Sooo...

Andrew's off in San Fran. for a cousin's wedding, & I'm here holding down the fort. Well, Kory's here too, but whatever. So yesterday was sad, seeing him off... Sad because I'm used to having him around, and because this was the only full weekend in January that we have here, and because he was going off to do something fun & I'm a brat & can't be happy for people. =)

Anywho, last night I decided to make something semi-healthy for dinner. I made pasta & a salad, and then discovered that I didn't know if we had any marinara sauce. Looking in the fridge produced one opened jar, and in the cupboard I found one full one... Luckily I didn't find the vodka sauce in the fridge till later (apparently it's old). The one in the cupboard was of the "roasted garlic," and upon a taste inspection I realized that there was no way in hell that I was eating anymore of that. So that left the one opened jar in the fridge that tasted better, but was of dubious background... I was pretty sure it was around a month old... Looking up online, could find nothing as to the durability (isn't that a funny word to use about pasta sauce?) of foodstuffs in the fridge after the initial opening. So... I decided that, since it tasted OK & there was no mold on the lid, I would eat it. Because I'm lazy and I didn't feel like going to the store.

Then... I realized that I had a full evening to do... what? in. Finally edited a story, watched episodes of the OC that I missed last month over ice cream, watched some Jay Leno, & slept... The OC is sooo good. I held out for awhile, with my attitude that it was just a dumb sitcom and that surely 4 years of college has taught me to appreciate more... well, more thought-provoking shows. Nope, can't deny it -- I love the soap opera drama elements.

This morning I woke up and knew that I had to do something interesting. This meant a trip to Harvard Square to locate White Noise, because the movie of the same title (but about something tooootally different) reminded me that I should read that sometime when I'm not bogged down with other work. And since I only read one other novel this break, it was about damn time I started a new one. Had a slow start, watched the news on TV & kids' Saturday morning 'toons. Trading Spaces Boys vs. Girls is actually really entertaining, I discovered.

I got directions online to Harvard Books, and set off for my little adventure. I passed Au Bon Pain & the Adidas store, and I was like, wow, so cool, I'm on the right track! I passed right by the store, thinking that it was just part of Harvard U.'s Coop & student bookstore, not realizing that it's the SAME THING as Harvard Books! Oops... So I walked... and walked... and saw another T stop off in the distance, a bit down Mass Ave. from the YMCA. So I turned around, and started walking back. Stepped into this old man's used bookstore (you know the type, totally deserted except for you and this bookish old man with white hair, so you HAVE to buy something or feel like a complete idiot suddenly walking out...) No White Noise. Did, however, find a Tom Stoppard play that I might possibly need for my course this semester. So I bought that and put back Waiting for Godot as the guy wanted 2.25$ for each old beat up play. Craazy. I was thinking maybe like, 1$... Guess I'm used to Oregon pricing still.

Back on my merry way up Mass Ave, I went up and down side streets, and examined every store front. Soon began to despair that I would not find Harvard Books. Finally saw the store, realized my mistake, and saw the Plymton St. sign that I had previously been searching for (as the directions told me to). How did I pass right by that sign without noticing?? Looked through used books, remainders... no White Noise. Went up to the new books section, resolving that if I had come this far, I had may as well just spend the money and get the damn thing...Couldn't find it among the D's... Then looked up into the highest shelves, realized that it was overflow or something, and saw one reddish spine with hard to see little letters... Saw that it was probably White Noise, dragged a footstool over, and grabbed it. Last one! Unfortunately it was $15.75 with tax (I'll figure I used Grammy's x-mas money on that one).

Felt good walking out of the store, and decided to find Peet's. Soon found it, but not before being harassed by a panhandler (is that an old-fashioned word?) This guy was right in front of me asking for change, and I made the mistake of looking right at him and thinking that, if my spare change wasn't in my wallet in my inner coat pocket, and if I wasn't planning to use it for T fare, that perhaps I could give him something... So, as always happens to me when I'm walking somewhere (esp. walking somewhere alone) in cities, he picked me out to yell at. Something like this: "Take me seriously! Don't just look at me with your big pretty eyes, I don't buy that lady..." As I walked as quickly as possible with the crowd across the street. Fled to Peet's... If I had money that felt like throwing away (which I don't, not with this wisdom tooth extraction coming up that will be expensive -- and I'm not going to launch into a defense of how I spend my money), I would rather give it to my parents & family than to some nameless guy bumming money and yelling at me in the street. Honestly, harassing me does NOT make me want to give you money! Do something nice if you want money. I have been known to drop change into collections when it's for people playing music that I like...

At Peet's I enjoyed the college student vibe, & got some not so special chai. Next time, the special teas are probably more worth the money. Then I realized that my plan to sit quietly and read in a coffeeshop would be difficult, since there was no where to sit. I pretended to look at the loose teas for sale, and then got up the guts to ask a girl sitting with her laptop if I might sit and read at her table. So I sat and read the first few chapters, and plotted how I might retrace my steps to the T station without encountering said panhandler again.

Upon arriving in Porter Square, I remembered that we have a relatively new bookstore right next to us in the shopping complex. I went in, to see if they had a cheaper copy of White Noise (and if I therefore should have gone there)... no copies! Saw a flyer for this Christopher Sawyer-Laucanno, who wrote a biography on Paul Bowles (a writer Quillian once assigned -- he wrote this cool story "A Distant Episode" that I wrote an essay on for Lit. Crit. & Theory). Apparently he's going to be at the store tomorrow, promoting his new biography of EE Cummings. I think I'll go -- hopefully he's going to actually read and not just sign books. If it sounds good, perhaps I'll use my gift certificates for that book & Terry Eagleton's new one...

I bought the most unhealthy thing for dinner ever -- Banquet fried chicken -- every once in awhile I feel the urge to eat really random/ unhealthy things. Like orange soda.

Also edited another story... wonder how many times I'll need to do that before it's "good enough"...

Last night I was getting really into revising & elaborating on some poetry fragments I'd written into my little purple notebook. Looking forward to having a verse writing class again this semester. Feel rather guilty about not taking a 5 college course yet, but there are always things here to take... no other college in the valley is offering a verse writing course this semester, except the intro/level one sorts, and I already had that so it seems silly to essentially retake it. I'm hoping for more freedom in the level 2, and less people in the course just to get rid of requirements.

I've become more addicted than ever to princetonreview.com's message boards for grad school. Keep hoping that I'll get an early acceptance letter so I don't keep worrying that I won't get in anywhere =(

That's all for now... Happy birthday to Merrers & Dale!