3.05.2002
February 22, 2002
Not Wanted: '02 Graduates Seeking JobsBy LYNNLEY BROWNING
BOSTON — When the millions of students who are set to graduate from college this spring started out in the late 1990's, the stock market was on a bull run and the dot- com frenzy was in full swing. At colleges across the country, career-services offices fashioned makeshift interview booths to accommodate the companies on a hiring binge.
Fresh-faced 22-year-olds commanded signing bonuses of $10,000 or more. People with bachelor's degrees in engineering or computer science often had a dozen job offers, some with six-figure salaries. Liberal arts majors found plenty of opportunities, too, working for Internet companies and consulting and financial firms.
Those heady times are gone. With the economy still struggling, layoffs increasing and corporate America wary about the near future, students who complete their undergraduate degrees this year face the worst job market for college graduates in nearly a decade.
"It's not like people even want a job in their major — they just want a job," said Sakara A. Bey, a senior at Tufts University who is majoring in engineering psychology. "It's become a prize possession."
Amid a severe retrenchment in hiring that began last summer, said Marilyn F. Mackes, executive director of the National Association of Colleges and Employers, "the job candidate is no longer calling the shots." The association calls this year's job market the tightest for graduating seniors since 1994, when companies began hiring again — slowly — after the 1990-91 recession.
Ms. Mackes estimated that there would be 20 to 25 percent fewer jobs for students who graduate with bachelor's degrees this year, typically in May or June. That does not surprise Nathan I. Perlis, 21, a biology and Judaic studies major at Tufts, who has long planned to go to medical school. "Out of 20 friends, I have one who actually has a job," he said in December, about two months after the peak recruiting season at most colleges. "A lot aren't even looking because they know it's so hard."
At Boston University, barely 50 companies came to a two-day recruiting fair in October, compared with about 100 the previous year, said Richard A. Leger, director of career services at the university. Many companies had just instituted hiring freezes, he said, and even those that showed up were, in many cases, there simply to maintain a presence on the campus. Among the no-shows at a B.U. off-campus job fair last month in New York, he said, were Ogilvy & Mather, the advertising agency, and Zenith Media, a communications company that is part of the Zenith Optimedia Group.
Recruiters may not return soon. In January, the unemployment rate was 5.6 percent, the highest level since April 1995. The unemployment rate for college graduates who are 25 or older nudged down to 2.9 percent last month from 3.1 percent in December — the highest level since April 1993, according to the Bureau for Labor Statistics. Economists expect jobless figures to continue to rise, although at a slower pace. Layoffs have been pronounced in the financial services, consulting, manufacturing and technology industries. Particularly hard hit has been the travel industry.
"You send companies e-mail messages and they say `We're on hold,' or you never hear back," Mr. Leger said. "It's like we're the ones having to do the recruiting."
Michael J. Walsh Jr., B.U.'s director of career services for engineering students, said 34 companies pledged to come to a job fair for engineering majors earlier this month, compared with 59 companies last year. Seven of the companies agreed to come after Mr. Walsh waived the $250 participation fee for them.
Worse, only 12 companies, mostly military contractors, have signed up to recruit B.U. engineering students this spring, compared with 20 last year. While Mr. Walsh would not name companies that had dropped out, he said they included major computer and software concerns and struggling or defunct dot-coms.
The drought has spurred him to cold-call prospective employers and scan local help-wanted ads for leads.
But such efforts may not bear fruit for another six months. Philip D. Gardner, director of the Collegiate Employment Research Institute at Michigan State University, said that most of the 290 companies surveyed by the institute in October were likely to resume hiring in the summer when students are not on campus and are hard to track down.
FleetBoston Financial, the large bank based in Boston, said it planned to hire only about half as many new graduates this year, mostly as financial analysts and loan officers, according to James E. Mahoney, a spokesman. He noted, though, that last year was a record hiring year for the company. EMC, a data storage company based in Hopkinton, Mass., about 35 miles west of Boston, plans to reduce its hiring of fresh graduates this year by half, to several hundred people, said Greg Eden, a spokesman.
Not all companies are closing their doors. Gillette, which has headquarters in Boston and makes a range of personal goods besides razors, will hire 13 new graduates to start in late spring, one fewer than last year, said Stephen K. Brayton, a spokesman.
The sudden shift in the job market has led students to plan for futures they never envisioned. That may not necessarily be bad, though.
"I'm looking at Teach for America and FEMA," said Adam D. Babin, 21, an advertising major at B.U., referring to a high-school teaching program and the government's emergency-management agency. "Everyone's either going to do something unrelated to their major or move back home."
Around a dozen undergraduates interviewed at Tufts and Boston University late in December said the dwindling number of jobs was also prompting many of them to apply to graduate school in their disciplines or to law school. The Law School Admission Council, an industry organization in Newtown, Pa., said that as of Jan. 26, applications to law school from people of all ages were up 25.2 percent over last year.
But more schooling is not an attractive option to Pavan Pant, 21, an engineering and computer systems major at B.U. "A lot of kids simply don't want to go to grad school after four years in college," Mr. Pant said. He is hoping that his internship last summer at I.B.M. will lead to a job at the company but he does not yet have an offer.
Compounding their troubles, many seniors will have sizable student loans to pay off after graduation. David S. Stein, a clinical psychology major at Tufts with $20,000 in student loans, said he hoped to land an $18,000-a-year job at a home for troubled children and families in Needham, Mass. But if he gets that job, he said, he will have to live with his parents, ask them for money and take out more loans.
Other students said they were scrambling for part-time internships that might become full-time paying jobs. Jean M. Papalia, director of career services at Tufts, said approximately 100 students participated over winter break in one- to two- week internships arranged by the university at local companies and organizations, up from 70 the previous year. The number of companies recruiting at Tufts last fall was much lower, she said, though she could not provide details.
Mr. Gardner of the Collegiate Employment Research Institute said that many engineering and computer science majors would probably receive at least one offer. But starting salaries will not be as stratospheric as in years past. The average high- end salary for computer science majors has fallen from around $65,000 to the low $50,000's, Mr. Gardner said.
Liberal arts majors are finding the job market particularly tough.
Amanda K. Bronesky, 21, a senior majoring in international relations and Spanish at Tufts, said she was crushed when EF Education, a language school company based in Cambridge, Mass., dropped out of a Tufts career fair in October. But Ms. Bronesky said she hoped to land an internship, paid or unpaid, at Explorica, an educational exchange company in Boston. Her backup plan is to live with her parents in Denver, and work as a waitress.
"Before the economy got bad, jobs were just given to students," said Ms. Bey, the Tufts senior, whose plan is to apply to graduate programs in engineering psychology. "Now the companies are saying, `Come and find me.' "
oh goody.
Not Wanted: '02 Graduates Seeking JobsBy LYNNLEY BROWNING
BOSTON — When the millions of students who are set to graduate from college this spring started out in the late 1990's, the stock market was on a bull run and the dot- com frenzy was in full swing. At colleges across the country, career-services offices fashioned makeshift interview booths to accommodate the companies on a hiring binge.
Fresh-faced 22-year-olds commanded signing bonuses of $10,000 or more. People with bachelor's degrees in engineering or computer science often had a dozen job offers, some with six-figure salaries. Liberal arts majors found plenty of opportunities, too, working for Internet companies and consulting and financial firms.
Those heady times are gone. With the economy still struggling, layoffs increasing and corporate America wary about the near future, students who complete their undergraduate degrees this year face the worst job market for college graduates in nearly a decade.
"It's not like people even want a job in their major — they just want a job," said Sakara A. Bey, a senior at Tufts University who is majoring in engineering psychology. "It's become a prize possession."
Amid a severe retrenchment in hiring that began last summer, said Marilyn F. Mackes, executive director of the National Association of Colleges and Employers, "the job candidate is no longer calling the shots." The association calls this year's job market the tightest for graduating seniors since 1994, when companies began hiring again — slowly — after the 1990-91 recession.
Ms. Mackes estimated that there would be 20 to 25 percent fewer jobs for students who graduate with bachelor's degrees this year, typically in May or June. That does not surprise Nathan I. Perlis, 21, a biology and Judaic studies major at Tufts, who has long planned to go to medical school. "Out of 20 friends, I have one who actually has a job," he said in December, about two months after the peak recruiting season at most colleges. "A lot aren't even looking because they know it's so hard."
At Boston University, barely 50 companies came to a two-day recruiting fair in October, compared with about 100 the previous year, said Richard A. Leger, director of career services at the university. Many companies had just instituted hiring freezes, he said, and even those that showed up were, in many cases, there simply to maintain a presence on the campus. Among the no-shows at a B.U. off-campus job fair last month in New York, he said, were Ogilvy & Mather, the advertising agency, and Zenith Media, a communications company that is part of the Zenith Optimedia Group.
Recruiters may not return soon. In January, the unemployment rate was 5.6 percent, the highest level since April 1995. The unemployment rate for college graduates who are 25 or older nudged down to 2.9 percent last month from 3.1 percent in December — the highest level since April 1993, according to the Bureau for Labor Statistics. Economists expect jobless figures to continue to rise, although at a slower pace. Layoffs have been pronounced in the financial services, consulting, manufacturing and technology industries. Particularly hard hit has been the travel industry.
"You send companies e-mail messages and they say `We're on hold,' or you never hear back," Mr. Leger said. "It's like we're the ones having to do the recruiting."
Michael J. Walsh Jr., B.U.'s director of career services for engineering students, said 34 companies pledged to come to a job fair for engineering majors earlier this month, compared with 59 companies last year. Seven of the companies agreed to come after Mr. Walsh waived the $250 participation fee for them.
Worse, only 12 companies, mostly military contractors, have signed up to recruit B.U. engineering students this spring, compared with 20 last year. While Mr. Walsh would not name companies that had dropped out, he said they included major computer and software concerns and struggling or defunct dot-coms.
The drought has spurred him to cold-call prospective employers and scan local help-wanted ads for leads.
But such efforts may not bear fruit for another six months. Philip D. Gardner, director of the Collegiate Employment Research Institute at Michigan State University, said that most of the 290 companies surveyed by the institute in October were likely to resume hiring in the summer when students are not on campus and are hard to track down.
FleetBoston Financial, the large bank based in Boston, said it planned to hire only about half as many new graduates this year, mostly as financial analysts and loan officers, according to James E. Mahoney, a spokesman. He noted, though, that last year was a record hiring year for the company. EMC, a data storage company based in Hopkinton, Mass., about 35 miles west of Boston, plans to reduce its hiring of fresh graduates this year by half, to several hundred people, said Greg Eden, a spokesman.
Not all companies are closing their doors. Gillette, which has headquarters in Boston and makes a range of personal goods besides razors, will hire 13 new graduates to start in late spring, one fewer than last year, said Stephen K. Brayton, a spokesman.
The sudden shift in the job market has led students to plan for futures they never envisioned. That may not necessarily be bad, though.
"I'm looking at Teach for America and FEMA," said Adam D. Babin, 21, an advertising major at B.U., referring to a high-school teaching program and the government's emergency-management agency. "Everyone's either going to do something unrelated to their major or move back home."
Around a dozen undergraduates interviewed at Tufts and Boston University late in December said the dwindling number of jobs was also prompting many of them to apply to graduate school in their disciplines or to law school. The Law School Admission Council, an industry organization in Newtown, Pa., said that as of Jan. 26, applications to law school from people of all ages were up 25.2 percent over last year.
But more schooling is not an attractive option to Pavan Pant, 21, an engineering and computer systems major at B.U. "A lot of kids simply don't want to go to grad school after four years in college," Mr. Pant said. He is hoping that his internship last summer at I.B.M. will lead to a job at the company but he does not yet have an offer.
Compounding their troubles, many seniors will have sizable student loans to pay off after graduation. David S. Stein, a clinical psychology major at Tufts with $20,000 in student loans, said he hoped to land an $18,000-a-year job at a home for troubled children and families in Needham, Mass. But if he gets that job, he said, he will have to live with his parents, ask them for money and take out more loans.
Other students said they were scrambling for part-time internships that might become full-time paying jobs. Jean M. Papalia, director of career services at Tufts, said approximately 100 students participated over winter break in one- to two- week internships arranged by the university at local companies and organizations, up from 70 the previous year. The number of companies recruiting at Tufts last fall was much lower, she said, though she could not provide details.
Mr. Gardner of the Collegiate Employment Research Institute said that many engineering and computer science majors would probably receive at least one offer. But starting salaries will not be as stratospheric as in years past. The average high- end salary for computer science majors has fallen from around $65,000 to the low $50,000's, Mr. Gardner said.
Liberal arts majors are finding the job market particularly tough.
Amanda K. Bronesky, 21, a senior majoring in international relations and Spanish at Tufts, said she was crushed when EF Education, a language school company based in Cambridge, Mass., dropped out of a Tufts career fair in October. But Ms. Bronesky said she hoped to land an internship, paid or unpaid, at Explorica, an educational exchange company in Boston. Her backup plan is to live with her parents in Denver, and work as a waitress.
"Before the economy got bad, jobs were just given to students," said Ms. Bey, the Tufts senior, whose plan is to apply to graduate programs in engineering psychology. "Now the companies are saying, `Come and find me.' "
oh goody.
argh. looking for flights from burlington to new york. i can't really consider driving because i have to be down there by 11 a.m., but it's hard to find a flight that fits into such a tight schedule. looks like the only one that works is over $300. i don't want to have to take a lot from the budget to pay for it, but i suppose if that's my only real expense...(plus the return flight would perhaps be late enough for me to slip up to the top of the empire state building--i've never been to new york without stopping there and i don't really want to break the tradition...hmm.)
new york in six days. new york times. !!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
new york in six days. new york times. !!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
"no such thing" is being played at EQX. it's official, the boy is making it if he's even reached vermont.
good lord.
good lord.
people are being morons this afternoon at work--people calling in for help but refuse to listen to the help i try to give them. i'm not just saying all of this stuff to hear myself talk...i'm trying to give people tips for next time. so shut up and listen to me!
tonight i learn how to wire stories into the f from remote so i can cover boys' championship games on saturday. whee!
tonight i learn how to wire stories into the f from remote so i can cover boys' championship games on saturday. whee!
3.04.2002
 I am Mario.I like to jump around, and would lead a fairly serene and aimless existence if it weren't for my friends always getting into trouble. I love to help out, even when it puts me at risk. I seem to make friends with people who just can't stay out of trouble. What Video Game Character Are You? |
i ate a fortune cookie this evening that had three fortunes inside. not one, not two, but three. i am very pleased by my fortuntes:
- you will be happy be receipt of good news.
- stop searching forever, happiness is just next to you.
- a cheerful letter or message is on its way to you.
happy happy...revel, revelrevel.
- you will be happy be receipt of good news.
- stop searching forever, happiness is just next to you.
- a cheerful letter or message is on its way to you.
happy happy...revel, revelrevel.
3.02.2002
3.01.2002
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.
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.
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. :)
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
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. :)
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...
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...
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.
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
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.
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
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...
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 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.
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...
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.
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...
"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
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.
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
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...
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? :)
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? :)
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...
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).
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).
2.10.2002
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.
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
2.08.2002
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.
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
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)
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)
2.06.2002
2.05.2002
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...
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...
2.04.2002
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.
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...
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...
1.29.2002
1.28.2002
i'm sitting here at the f, biting my fingernails wondering how the secretariat meeting is going...this is so frustrating!!!! wishing my joey and chucky all the best of luck...
i'm also waiting to see what t thinks of my first article. it wasn't an incredibly difficult story to write, and i think i did a good job, but i'm sitting here waiting for the "OK, good, but..."
ACTF tomorrow. very excited. presented today. didn't sneer, but did have a puppy-like yelp where the scream was supposed to go. i will have a full-out scream for wednesday.
work, then finish proposal for senior sem, emailing pat about work, packing, emailing resume, finishing up stuff, then sleep at some point. hopefully i won't run into a doorframe and kick the shit out of two toes this time (not like i've done that any other time, obviously...riiiiiight.)
i'm also waiting to see what t thinks of my first article. it wasn't an incredibly difficult story to write, and i think i did a good job, but i'm sitting here waiting for the "OK, good, but..."
ACTF tomorrow. very excited. presented today. didn't sneer, but did have a puppy-like yelp where the scream was supposed to go. i will have a full-out scream for wednesday.
work, then finish proposal for senior sem, emailing pat about work, packing, emailing resume, finishing up stuff, then sleep at some point. hopefully i won't run into a doorframe and kick the shit out of two toes this time (not like i've done that any other time, obviously...riiiiiight.)
last night was highly amusing. and yes, i did pay the price today.
senior social. i wore my "rock star" pants. these pants are wonderful and i love them dearly, but by the end of the night, the things are fucking HOT. i willingly changed into a short black skirt before going to the after-party (and having to walk across campus to reach said party). yeah.
the quote of the night came on the walk home. i was trying to say "i'm cocked" (which right there shows you how fucked up i was, if i was actually trying to use the expression "cocked"), but it came out more like "cauuuuuuucked" (like i had a really weird boston accent thing going on). so naturally, i had to use this expression from then on. i put it up as an away message, to which bethy asked me why i wrote that i was "caaaaaaaaaked". so then i had to say, "i'm so CAKED".
salsa con queso was unsuccessful--woke up today feeling like i wanted to curl up under a rock somewhere. had too much shit to do, no physical capability to do any of it. note to self: go to bed before 4. but after meeting jacques (the original jaccques, that is) and a ton of alleve, i went to get a haircut, which is a great cure for a hangover. walk in feeling like shit, walk out feeling like a million dollars. fortunately, i had a great woman cut my hair and i didn't have to go through the whole "i don't want to talk to you but you're making idle chitchat while you cut my hair with sharp objects so i'll chat back." she was cool, a blast to talk to. gold star for her.
i'm really excited about ACTF, drew's audition is going to be tight. we present to the acting I class tomorrow. eeek!
and before i go to ACTF on tuesday, i must finish my free press story, work on the senior sem proposal, buy necessary items, work on necessary things, AND try to get some of my literary seductions reading done. oh wait, and attend various functions.
..................
senior social. i wore my "rock star" pants. these pants are wonderful and i love them dearly, but by the end of the night, the things are fucking HOT. i willingly changed into a short black skirt before going to the after-party (and having to walk across campus to reach said party). yeah.
the quote of the night came on the walk home. i was trying to say "i'm cocked" (which right there shows you how fucked up i was, if i was actually trying to use the expression "cocked"), but it came out more like "cauuuuuuucked" (like i had a really weird boston accent thing going on). so naturally, i had to use this expression from then on. i put it up as an away message, to which bethy asked me why i wrote that i was "caaaaaaaaaked". so then i had to say, "i'm so CAKED".
salsa con queso was unsuccessful--woke up today feeling like i wanted to curl up under a rock somewhere. had too much shit to do, no physical capability to do any of it. note to self: go to bed before 4. but after meeting jacques (the original jaccques, that is) and a ton of alleve, i went to get a haircut, which is a great cure for a hangover. walk in feeling like shit, walk out feeling like a million dollars. fortunately, i had a great woman cut my hair and i didn't have to go through the whole "i don't want to talk to you but you're making idle chitchat while you cut my hair with sharp objects so i'll chat back." she was cool, a blast to talk to. gold star for her.
i'm really excited about ACTF, drew's audition is going to be tight. we present to the acting I class tomorrow. eeek!
and before i go to ACTF on tuesday, i must finish my free press story, work on the senior sem proposal, buy necessary items, work on necessary things, AND try to get some of my literary seductions reading done. oh wait, and attend various functions.
..................
one thing i make a conscious effort not to do is make assumptions about other peoples' jobs. since i don't know what goes into those jobs, i'm not really one to act like i do know what they do and how much they work and whatnot. i think it's common courtesy.
therefore, i find it highly offensive when other people talk about MY job. my job in which i DON'T get any money, i get bitched at constantly, and i find myself struggling to get everything done on time.
i will now provide explanations for defender practice, for all those who seem to inquire about what we actually do over in the bergeron lab:
- we publish nine issues. we cannot publish more than nine because we cannot possibly publish during weekends in which we are not on campus. we cannot paginate when everyone is in different states. if someone has an idea about how exactly we can conference-paginate, feel free to contact me.
- allegation: defender does not cover "real" news. truth: where was this naysayer when we covered sept. 11 and how it affected the campus? was said person asleep when we sent an editor to new york city to cover the scene at ground zero? did any other oncampus publication (student-run, that is) effectively address how the campus was affected? the answer is no. we cover events objectively. were there other reporters in the ryan parking lot while two cars were being examined by police and firefighters after they were lit on fire? was there a photographer from any other campus publication? no. we refuse to publish rumor if it is not backed by fact, we examine issues that should be covered in a respectful way, and we expect our writers to produce polished, A.P.-style work. we ask questions, we try to look at the bigger picture, and we try, with our staff that is never more than eight people, to cover the events of the entire st. michael's campus plus juggle classes and our other responsibilities.
we are constantly learning. every semester, the old staff leaves and a brand new staff arrives. we learn programs for layout, photography. we learn editing skills and continue to learn about the craft of writing. those who return learn management, design, advertising and time management. we work 20-30 hours a week (at minimun) creating, finetuning, and presenting publications each week to inform the st. michael's campus.
i invite any naysayers to try doing what we do for a week. if you can produce better work than us, feel free to criticize. in that case, hell, i'll agree with you. however, until i see anyone else lining up to do what we do each week, i can do nothing but laugh at you. i don't pretend to understand what you do in your position. i don't pretend to like you, and i refuse to play the little social games you play. so DO NOT smile and say hello to me and then bash my newspaper with your little friends. get your ass over here and give it a shot. then see how much bashing you'll do.
therefore, i find it highly offensive when other people talk about MY job. my job in which i DON'T get any money, i get bitched at constantly, and i find myself struggling to get everything done on time.
i will now provide explanations for defender practice, for all those who seem to inquire about what we actually do over in the bergeron lab:
- we publish nine issues. we cannot publish more than nine because we cannot possibly publish during weekends in which we are not on campus. we cannot paginate when everyone is in different states. if someone has an idea about how exactly we can conference-paginate, feel free to contact me.
- allegation: defender does not cover "real" news. truth: where was this naysayer when we covered sept. 11 and how it affected the campus? was said person asleep when we sent an editor to new york city to cover the scene at ground zero? did any other oncampus publication (student-run, that is) effectively address how the campus was affected? the answer is no. we cover events objectively. were there other reporters in the ryan parking lot while two cars were being examined by police and firefighters after they were lit on fire? was there a photographer from any other campus publication? no. we refuse to publish rumor if it is not backed by fact, we examine issues that should be covered in a respectful way, and we expect our writers to produce polished, A.P.-style work. we ask questions, we try to look at the bigger picture, and we try, with our staff that is never more than eight people, to cover the events of the entire st. michael's campus plus juggle classes and our other responsibilities.
we are constantly learning. every semester, the old staff leaves and a brand new staff arrives. we learn programs for layout, photography. we learn editing skills and continue to learn about the craft of writing. those who return learn management, design, advertising and time management. we work 20-30 hours a week (at minimun) creating, finetuning, and presenting publications each week to inform the st. michael's campus.
i invite any naysayers to try doing what we do for a week. if you can produce better work than us, feel free to criticize. in that case, hell, i'll agree with you. however, until i see anyone else lining up to do what we do each week, i can do nothing but laugh at you. i don't pretend to understand what you do in your position. i don't pretend to like you, and i refuse to play the little social games you play. so DO NOT smile and say hello to me and then bash my newspaper with your little friends. get your ass over here and give it a shot. then see how much bashing you'll do.
1.27.2002
highlights from the evening:
- leaving laundry my own personal message curosty of nicole
- senior social was fun. i was a rock s ar.
- after-party at josh & nicks. bastard boy is named. fun times. now can't feel finger.s
i love being a senior, 21 years old, and being able tohava fun night.
"i'm caaaaaaacked."
why doi think i'll delete htis blog tomorrow?
- leaving laundry my own personal message curosty of nicole
- senior social was fun. i was a rock s ar.
- after-party at josh & nicks. bastard boy is named. fun times. now can't feel finger.s
i love being a senior, 21 years old, and being able tohava fun night.
"i'm caaaaaaacked."
why doi think i'll delete htis blog tomorrow?
1.25.2002
coming to a theatre near you: VORTEX, based on VORTEX: the great american novel, the tale of a band, vortex, trying to get ahead in this crazy world by making it big at a seedy LA club--VORTEX. starring: v, hayden christensen and pairing newcomers m and e. special appearances by casey affleck, jesse bradford, and cb.
doesn't it have a nice ring to it?
doesn't it have a nice ring to it?
1.24.2002
when one is tired when one wakes up, all one needs to start the day off on the right note is a little gonads and strife.
yo motherfucker, wheeeeeeeeeee!
work, then parental visit, then working with drew & kirk, then f. fun fun fun.
yo motherfucker, wheeeeeeeeeee!
work, then parental visit, then working with drew & kirk, then f. fun fun fun.
1.23.2002
imagine my surprise to find that someone found this lil blog by searching for "shawn radley"--and my ranting and raving about him with the howie coffeehouse debacle comes up on the search engine.
official statement: i, victoria, do not have issues with shawn radley. it was a mixup that was unfortunate, but he did get in touch with me and was nice about it. i do not think he is a moron, i have no hard feelings, and i feel quite bad that someone stumbled across an entry that was written while i was exceptionally pissed off.
although i do find it amusing, in its own sort of way...but nonetheless, sorry shawn. you're A-OK.
seth yavacone band played in alliot tonight. i was impressed.
now i work out.
that is all.
official statement: i, victoria, do not have issues with shawn radley. it was a mixup that was unfortunate, but he did get in touch with me and was nice about it. i do not think he is a moron, i have no hard feelings, and i feel quite bad that someone stumbled across an entry that was written while i was exceptionally pissed off.
although i do find it amusing, in its own sort of way...but nonetheless, sorry shawn. you're A-OK.
seth yavacone band played in alliot tonight. i was impressed.
now i work out.
that is all.
1.22.2002
internship--day two. i have my first story--i'm doing an advance on the high school state cheerleading competition. it'll be my first f byline...
i've also got a few story ideas that t gave me that i'm going to be able to check out. i feel bad that i'm missing next week because of ACTF, but t amazingly cool and was fine with it. as long as i'm around in february and march for basketball games, i'm cool. i think it means that the next few weeks of my life will be devoted to basketball.
things are going to be fine, i just need to make sure i take time to relax, as well. today's been fully booked all day (work, ACTF, f), and i have classes all tomorrow. after everything settles into place (ACTF, defender, schedule), i'll be fine. right now it's a little hectic, though, because i feel like i don't have time to get anything accomplished for anyone. i just have to look at the small picture--focus on what i need to do each hour, get that done, and move on to the next.
working at user support was surprisingly enjoyable today. i had the best day there i've had in ages. i gave eric shit, he gave me shit, i showed people remarkably simple fixes to "impossibly annoying" problems, and the four hours whizzed by.
i just have to remember to find time to eat during busy days like this. i forgot to do that today (or rather, i didn't really think about it until i sit down here at 7 p.m...), and i know there's a bowl of special k with the red berries at home with my name on it. mmm...only three more hours... ;)
i've also got a few story ideas that t gave me that i'm going to be able to check out. i feel bad that i'm missing next week because of ACTF, but t amazingly cool and was fine with it. as long as i'm around in february and march for basketball games, i'm cool. i think it means that the next few weeks of my life will be devoted to basketball.
things are going to be fine, i just need to make sure i take time to relax, as well. today's been fully booked all day (work, ACTF, f), and i have classes all tomorrow. after everything settles into place (ACTF, defender, schedule), i'll be fine. right now it's a little hectic, though, because i feel like i don't have time to get anything accomplished for anyone. i just have to look at the small picture--focus on what i need to do each hour, get that done, and move on to the next.
working at user support was surprisingly enjoyable today. i had the best day there i've had in ages. i gave eric shit, he gave me shit, i showed people remarkably simple fixes to "impossibly annoying" problems, and the four hours whizzed by.
i just have to remember to find time to eat during busy days like this. i forgot to do that today (or rather, i didn't really think about it until i sit down here at 7 p.m...), and i know there's a bowl of special k with the red berries at home with my name on it. mmm...only three more hours... ;)
scotty's road journal entries are my drug--so good to get a fix. ;)
what the hell was that?!? apparently i'm on crack today...
what the hell was that?!? apparently i'm on crack today...
maloney walked up to me yesterday as i was waiting to get into the classroom for literary seductions, put his arm on my shoulder, and told me that he was watching chocolat over the weekend and there was a character in it who looked like me. curses!!! my life of relative obscurity is crumbling as i speak...the general public is learning of my feature film debut... ;) i've wanted to watch the movie anyway, but now i'm intrigued. i know, i'm a narcissistic bitch at times. ;)
after working on some ACTF things in the library, drew and i walked outside to find nick, and we began talking about our respective futures and whatnot (a topic that is contstantly lurking in the back of my mind). after having said discussion, the three of us noticed the large, fluffy snowflakes that had begun to fall, so we spent time trying to catch them on our tongues. we would crouch down, jump up, and roam about trying to capture the snowflakes, and i realized that the simple action was an incredible comfort to me. there's something so reassuring about going from such a heavy topic to a childlike, fun activity...
today i work at user support from 1 to 5, then work on the scene for ACTF with drew and kirk, then my internship from 7 to 11.
in a week, i'll be on my way to the festival!!! the ACTF regional festival was one of the best weeks of my junior year. it's a week of complete immersion in theatre--seeing two shows a day, going to workshops, seeing acting competitions (or, in this case, supporting someone in the acting competition) and, if one chooses, writing about theatre continuosly for two days. besides that, there is the opportunity to meet theatre students from across the northeast, hang out in hotel rooms, and relax (party) for five days. i'd never experienced anything like it before--and i can't wait to go back.
after working on some ACTF things in the library, drew and i walked outside to find nick, and we began talking about our respective futures and whatnot (a topic that is contstantly lurking in the back of my mind). after having said discussion, the three of us noticed the large, fluffy snowflakes that had begun to fall, so we spent time trying to catch them on our tongues. we would crouch down, jump up, and roam about trying to capture the snowflakes, and i realized that the simple action was an incredible comfort to me. there's something so reassuring about going from such a heavy topic to a childlike, fun activity...
today i work at user support from 1 to 5, then work on the scene for ACTF with drew and kirk, then my internship from 7 to 11.
in a week, i'll be on my way to the festival!!! the ACTF regional festival was one of the best weeks of my junior year. it's a week of complete immersion in theatre--seeing two shows a day, going to workshops, seeing acting competitions (or, in this case, supporting someone in the acting competition) and, if one chooses, writing about theatre continuosly for two days. besides that, there is the opportunity to meet theatre students from across the northeast, hang out in hotel rooms, and relax (party) for five days. i'd never experienced anything like it before--and i can't wait to go back.
1.21.2002
it didn't tape. :( and hayden didn't win.
LotR was fantastic. following the production process (well, as much as possible, obviously) and seeing what i'd read about live in front of me on the screen was a fascinating experience. kudos to those associated with the production. i've only read the first book (chuck, having discussed this with me before christmas break, put a fabulous paperback edition of all three books combined into my christmas stocking--therefore earning a gold star for the next three years), but seeing how my imagination compared to peter jackson's imagination was thrilling--both when they lined up (my image of gollum, for instance, and some of the locations) and when they varied drastically (sean bean brought a whole new dynamic to boromir i never read into--his character had redeeming qualities and dignity, which i didn't see on the page).
and beth laughed heartily while i enjoyed my second big-screen viewing of the star wars trailer. as well as during one of the questions they always show before the previews start: "which is your favorite star wars movie?" my answer: "the one with hayden christensen in it..." (for the record, i did thoroughly enjoy "return of the jedi").
i returned home, read about 65 pages of henry james (not much of a fan, not going to lie about it), created the sign up sheet for defender story meetings, and now am preparing for bed, as i have to be in sue's class at 8-fricking-15 tomorrow morning to give my 5-minute talk about writing for the paper. oh, how i joyously await that experience...
i've decided, since no official soundtrack is being released for it, i am going to make my own copy of the "life as a house" soundtrack. there is a score available, but fuck that. look at this track listing...
- guster, "what you wish for"
- gob, "that's the way"
- on, "soluble words"
- default, "live a lie"
- marilyn manson, "sweet dreams"
- default, "somewhere"
- ohgr, "water"
- limp bizkit, "rearranged"
- guster, "rainy day"
- joni mitchell, "both sides now"
- deadsy, "gramercy park"
- radiohead, "how to disappear completely"
now all i need to do is see the movie...
LotR was fantastic. following the production process (well, as much as possible, obviously) and seeing what i'd read about live in front of me on the screen was a fascinating experience. kudos to those associated with the production. i've only read the first book (chuck, having discussed this with me before christmas break, put a fabulous paperback edition of all three books combined into my christmas stocking--therefore earning a gold star for the next three years), but seeing how my imagination compared to peter jackson's imagination was thrilling--both when they lined up (my image of gollum, for instance, and some of the locations) and when they varied drastically (sean bean brought a whole new dynamic to boromir i never read into--his character had redeeming qualities and dignity, which i didn't see on the page).
and beth laughed heartily while i enjoyed my second big-screen viewing of the star wars trailer. as well as during one of the questions they always show before the previews start: "which is your favorite star wars movie?" my answer: "the one with hayden christensen in it..." (for the record, i did thoroughly enjoy "return of the jedi").
i returned home, read about 65 pages of henry james (not much of a fan, not going to lie about it), created the sign up sheet for defender story meetings, and now am preparing for bed, as i have to be in sue's class at 8-fricking-15 tomorrow morning to give my 5-minute talk about writing for the paper. oh, how i joyously await that experience...
i've decided, since no official soundtrack is being released for it, i am going to make my own copy of the "life as a house" soundtrack. there is a score available, but fuck that. look at this track listing...
- guster, "what you wish for"
- gob, "that's the way"
- on, "soluble words"
- default, "live a lie"
- marilyn manson, "sweet dreams"
- default, "somewhere"
- ohgr, "water"
- limp bizkit, "rearranged"
- guster, "rainy day"
- joni mitchell, "both sides now"
- deadsy, "gramercy park"
- radiohead, "how to disappear completely"
now all i need to do is see the movie...
1.20.2002
golden globes are on this evening. since i might be going to see lord of the rings tonight (finally!!!), i'm probably taping the awards show. ever since i was a little kid, i have loved awards show season (shallow as that might be), so i'm looking forward to it. the official (as i see it) kick off to the awards season...
...then take me disappearin' through the smoke rings of my mind,
down the foggy ruins of time, far past the frozen leaves,
the haunted, frightened trees, out to the windy beach,
far from the twisted reach of crazy sorrow.
yes, to dance beneath the diamond sky with one hand waving free,
silhouetted by the sea, circled by the circus sands,
with all memory and fate driven deep beneath the waves,
let me forget about today until tomorrow...
down the foggy ruins of time, far past the frozen leaves,
the haunted, frightened trees, out to the windy beach,
far from the twisted reach of crazy sorrow.
yes, to dance beneath the diamond sky with one hand waving free,
silhouetted by the sea, circled by the circus sands,
with all memory and fate driven deep beneath the waves,
let me forget about today until tomorrow...
1.19.2002
i went to baz's tonight for her new year's eve party. the rationale being that since we weren't able to be together for new year's for real, we could all reenact it so we are, in a sense, together when the clock strikes midnight.
i actually had a blast. bethy, drew, michelle and i went over, and it was a lot of fun. i had a chance to see people i hadn't seen yet, and i was able to reconnect with some that i hadn't talked to in awhile.
in other news, i've been playing guitar regularly, and i'm happy to say that my fingers are getting caloused again and i'm slowly teaching myself to be able to play howie's "after you."
now i sleep. first day of internship tomorrow.
i actually had a blast. bethy, drew, michelle and i went over, and it was a lot of fun. i had a chance to see people i hadn't seen yet, and i was able to reconnect with some that i hadn't talked to in awhile.
in other news, i've been playing guitar regularly, and i'm happy to say that my fingers are getting caloused again and i'm slowly teaching myself to be able to play howie's "after you."
now i sleep. first day of internship tomorrow.
1.16.2002
i'm determined: my senior seminar project is going to be putting on a benefit concert. and it is going to be great.
senior sem, besides it being three and a half hours long (?!?!?!) is going to be interesting. dyane and jon are already scaring me with how they keep talking about how it will be the last time we do this and the last time we do that and how the class is in one big group so we can all join together as the journalism class of 2002--i cannot believe i'm graduating...but i ran my idea by dyane and she seemed excited about it. and she kept stressing during class about how we have to love what we are going to be devoting the semester to and how we shouldn't be afraid to try something we normally wouldn't try--and this is ideal: i'm combining journalism with music, it's going to a cause (therefore providing a purpose), and it can have a great end result. baz might join forces with me for this one, which would be fantastic. it would be a great project and it would be wonderful to have someone sharing the experience with me...
i have a few ideas for bands/artists...i'm calling to find out booking prices tomorrow.
!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
oh, and the books we're reading for the class? stephen king, on writing (have it in hardcover, love it) and kerouac's on the road (have it, have been meaning to read it) among a couple others.
if all goes according to plan, at least i'll be going out with a bang...
senior sem, besides it being three and a half hours long (?!?!?!) is going to be interesting. dyane and jon are already scaring me with how they keep talking about how it will be the last time we do this and the last time we do that and how the class is in one big group so we can all join together as the journalism class of 2002--i cannot believe i'm graduating...but i ran my idea by dyane and she seemed excited about it. and she kept stressing during class about how we have to love what we are going to be devoting the semester to and how we shouldn't be afraid to try something we normally wouldn't try--and this is ideal: i'm combining journalism with music, it's going to a cause (therefore providing a purpose), and it can have a great end result. baz might join forces with me for this one, which would be fantastic. it would be a great project and it would be wonderful to have someone sharing the experience with me...
i have a few ideas for bands/artists...i'm calling to find out booking prices tomorrow.
!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
oh, and the books we're reading for the class? stephen king, on writing (have it in hardcover, love it) and kerouac's on the road (have it, have been meaning to read it) among a couple others.
if all goes according to plan, at least i'll be going out with a bang...
1.15.2002
1.14.2002
i know i'm horrible for being amused by this, but nonetheless:
"my fellow ameri--"
THUD.
after this post, i find that secret service starts viewing and monitoring my blog... ;)
"my fellow ameri--"
THUD.
after this post, i find that secret service starts viewing and monitoring my blog... ;)
1.13.2002
topics: literary seductions reading list:
henry james, selected tales
evelyn waugh, a handful of dust
marcel proust, swann's way: in search of lost time volume 1
edgar allan poe, the fall of the house of usher and other works
margaret atwood, the handmaid's tale
a.s. byatt, angels & insects
f. scott fitzgerald, the great gatsby
jeanette winterson, written on the body
vladimir nabokov, lolita
anais nin, delta of venus: erotica
i am thrilled about this class. books i've either read and loved (gatsby) and books and authors i've always wanted to read. the class list is also looking great: bethy, drew, erikka, patterson, josh cook are taking it, and i'm hoping the rest of the class will be equally impressive. nat and kerry (sp?) kaplan are teaming up to teach it. i haven't had either of them before, but i've heard nothing but good things about them.
tomorrow at 10:30 a.m...
henry james, selected tales
evelyn waugh, a handful of dust
marcel proust, swann's way: in search of lost time volume 1
edgar allan poe, the fall of the house of usher and other works
margaret atwood, the handmaid's tale
a.s. byatt, angels & insects
f. scott fitzgerald, the great gatsby
jeanette winterson, written on the body
vladimir nabokov, lolita
anais nin, delta of venus: erotica
i am thrilled about this class. books i've either read and loved (gatsby) and books and authors i've always wanted to read. the class list is also looking great: bethy, drew, erikka, patterson, josh cook are taking it, and i'm hoping the rest of the class will be equally impressive. nat and kerry (sp?) kaplan are teaming up to teach it. i haven't had either of them before, but i've heard nothing but good things about them.
tomorrow at 10:30 a.m...
after a horrifically hectic day, i'm back at school.
i'm happy to be back. very much so. my first night back, however, left much to be desired. i'm attributing much of it to my being tired--i got about three hours sleep last night, so i've been more than a little cranky and i'm the first to admit it. however, in my tendancy to boost things up to an epic proportion they cannot possibly live up to, i expected to feel this amazing surge of empowerment and joy about my return--i'm happy to see my housemates, i'm happy to see drew, i'm happy to see the people i've seen--but other than that, it's just back to my normal state of...i don't know, whatever i normally am.
while i go through constant denial that i've grown up while in college, being back has forced me to realize that i feel old. not to mention more than a little jaded. i'm missing friends who graduated last year, i'm scared shitless that i'm a senior preparing for graduation. and i was more than a little pissed off when someone tried to give me tips on playing asshole--i've been playing the damn game since freshman year, throwing down one bad hand does NOT mean i don't know what the hell i'm doing. it's amazing how little things like a card game can make me realize how old and decrepid i sound (and feel at times).
i'm hoping that a full night's sleep will make me cheerier tomorrow. i just need to focus on the fact that i am going to have a good semester, i'm going to spend time with people whose company i enjoy, and i'm going to end college on a high note.
or else. ;)
i'm happy to be back. very much so. my first night back, however, left much to be desired. i'm attributing much of it to my being tired--i got about three hours sleep last night, so i've been more than a little cranky and i'm the first to admit it. however, in my tendancy to boost things up to an epic proportion they cannot possibly live up to, i expected to feel this amazing surge of empowerment and joy about my return--i'm happy to see my housemates, i'm happy to see drew, i'm happy to see the people i've seen--but other than that, it's just back to my normal state of...i don't know, whatever i normally am.
while i go through constant denial that i've grown up while in college, being back has forced me to realize that i feel old. not to mention more than a little jaded. i'm missing friends who graduated last year, i'm scared shitless that i'm a senior preparing for graduation. and i was more than a little pissed off when someone tried to give me tips on playing asshole--i've been playing the damn game since freshman year, throwing down one bad hand does NOT mean i don't know what the hell i'm doing. it's amazing how little things like a card game can make me realize how old and decrepid i sound (and feel at times).
i'm hoping that a full night's sleep will make me cheerier tomorrow. i just need to focus on the fact that i am going to have a good semester, i'm going to spend time with people whose company i enjoy, and i'm going to end college on a high note.
or else. ;)
1.11.2002
the random arrival of a simplesimon mailing never fails to make me smile.
ah...the last night before the return to school. i made a mistake tonight and realized that this is probably the last official pack everything at the last minute in order to go back to school for a new semester night that i'll ever experience. i'm trying to ignore this.
i have a ridiculous amount of work to do before i sleep. unfortunately, i don't have the normal luxury of sleeping in as late as i'd like tomorrow morning, as i have to be at work at 10. and i'm packing the car before i leave so i can leave directly from work for the wonderful land i call burlington. hurrah!!! so i'm in the normal crazy pattern of washing things, drying them, cursing them for not being dry enough, and, naturally, waiting and not sleeping. had i not had a stressful workday today, this would be fine. however, by 7 tonight, i was ridiculously on edge. yes, i admit it, i yelled at a customer tonight. well, maybe i didn't "yell". "snapped" is more appropriate. but it was his own damn fault, he yelled at me, so i "snapped" back. all of the customers were incredibly rude today, i was tired, and i didn't want to be courteous. i felt better after. :)
i raided my parents' stash of clothing tonight. i found some gems. vintage...ah...new additions to my wardrobe that will make me very very happy.
alright, i do need sleep at some point this evening, so i should resume packing. at this time tomorrow, i'll be back at my house at school... :):):)
ah...the last night before the return to school. i made a mistake tonight and realized that this is probably the last official pack everything at the last minute in order to go back to school for a new semester night that i'll ever experience. i'm trying to ignore this.
i have a ridiculous amount of work to do before i sleep. unfortunately, i don't have the normal luxury of sleeping in as late as i'd like tomorrow morning, as i have to be at work at 10. and i'm packing the car before i leave so i can leave directly from work for the wonderful land i call burlington. hurrah!!! so i'm in the normal crazy pattern of washing things, drying them, cursing them for not being dry enough, and, naturally, waiting and not sleeping. had i not had a stressful workday today, this would be fine. however, by 7 tonight, i was ridiculously on edge. yes, i admit it, i yelled at a customer tonight. well, maybe i didn't "yell". "snapped" is more appropriate. but it was his own damn fault, he yelled at me, so i "snapped" back. all of the customers were incredibly rude today, i was tired, and i didn't want to be courteous. i felt better after. :)
i raided my parents' stash of clothing tonight. i found some gems. vintage...ah...new additions to my wardrobe that will make me very very happy.
alright, i do need sleep at some point this evening, so i should resume packing. at this time tomorrow, i'll be back at my house at school... :):):)
1.10.2002
i have played the sims today far too much for my own good. it's so addictive!
i spent over an hour filling out the survey drew sent--then when i tried sending it (i tried smcmail AND yahoo), both gave me problems and i wound up losing my responses. AURGH! they were good, too!
must sleep. closing tomorrow, also stopping by the high school to say hello to frau burke. :)
i spent over an hour filling out the survey drew sent--then when i tried sending it (i tried smcmail AND yahoo), both gave me problems and i wound up losing my responses. AURGH! they were good, too!
must sleep. closing tomorrow, also stopping by the high school to say hello to frau burke. :)
1.08.2002
1.07.2002
one less stress--got the official word on the internship. i'm set. looks like there will be two or three other interns--one from middlebury, one from champlain, and possibly one from uvm. all guys...so it'll be me and hilary taking on the men. we'll kick some ass. i'm now working on convincing the department that garrity will need some assistance when he goes to utah in february to cover the olympics. it's an awfully big event for just one person to cover. will post the progress of the "send vickie to the games" campaign as it develops.
"i am sam" soundtrack comes out tomorrow. i plan on purchasing it tomorrow. i've been anticipating it for some time now.
what else? my parents gave me a set of glassware for the house. plates and the like. i've never been so happy to get plates before. i'm thrilled, to be honest. something i don't have to buy!!!!!!!
"i am sam" soundtrack comes out tomorrow. i plan on purchasing it tomorrow. i've been anticipating it for some time now.
what else? my parents gave me a set of glassware for the house. plates and the like. i've never been so happy to get plates before. i'm thrilled, to be honest. something i don't have to buy!!!!!!!
what a DAY!!!
meeting of the smcssvs was great--went to bjarn's, we were served by a girl i graduated high school with--i'm hoping it was just that she had a bad night, because she was rather bitchy and it surprised me, to say the least. she used to go to trinity (when it was still open), so i hung out with her from time to time during college and it was always great...hey, c'est la vie. i'm over it.
but bjarn's is a restaurant owned by my high school soccer coach (and one of my favorite people from my high school days), so i was psyched to get back there. i went into the kitchen after dinner to say hello and got some hugs and well wishes, which was great. bjarne (pronounced like the damn purple dinosaur) is a kick-ass guy--not to mention that he was an amazing coach!
i hate that every time i see anyone from before college now, the third question i get asked, after "how are you?" and "how's college?", is "what are you going to do next year?" know what, public? I DON'T KNOW YET!!!!!!! i don't have a job lined up, i don't know where i'm going to live, i don't know what i'm going to do. THERE.
after dinner, which was quite good, bethy and i went to coffee exchange and talked--it was wonderful to spend time with her--yes, we live twenty minutes away from each other, but with working and sleeping and trying to get everything done and setting up some sort of a routine, it's hard to meet up on a regular basis. but every time we do, i leave cursing myself for not meeting up sooner. while i like to be able to spend time with family here at home, at some point during break, it's incredibly depressing because i start worrying about after school. what if i come home and i don't have somewhere else to go? i'm stuck in the rutland area?
seeing bethy calms me because i can relax and be more of myself and just have fun. i'm lucky to have her around me during off time.
we both have wednesday off, we're going to shoot for trying to get up to burlington to move in stuff, do some house shopping, and get away from southern vt. i just hope it stops snowing...
after i left bethy, i went to blockbuster and rented "an ideal husband." i approve. predictable as hell, but enjoyable and british. i wanted to rent "pride & prejudice" so i could finally see it (and colin firth as darcy!), but both episodes were out. so i went with "AIH". not the same, but not bad.
after that though, was another treat. i finally caught an episode of "inside the actors' studio" on BRAVO, which i've always wanted to see, and robin williams was featured. naturally, he was fucking hilarious.
after that, i caught two episodes of a show i was interested in seeing. it's called "the 'it' factor". think "real world: new york" with 12 actors who are followed as they try to get their big breaks. fascinating show, i taped it and plan on continuing to follow it. i don't know why i didn't start watching BRAVO ages ago...i love this station! tv worth watching now consists solely of "the west wing" and BRAVO. and "the daily show" because i love jon stewart. :)
good good day. work tomorrow, therefore sleep is necessary.
meeting of the smcssvs was great--went to bjarn's, we were served by a girl i graduated high school with--i'm hoping it was just that she had a bad night, because she was rather bitchy and it surprised me, to say the least. she used to go to trinity (when it was still open), so i hung out with her from time to time during college and it was always great...hey, c'est la vie. i'm over it.
but bjarn's is a restaurant owned by my high school soccer coach (and one of my favorite people from my high school days), so i was psyched to get back there. i went into the kitchen after dinner to say hello and got some hugs and well wishes, which was great. bjarne (pronounced like the damn purple dinosaur) is a kick-ass guy--not to mention that he was an amazing coach!
i hate that every time i see anyone from before college now, the third question i get asked, after "how are you?" and "how's college?", is "what are you going to do next year?" know what, public? I DON'T KNOW YET!!!!!!! i don't have a job lined up, i don't know where i'm going to live, i don't know what i'm going to do. THERE.
after dinner, which was quite good, bethy and i went to coffee exchange and talked--it was wonderful to spend time with her--yes, we live twenty minutes away from each other, but with working and sleeping and trying to get everything done and setting up some sort of a routine, it's hard to meet up on a regular basis. but every time we do, i leave cursing myself for not meeting up sooner. while i like to be able to spend time with family here at home, at some point during break, it's incredibly depressing because i start worrying about after school. what if i come home and i don't have somewhere else to go? i'm stuck in the rutland area?
seeing bethy calms me because i can relax and be more of myself and just have fun. i'm lucky to have her around me during off time.
we both have wednesday off, we're going to shoot for trying to get up to burlington to move in stuff, do some house shopping, and get away from southern vt. i just hope it stops snowing...
after i left bethy, i went to blockbuster and rented "an ideal husband." i approve. predictable as hell, but enjoyable and british. i wanted to rent "pride & prejudice" so i could finally see it (and colin firth as darcy!), but both episodes were out. so i went with "AIH". not the same, but not bad.
after that though, was another treat. i finally caught an episode of "inside the actors' studio" on BRAVO, which i've always wanted to see, and robin williams was featured. naturally, he was fucking hilarious.
after that, i caught two episodes of a show i was interested in seeing. it's called "the 'it' factor". think "real world: new york" with 12 actors who are followed as they try to get their big breaks. fascinating show, i taped it and plan on continuing to follow it. i don't know why i didn't start watching BRAVO ages ago...i love this station! tv worth watching now consists solely of "the west wing" and BRAVO. and "the daily show" because i love jon stewart. :)
good good day. work tomorrow, therefore sleep is necessary.
1.06.2002
smcssvs meeting tonight at bjarn's...bueno!
i never mentioned that the installation of my car's cd player was successful. and as i've been driving around, i've been listening to my copy of remy zero's "the golden hum." originally, i wasn't overly crazy about it (because i didn't think it could possibly compare to "villa elaine"), but it's really growing on me now. i recommend it. it's odd, however, hearing "save me" on eqx...i always do a double take, wondering, "what the hell is remy zero doing on the radio?"
i also made a new mix that i'm very pleased with. includes (not in the correct order) ryan cabrera, ben kweller, john mayer, averi, stephen speaks, jeff buckley, toploader, five for fighting, howie & john's "sorry so sorry", radiohead, guster, belle and sebastian, and a couple others. it's pleasing to my audio palate, plus it's random selections from the artists (buckley singing "3 is a magic number" is hilarious, i love it!)
i never mentioned that the installation of my car's cd player was successful. and as i've been driving around, i've been listening to my copy of remy zero's "the golden hum." originally, i wasn't overly crazy about it (because i didn't think it could possibly compare to "villa elaine"), but it's really growing on me now. i recommend it. it's odd, however, hearing "save me" on eqx...i always do a double take, wondering, "what the hell is remy zero doing on the radio?"
i also made a new mix that i'm very pleased with. includes (not in the correct order) ryan cabrera, ben kweller, john mayer, averi, stephen speaks, jeff buckley, toploader, five for fighting, howie & john's "sorry so sorry", radiohead, guster, belle and sebastian, and a couple others. it's pleasing to my audio palate, plus it's random selections from the artists (buckley singing "3 is a magic number" is hilarious, i love it!)
1.05.2002
the verdict on red:
My car is 61 - 75% dependable.
My car is 61 - 75% dependable.
This car is invincible. It can't be stopped. It can't be reasoned with. I think I will Skip work today and drive halfway across the country to see some bands. Now I just need to tint the windows, get a box for the trunk, and crank up my favorite Mineral or Sunny Day Real Estate album, but goddamnit I better get those pizzas there on time or they are coming out of my pay!
Take the Dependable Transportation Test! click here
quiz made by stranz
i got bored and created a new screenname for IM. i don't know if i'll use it frequently, but if you're online and i'm not on under my normal one, check here and see if i'm around.
name came from my brother tonight--he was talking about his distaste for popular music, and i said, "and you're talking about popular music with whom?" to which he replied, "i know, miss alternacoustic." i thought it was rather catchy.
chatted with megan at coffee exchange this evening. it was odd, in some respects, simply because it's weird enough to say, "so, how have you been the past three and a half years?" and also because we're both in such different places now. she was shocked when i told her about my theatre experiences, i don't think she ever saw that one coming. i also think she was surprised at everything i've done at school--i was filling her in on everything, and later i made a comment about the radio show last spring, and she said, "you did a radio show too???? how did you have time?"
she's doing well, yale seems to be treating her well, and it was good to talk to her. i hope we keep in touch as time goes by. i'm glad i decided to procrastinate from writing my research paper that night and emailed her instead. yet another example of how procrastination is actually a good thing.
after careful discussion with elizabeth, i have decided to try to get back to smc saturday night. that way i can get everything done for cleaning my room and organizing before the parents arrive the next day with more stuff plus we can go see "lord of the rings" saturday night (because rutland sucks and doesn't bother showing it here). plus because i'm looking forward to being back. :)
smcssvs meeting tomorrow, plus i call the free press to see what's going on with my internship plus i try to get in touch with paul to discuss defender. aurgh.
name came from my brother tonight--he was talking about his distaste for popular music, and i said, "and you're talking about popular music with whom?" to which he replied, "i know, miss alternacoustic." i thought it was rather catchy.
chatted with megan at coffee exchange this evening. it was odd, in some respects, simply because it's weird enough to say, "so, how have you been the past three and a half years?" and also because we're both in such different places now. she was shocked when i told her about my theatre experiences, i don't think she ever saw that one coming. i also think she was surprised at everything i've done at school--i was filling her in on everything, and later i made a comment about the radio show last spring, and she said, "you did a radio show too???? how did you have time?"
she's doing well, yale seems to be treating her well, and it was good to talk to her. i hope we keep in touch as time goes by. i'm glad i decided to procrastinate from writing my research paper that night and emailed her instead. yet another example of how procrastination is actually a good thing.
after careful discussion with elizabeth, i have decided to try to get back to smc saturday night. that way i can get everything done for cleaning my room and organizing before the parents arrive the next day with more stuff plus we can go see "lord of the rings" saturday night (because rutland sucks and doesn't bother showing it here). plus because i'm looking forward to being back. :)
smcssvs meeting tomorrow, plus i call the free press to see what's going on with my internship plus i try to get in touch with paul to discuss defender. aurgh.
i meant to mention this awhile ago and just stumbled across it again. fred durst discussing why wes left limp bizkit:
"It's all about the music. We were trying to write the new album, and Wes was writing very eclectic stuff, and he became very, very obsessed with Radiohead."
hehehehehe. radiohead. breaking up a rock band near you. ;)
"It's all about the music. We were trying to write the new album, and Wes was writing very eclectic stuff, and he became very, very obsessed with Radiohead."
hehehehehe. radiohead. breaking up a rock band near you. ;)
1.04.2002
1.03.2002
1.02.2002
i'm meeting up with megan on saturday night for some coffee exchange action. i haven't seen megan since about the time i graduated high school, she went on rotary to russia while i went to college. now she's at yale. it will be neat to see her, since i haven't really talked to her in three and a half years or so and we used to be close, but i'm not going to pretend that it won't be somewhat awkward. in high school, i always felt just a little less...polished than she was. she was cultured and theatrical, i was sports girl. while a great deal has changed (i'm theatre girl now, i've changed radically since high school), i'm worried that i'm going to unexpectedly revert to how i was back then.
but whatever. it'll be good to hang out with an old friend at least one last time.
my father took my car in to get the cd player installed this afternoon. one fuse was blown somehow, so now it needs to go in again tomorrow. until it comes back with everything working, i'm going to worry about it. if for whatever reason, my sound system is messed up, i'm going to kick some ass. but chris says it's just the cd player and he's going to get a new one. so i'll just remain as optimistic as possible until it comes back working and happy.
in other news, i finally saw moulin rouge last night. while i appreciated ewan mcgregor before, i was head over heels in love with him while the movie was on. i need to see a life less ordinary now.
lord of the rings isn't playing in rutland. so i guess i'm going to wait until i get back up to school. while the movie's been out for awhile now, i still cannot believe it's not playing here. WTF?!?!?!
but whatever. it'll be good to hang out with an old friend at least one last time.
my father took my car in to get the cd player installed this afternoon. one fuse was blown somehow, so now it needs to go in again tomorrow. until it comes back with everything working, i'm going to worry about it. if for whatever reason, my sound system is messed up, i'm going to kick some ass. but chris says it's just the cd player and he's going to get a new one. so i'll just remain as optimistic as possible until it comes back working and happy.
in other news, i finally saw moulin rouge last night. while i appreciated ewan mcgregor before, i was head over heels in love with him while the movie was on. i need to see a life less ordinary now.
lord of the rings isn't playing in rutland. so i guess i'm going to wait until i get back up to school. while the movie's been out for awhile now, i still cannot believe it's not playing here. WTF?!?!?!
the palendromic year of 2002...welcome welcome welcome.
i composed a quick summary of 2000 last year at about this time, so it's time for victoria's 2001 in review. let's begin the trip down memory lane...
- ACTF at UNH: great shows, amazing acting (go kathleen!!!), and "hey, maybe james dean will be around." "thanks kirk, he's actually right there." also: "you know, i'm a vegetarian, but there's nothing more theraputic than watching meat turn on a stick." "i'm not gay, but if jim morrison was in my bed, i wouldn't kick him out." mr. bagel refers to me as howie. winning critic's workshop, enjoying the last night at the hotel.
- interviewing john mayer and glen phillips at higher ground. "your body is a taco stand..." babylon during soundcheck, added lyrics to not myself. "yeah, i was going to start that up again later in the set, but i forgot." yes, glen was sick, but he did play for us!
- stupid fucking kirk paper 1. shakespeare throughout the ages. vow never to write a paper for him again.
- nationals in d.c. one hour of sleep the night before with a seriously sprained toe (damn doorframe!), sleepy bethy. ;) flying to d.c. without being able to recline the chair because the woman next to me was already asleep. the sensation of flying into d.c. by myself. not being able to find my fucking hotel. roommates are margot and kc (one bad mutha)! phone tag with clint, roaming the city (camera in hand), shakespeare theatre!!!!! machinals sucked, the character was PROTEUS!!!! 2 a.m. nightmare. margot and i witness bohemian rhapsody outside the hotel. meeting up with the parental units, the newseum. missing p-day, but there in spirit. the kennedy center, especially the last night on the terrace. want to go back. SHOULD HAVE MET UP WITH CLINT!!!!!!
- spending the last day or two with jesse. graduation.
- tom's graduation weekend: graduation, dmb, then howie/john at paradise.
- coming home for the rest of the summer. being happy to be home.
- howie in northampton.
- defender. all year long. even at 5 a.m monday nights.
- moving into slut sanctuary/virgin vault. "it's like cheers..."
- spoons.
- 9-11-01.
- LEAP. worth the wait.
- we learn that moving jeeps are bad evil things.
- heaven, hell and purgatory party. how many jello shots? shaking the yuka and a shot of tequila to kick everything off. knowing the hangover is going to be a bitch, our heroines attempt to cure themselves by consuming tortilla chips and salsa con queso. they awake in the morning with no hangover, no illness. nothing. thus proving that salsa con queso is the ultimate hangover preventative resource.
( beth: LOL...and as all good stories end the heroines slay the evil hang over and wake up perky and fresh the following morning)
- halloween. rich didn't have the spirit like we did. we were the cutest smc cheerleaders in the place.
- birthday--"i'm a woman on a mission!!!" NIKEY!!!!!! JUST DO IT!!!! ("um...actually...") housemates cleaning bedroom in case of birthday hookup.
- arcadia. british accents. "kick some ass tonight." how many times did beth see the show? ACTF respondent: "hey, it was their loss." "hey, why don't chloe and bernard kiss?" strumpets. a monKEY! "that's right, you bloody WEREN'T..."
- dispatch. my girls got onstage, i got to add to the yellow concert t-shirt collection. :)
- "one tequila two tequila thee tequila floor." naming the trees on the walk home, as well as a fire hydrant. bethy names jacques.
- stupid fucking kirk paper 2. aristotle's criticism of deus ex machina was wrong. taking on a guy dead for 2000 years. vow never to write a paper for kirk again.
- the letter.
- annual december boston trip. the love of donald's life, pat mcgee band (again), naming jacques jr. spending time with drew and michelle in the city--the steps leading to fanuel hall ("oh, i love that dirty water...oh boston you're my home"), saying goodbye on the t (that's why he's going to ACTF!!!!!!)
- a year of memories, a few regrets, but mostly laughs and good times.
whenever i do one of those, i feel like i'm writing senior memories in the yearbook all over again. don't take offense to omissions, had to be brief.
i composed a quick summary of 2000 last year at about this time, so it's time for victoria's 2001 in review. let's begin the trip down memory lane...
- ACTF at UNH: great shows, amazing acting (go kathleen!!!), and "hey, maybe james dean will be around." "thanks kirk, he's actually right there." also: "you know, i'm a vegetarian, but there's nothing more theraputic than watching meat turn on a stick." "i'm not gay, but if jim morrison was in my bed, i wouldn't kick him out." mr. bagel refers to me as howie. winning critic's workshop, enjoying the last night at the hotel.
- interviewing john mayer and glen phillips at higher ground. "your body is a taco stand..." babylon during soundcheck, added lyrics to not myself. "yeah, i was going to start that up again later in the set, but i forgot." yes, glen was sick, but he did play for us!
- stupid fucking kirk paper 1. shakespeare throughout the ages. vow never to write a paper for him again.
- nationals in d.c. one hour of sleep the night before with a seriously sprained toe (damn doorframe!), sleepy bethy. ;) flying to d.c. without being able to recline the chair because the woman next to me was already asleep. the sensation of flying into d.c. by myself. not being able to find my fucking hotel. roommates are margot and kc (one bad mutha)! phone tag with clint, roaming the city (camera in hand), shakespeare theatre!!!!! machinals sucked, the character was PROTEUS!!!! 2 a.m. nightmare. margot and i witness bohemian rhapsody outside the hotel. meeting up with the parental units, the newseum. missing p-day, but there in spirit. the kennedy center, especially the last night on the terrace. want to go back. SHOULD HAVE MET UP WITH CLINT!!!!!!
- spending the last day or two with jesse. graduation.
- tom's graduation weekend: graduation, dmb, then howie/john at paradise.
- coming home for the rest of the summer. being happy to be home.
- howie in northampton.
- defender. all year long. even at 5 a.m monday nights.
- moving into slut sanctuary/virgin vault. "it's like cheers..."
- spoons.
- 9-11-01.
- LEAP. worth the wait.
- we learn that moving jeeps are bad evil things.
- heaven, hell and purgatory party. how many jello shots? shaking the yuka and a shot of tequila to kick everything off. knowing the hangover is going to be a bitch, our heroines attempt to cure themselves by consuming tortilla chips and salsa con queso. they awake in the morning with no hangover, no illness. nothing. thus proving that salsa con queso is the ultimate hangover preventative resource.
( beth: LOL...and as all good stories end the heroines slay the evil hang over and wake up perky and fresh the following morning)
- halloween. rich didn't have the spirit like we did. we were the cutest smc cheerleaders in the place.
- birthday--"i'm a woman on a mission!!!" NIKEY!!!!!! JUST DO IT!!!! ("um...actually...") housemates cleaning bedroom in case of birthday hookup.
- arcadia. british accents. "kick some ass tonight." how many times did beth see the show? ACTF respondent: "hey, it was their loss." "hey, why don't chloe and bernard kiss?" strumpets. a monKEY! "that's right, you bloody WEREN'T..."
- dispatch. my girls got onstage, i got to add to the yellow concert t-shirt collection. :)
- "one tequila two tequila thee tequila floor." naming the trees on the walk home, as well as a fire hydrant. bethy names jacques.
- stupid fucking kirk paper 2. aristotle's criticism of deus ex machina was wrong. taking on a guy dead for 2000 years. vow never to write a paper for kirk again.
- the letter.
- annual december boston trip. the love of donald's life, pat mcgee band (again), naming jacques jr. spending time with drew and michelle in the city--the steps leading to fanuel hall ("oh, i love that dirty water...oh boston you're my home"), saying goodbye on the t (that's why he's going to ACTF!!!!!!)
- a year of memories, a few regrets, but mostly laughs and good times.
whenever i do one of those, i feel like i'm writing senior memories in the yearbook all over again. don't take offense to omissions, had to be brief.
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