guy? he and suzanne definitely opened my eyes to see that the stereotypical "theat-AH" people are still out there and they are still just as blindly snobbish as they've ever been. might be harsh words, but i think they are very accurate.

the best congratulations came from kirk this morning as i walked back to my room. jonathan and joe were laughing at me, kirk noticed me and said, "hey vic, congratulations!!!" jon and joe started laughing hysterically while i thanked kirk and hit them.

but now, the lack of sleep from the past couple of days (hour and a half the night before last, last night and today i slept from 7:15 am to 8:00 a.m., 9-11 a.m. (car ride home) and 4:45-6:45--paul ordered me to go home from defender and nap) and the normal routine of my life is making me tired. time for bed. classes tomorrow.

2.01.2002

hahahaha--you thought i'd go through ACTF without finding a computer to blog with...but NO! here i am, coming at you live from keene state.

the festival is great fun. the people are cool, the weather is wretched at the moment (rainy and icy and alltogether nasty), but the festival is fun. yes, james dean is back, yes, i'm resorting right back to how i was last year. :) it's certainly been interesting to talk to him--i don't know what it is about him, but it's just so much fun to play this game and see what comes of it. and he's incredibly hot. not gonna lie about it.

i don't have much time for anything else right now--getting ready to head over to the wright theater for a show--i must get my critic hat on...

it feels so good to be back. :):):) i can't believe it's already friday...