I've had all my classes now!
First in the morning is chemistry. I really like my professor, but I suspect I would like almost any chemistry professor. Next is calculus, which I wish didn't run four days a week, but the tradeoff is that the class is only 50 minutes and that is a very good idea for a math class. It's funny, in chemistry the prof griped a bit about the 80 minute lectures we have on Wednesday and Friday, and many of the students echoed him. I was amused because I'm used to classes being two to three hours long - even at PSU my French class was two hours. Both chem and math use an online service called WebAssign for some of the homework and although it sounded like it would be a pain, I find I like it. Both have been fairly easy so far because I already have background from high school (I expect math to be like this for a while), but I don't mind because I'm still figuring out how to organize everything.
Space opened up in ballroom dance, so I switched out of tap. Space opened up in writing too, but I decided I want to keep women's studies. The first class was interesting; she talked about the "wave" model of the history of feminism and gave us the assignment for our first paper, due next week. The grade I get will be a "moment of truth" to see how good my ideas and expression thereof really are. Dance I went to today and after climbing two flights of stairs three times looking for the room, I learned the basics of waltzing. I chose to be a "leader" because most people were choosing to be "followers", but when we rotated through partners I found a few followers who probably should have been leaders. I was surprised at how much exercise it was. It actually hit that aerobic-but-sustainable middleground that for me is overshot by running and undershot by biking and walking. I think swimming is the only other exercise I know that reaches a similar level.
Chem lab was predictable, we don't have any homework this week and we're just going to get a lab orientation on Thursday.
I haven't really made any friends yet, but I've met a lot of people and there are a few I keep seeing around. There's this one guy I find really interesting whom I first met at the lame (reminiscent of middle school) "stop-n-glow" dance, where he was dancing like a maniac to the dumb hip-hop. The next day he was dancing equally impressively to live rock at "Intermingle", and on Monday I saw that he's in my chemistry lecture. Then today on the way out of ballroom dance I met an older man who is coming back to school for his second bachelor's degree and we talked for a bit. I've also run into one person I know and three people I used to know, whom I didn't know were going to U of O - as well as the one person I was expecting to find here.
I went on my second big grocery trip today and evaluated my last one. One of my goals with my food was to generate a minimum of waste. The only things that went bad were about half a cucumber and some lettuce, so I feel like I'm doing pretty well. I made some biscuits last week out of the mix my aunt left me, and then I made another batch yesterday substituting a banana for the requisite egg. They were delicious and I pretty much don't plan to use eggs with this mix anymore. It also gives me a handy disposal route for bananas if I don't eat them before they get too ripe.
Oh, and on the bus today I heard the most hilarious ringtone. It was a drab voice - not quite a computer voice, but like one of those message recordings, and it said: "Hello. I am the phone. Answer me. Answer me now."
Added 10/1, 2:30 pm - a few things I forgot to include:
Although I am wary of the "freshman fifteen" (a quantity of weight I cannot afford to gain) I've actually been on the lower end of my usual weight since moving here. And in calculus, I am frustrated by the girl who sat next to me the first two days and calls out answers that are correct, but does it at about ten decibels.
Tuesday, September 30, 2008
Saturday, September 27, 2008
Food and books
Things I've learned about food this week:
- Groceries are not as expensive as I think
- Eating on campus is more expensive than I think
- I don't eat cereal or oatmeal for breakfast
- I like yogurt and applesauce better than cereal bars for snacks
- Even half the rice I'm used to making is too much
- Wraps should be eaten fresh and not jostled in a bag
- Quesadillas are a good way to use up tortillas and cheese
- I don't want as much cheese and eggs as I thought I would
- No marinade is necessary if you eat your tofu with sweet chili sauce
- Salad is one of the easiest and least dish-intensive meals possible
I got all my books today. They are ridiculously heavy, cost what I would have considered a ridiculous amount a couple of years ago, and I will have to bring all of them to school on Monday unless I go home between classes to switch them out. Oh well. Deal with that then.
- Groceries are not as expensive as I think
- Eating on campus is more expensive than I think
- I don't eat cereal or oatmeal for breakfast
- I like yogurt and applesauce better than cereal bars for snacks
- Even half the rice I'm used to making is too much
- Wraps should be eaten fresh and not jostled in a bag
- Quesadillas are a good way to use up tortillas and cheese
- I don't want as much cheese and eggs as I thought I would
- No marinade is necessary if you eat your tofu with sweet chili sauce
- Salad is one of the easiest and least dish-intensive meals possible
I got all my books today. They are ridiculously heavy, cost what I would have considered a ridiculous amount a couple of years ago, and I will have to bring all of them to school on Monday unless I go home between classes to switch them out. Oh well. Deal with that then.
Thursday, September 25, 2008
I have a schedule!
This morning I went to advising and, being undeclared, was assigned a guy from the German department. He didn't know too much about my chemistry or math questions, but seemed very impressed by my togetherness and told if I consulted an adviser from the appropriate department they would surely be glad to have me. We put together a tentative schedule involving chemistry (honors or general), chem lab, calculus, writing, and a 1-credit dance class to break it up.
I went to the department of chemistry and asked them about the honors course. I was surprised at how easy it was; they said I could go ahead and sign up as long as I was taking calculus, if there were still seats left. Well, I logged onto Duckweb at one o'clock sharp and grabbed the last seat in honors chemistry. Score! I also registered smoothly for calculus, and staked out a spot in tap dance hoping to later drop it for ballroom dance. As far as writing, though, I am exempt from WR121 and all sections of WR122 and 123 are currently full. So, as a placeholder for those four credits I signed up for WGS 101: Women, Difference, and Power. Now that I am signed up, I am thinking perhaps I will put off my writing until next term even if space does free up, because the class really sounds interesting and engages an area I haven't chosen to study very much before.
As it stands, I take chemistry lecture MWF mornings and math MTWF after chemistry and about an hour's break - then dance right after math MW. Monday afternoon I have a short chemistry lab and women's studies class; the women's studies class repeats at the same time on Wednesday. Then Thursday I have my long chemistry lab at noon and women's studies discussion in the late afternoon. Thursday is going to be an awesome day if my schedule doesn't change.
I went to the department of chemistry and asked them about the honors course. I was surprised at how easy it was; they said I could go ahead and sign up as long as I was taking calculus, if there were still seats left. Well, I logged onto Duckweb at one o'clock sharp and grabbed the last seat in honors chemistry. Score! I also registered smoothly for calculus, and staked out a spot in tap dance hoping to later drop it for ballroom dance. As far as writing, though, I am exempt from WR121 and all sections of WR122 and 123 are currently full. So, as a placeholder for those four credits I signed up for WGS 101: Women, Difference, and Power. Now that I am signed up, I am thinking perhaps I will put off my writing until next term even if space does free up, because the class really sounds interesting and engages an area I haven't chosen to study very much before.
As it stands, I take chemistry lecture MWF mornings and math MTWF after chemistry and about an hour's break - then dance right after math MW. Monday afternoon I have a short chemistry lab and women's studies class; the women's studies class repeats at the same time on Wednesday. Then Thursday I have my long chemistry lab at noon and women's studies discussion in the late afternoon. Thursday is going to be an awesome day if my schedule doesn't change.
Wednesday, September 24, 2008
Schedule? Advising? Placement!
Today I did not actually get to go to advising or get my classes as I expected; that will happen tomorrow. I did, however, get a class catalog and some information about my placements in the basics.
My SAT verbal score exempts me from the first term of introductory writing, so I can go ahead and take a more advanced writing course. This pleases me because I would have had to wait until spring to take WR121, due to being a freshman and having a last name near the end of the alphabet. If I want to continue in French, I can drop right into 301 because of my PSU credits. And my placement test indicates that I can take any math I want. It suggests I take either the discrete math series or a calculus series, and says I "may" be a candidate for honors calculus. I don't know if I want to take honors calculus; I'll talk to my adviser about it tomorrow.
The jury is still out as to whether I can take honors chemistry. Some older students told me I have to be in the honors college, but the course catalog says it is reserved for the honors college and strong prospective science majors. I think it may come down to it just being full already, but I'll just ask tomorrow.
So, after looking at everything today I think my schedule will look something like this: chemistry lecture and lab, calculus, writing, and a freshman seminar or other fun, less-than-4-credits elective.
It was really funny when it started to rain today, because everyone commented on it. I forget that a lot of the people at university aren't from the same climate. Less funny was the girl who was complaining about it loudly on her cell phone. I wonder what hot, dry state she comes from because from a Portlander's point of view, it was downright pleasant. A half-hour of sprinkles on a still, 65-degree day? I'll take it!
My SAT verbal score exempts me from the first term of introductory writing, so I can go ahead and take a more advanced writing course. This pleases me because I would have had to wait until spring to take WR121, due to being a freshman and having a last name near the end of the alphabet. If I want to continue in French, I can drop right into 301 because of my PSU credits. And my placement test indicates that I can take any math I want. It suggests I take either the discrete math series or a calculus series, and says I "may" be a candidate for honors calculus. I don't know if I want to take honors calculus; I'll talk to my adviser about it tomorrow.
The jury is still out as to whether I can take honors chemistry. Some older students told me I have to be in the honors college, but the course catalog says it is reserved for the honors college and strong prospective science majors. I think it may come down to it just being full already, but I'll just ask tomorrow.
So, after looking at everything today I think my schedule will look something like this: chemistry lecture and lab, calculus, writing, and a freshman seminar or other fun, less-than-4-credits elective.
It was really funny when it started to rain today, because everyone commented on it. I forget that a lot of the people at university aren't from the same climate. Less funny was the girl who was complaining about it loudly on her cell phone. I wonder what hot, dry state she comes from because from a Portlander's point of view, it was downright pleasant. A half-hour of sprinkles on a still, 65-degree day? I'll take it!
Tuesday, September 23, 2008
Meeting people... sort of
So today, nothing on the Week of Welcome schedule applied to me except a presentation on opportunities in music and dance, which started at four in the afternoon, and the art museum on campus, which is open from this day forward it looks like.
I went to campus and I went to the art museum, hoping to meet people. My friends at other colleges keep telling me, "if you want to meet people hang around the dorms." I reply that it's no use hanging out by the dorms until people move into the dorms, and most people aren't allowed to until Thursday.
The art museum was pretty and interesting, but completely deserted. I wandered around campus for a bit and then lost track of time scoping out textbooks at the bookstore. I missed the beginning of my music-and-dance presentation and I was about to give up on meeting people and go home, when I met a few on the bus. They were talking about how horrible dead-baby jokes are. So I followed them to Office Depot and then back to campus where the residence halls were having an ice cream social. (I don't understand how they expect people to be there two days before move-in, but I guess it works 'cause there were a lot of people there.) I talked to some more people, one of whom seemed cool enough to remember.
Note to self: bring more snacks tomorrow. I never realized how much I eat in between meals - here, I eat a meal and then go somewhere and am surprised to be hungry two hours ahead of my next usual mealtime. Dietarily it's not bad to be hungry for a bit, but descending blood sugar takes away all my drive to socialize.
I went to campus and I went to the art museum, hoping to meet people. My friends at other colleges keep telling me, "if you want to meet people hang around the dorms." I reply that it's no use hanging out by the dorms until people move into the dorms, and most people aren't allowed to until Thursday.
The art museum was pretty and interesting, but completely deserted. I wandered around campus for a bit and then lost track of time scoping out textbooks at the bookstore. I missed the beginning of my music-and-dance presentation and I was about to give up on meeting people and go home, when I met a few on the bus. They were talking about how horrible dead-baby jokes are. So I followed them to Office Depot and then back to campus where the residence halls were having an ice cream social. (I don't understand how they expect people to be there two days before move-in, but I guess it works 'cause there were a lot of people there.) I talked to some more people, one of whom seemed cool enough to remember.
Note to self: bring more snacks tomorrow. I never realized how much I eat in between meals - here, I eat a meal and then go somewhere and am surprised to be hungry two hours ahead of my next usual mealtime. Dietarily it's not bad to be hungry for a bit, but descending blood sugar takes away all my drive to socialize.
Internet
I now have internet at both home and school. I need to fix this bug, though, that requires me to restart Ubuntu after changing the network configuration before the internet will actually work in the browser. I should also clean all the Norton and other updating/subscribing crap out of my Vista partition so it annoys me less, and install the Windows-compatible software U of O gave me.
Monday, September 22, 2008
And I am now here
Well, I spent my first night at my house in Eugene. I moved in yesterday. My housemate with the room next to me is awesome, he brought us a sticky-rice dessert he made while I was unpacking and is fun to talk to.
Today there isn't a lot to do at school, but I got my student ID and got my laptop on the wireless network, which is what I'm using now. While riding my bike out to campus, I passed over the Peter DeFazio nonmotorist bridge, and through a beautiful section of waterfront. Later, I'm going to make sure my ATM card has been fixed and then go grocery shopping.
I keep thinking I should hurry up to get things done, but it's perpetually way earlier than I think because my room is bright and I am alone in town. I got up at about eight o'clock, and without people to see, I have no plans for later and am spared the time-waster that is waiting for friends to call back. I only have my list of stuff to get done eventually: go to Week of Welcome stuff, shop, keep decorating my room, file my senior year papers, update my voter registration.
I can't wait to get my classes and have them start. Life has been slowed waaay down this summer and especially the past couple of weeks - and I think this week is when it will reverse and speed back up again. Anyway, the slowness was awesome for a bit, but my brain is getting bored. The last thing I did that really challenged me was calculus.
Today there isn't a lot to do at school, but I got my student ID and got my laptop on the wireless network, which is what I'm using now. While riding my bike out to campus, I passed over the Peter DeFazio nonmotorist bridge, and through a beautiful section of waterfront. Later, I'm going to make sure my ATM card has been fixed and then go grocery shopping.
I keep thinking I should hurry up to get things done, but it's perpetually way earlier than I think because my room is bright and I am alone in town. I got up at about eight o'clock, and without people to see, I have no plans for later and am spared the time-waster that is waiting for friends to call back. I only have my list of stuff to get done eventually: go to Week of Welcome stuff, shop, keep decorating my room, file my senior year papers, update my voter registration.
I can't wait to get my classes and have them start. Life has been slowed waaay down this summer and especially the past couple of weeks - and I think this week is when it will reverse and speed back up again. Anyway, the slowness was awesome for a bit, but my brain is getting bored. The last thing I did that really challenged me was calculus.
Saturday, September 20, 2008
Some of my last adventures in Portland
Yesterday, I hung out with one of my friends for the last time before college. He's moving today and I'm moving tomorrow. He and I form an interesting symmetry around Portland; he lives in SE and is moving north, whereas I live in NE and am moving a similar distance south - and both at more or less the same time. I was also amused to find out he's changed his plan of study to environmental science, which is what I put down as my likely career field when they asked all the National Merit Scholars about it. He's really cool and I'm going to miss him.
Then, I remembered just in the nick of time to visit my old science teacher who moved to a different school. I'd been meaning to since K-12 school started back up here, but I just don't do anything in the neighborhood of her new school. It's the first big high school I've walked into and thought "this place might have been nearly as cool as where I did go." I didn't like the look of the school where I took my SATs, or the PSAT junior year, or even my neighborhood school that much, but I liked this one. It was good to see my teacher again and I'm glad I did get down there eventually.
The agenda for today is to finish emailing people I need to email, make sure my overdue library books get returned, pack the rest of what I'm bringing while listening to In Utero, and hang out with one more friend who I may or may not have to badger... he's been kind of flaky lately but he has a couple things I need to get back. Oh, and change my address with the DMV and anywhere else I can remember. I did my bank yesterday and it was a pain...
Then, I remembered just in the nick of time to visit my old science teacher who moved to a different school. I'd been meaning to since K-12 school started back up here, but I just don't do anything in the neighborhood of her new school. It's the first big high school I've walked into and thought "this place might have been nearly as cool as where I did go." I didn't like the look of the school where I took my SATs, or the PSAT junior year, or even my neighborhood school that much, but I liked this one. It was good to see my teacher again and I'm glad I did get down there eventually.
The agenda for today is to finish emailing people I need to email, make sure my overdue library books get returned, pack the rest of what I'm bringing while listening to In Utero, and hang out with one more friend who I may or may not have to badger... he's been kind of flaky lately but he has a couple things I need to get back. Oh, and change my address with the DMV and anywhere else I can remember. I did my bank yesterday and it was a pain...
Saturday, September 13, 2008
Nirvana
I recently found out that Courtney Love went to my high school - because a teacher who has been there since 1972 remembers her. I don't know for how long she attended, but the revelation prompted me to research her a bit, and by association Kurt Cobain and Nirvana.
Nirvana is definitely what my parents would call a "need to know band." I've known some about them, and I've certainly heard their music - but without it being identified to me, so I couldn't recognize it. I decided to find some of their stuff and start listening to it. So far, it is very much my style! I can recognize similar elements in contemporary music I like such as the Red Hot Chili Peppers' Blood Sugar Sex Magik and the Afghan Whigs' Gentlemen.
Something that astounds me is that Kurt Cobain's body was found on April 8 1994. I have a specific memory of talking to my parents about my 4th birthday as they tucked me in the night before - April 8 1994. It is incredible to think that the world learned about his death on a day I actually, specifically remember, despite being too young to know or understand myself. That as this memory of mine played out, my parents either knew or would soon be finding out about the tragedy.
Nirvana is definitely what my parents would call a "need to know band." I've known some about them, and I've certainly heard their music - but without it being identified to me, so I couldn't recognize it. I decided to find some of their stuff and start listening to it. So far, it is very much my style! I can recognize similar elements in contemporary music I like such as the Red Hot Chili Peppers' Blood Sugar Sex Magik and the Afghan Whigs' Gentlemen.
Something that astounds me is that Kurt Cobain's body was found on April 8 1994. I have a specific memory of talking to my parents about my 4th birthday as they tucked me in the night before - April 8 1994. It is incredible to think that the world learned about his death on a day I actually, specifically remember, despite being too young to know or understand myself. That as this memory of mine played out, my parents either knew or would soon be finding out about the tragedy.
Thursday, September 11, 2008
Open-source audio players and .m4a
Most of the Linux users I know use Amarok. I think it's okay, but the way its functionality is organized doesn't make sense to me. So one time when it gave me an issue I started using Rhythmbox, which I liked better. But it had a problem - a certain album I had wouldn't play or load in the library. I looked at it and found that they were all .m4a files. I then found a codec that allowed it to play one of the files, but it still wouldn't load them into the library. Exasperated, I opened up Amarok, but apparently it now considers all of my music unplayable.
I went online and found a third program - Songbird. It's very much like Rhythmbox or like iTunes. But it has the same problem: it will play my .m4a files if I go to the trouble to open them from their folder, but it won't add them to the library.
This is really frustrating me. I can't decide if I should look for still another music player, or if I should find a program to convert to another format, as others on the Ubuntu forums have thought. I just want to start building playlists in Linux, but Magical Mystery Tour has some of my favorite songs!
I went online and found a third program - Songbird. It's very much like Rhythmbox or like iTunes. But it has the same problem: it will play my .m4a files if I go to the trouble to open them from their folder, but it won't add them to the library.
This is really frustrating me. I can't decide if I should look for still another music player, or if I should find a program to convert to another format, as others on the Ubuntu forums have thought. I just want to start building playlists in Linux, but Magical Mystery Tour has some of my favorite songs!
Wednesday, September 10, 2008
Large Hadron Collider
http://dsc.discovery.com/news/2008/09/10/black-hole-cern.html
http://www.guardian.co.uk/science/2008/sep/10/large.hadron.collider
The Large Hadron Collider went online today. Some of my friends were going to have an "end of the world" party, but since they aren't actually doing any collisions yet, it's been postponed. I read a comic today whose joke rested on science nerds using this as an excuse for a party. But you know, if the world were actually going to end, I think I'd rather be at home with my family.
I like the point the guy makes at the end of the first article, that if people get hyped up about black holes and find out about this accelerator, then more people might get excited about the stuff physicists are going to be able to research with it. I wish I had more scientific background to understand the second article better; I didn't know that the Higgs boson had anything to do with the origin of mass.
It's pretty incredible that humans have managed to create technology that lets us study this kind of thing, and that the technology is SO big while the particles are SO small. I wonder what the energy consumption of the LHC is?
http://www.guardian.co.uk/science/2008/sep/10/large.hadron.collider
The Large Hadron Collider went online today. Some of my friends were going to have an "end of the world" party, but since they aren't actually doing any collisions yet, it's been postponed. I read a comic today whose joke rested on science nerds using this as an excuse for a party. But you know, if the world were actually going to end, I think I'd rather be at home with my family.
I like the point the guy makes at the end of the first article, that if people get hyped up about black holes and find out about this accelerator, then more people might get excited about the stuff physicists are going to be able to research with it. I wish I had more scientific background to understand the second article better; I didn't know that the Higgs boson had anything to do with the origin of mass.
It's pretty incredible that humans have managed to create technology that lets us study this kind of thing, and that the technology is SO big while the particles are SO small. I wonder what the energy consumption of the LHC is?
Eugene, part 2
"I need to call EVERYONE I KNOW," I thought. And then I remembered - that's what my blog is for.
Of course, since I didn't have internet most of yesterday, I ended up calling quite a few people anyway. Here are some of the things I wrote waiting, or on the bus back to Portland:
"I got a place - I signed the agreement this morning and I have the keys in my purse, sitting next to me on this bus. It's not my own place, but it's a room in a vegetarian house with a couple and another person. Besides being veggie, the household suits me because they are well organized; for example they have a chore rotation with a detailed list of what to do and where to find supplies.
I would have preferred my own place, but the second studio I saw also wanted a one-year lease and furthermore, this room was extremely low-hassle. They didn't even require a co-signer, and hence I was able to finish with all the formalities before leaving Eugene. They may be moving to a new house in the six-month range, but they are solid through definitely November and probably December. So, even if I have to find another place later, I'm good through most to all of first term and it will be less difficult because I will have a couple months of rental history."
There is a part of downtown Eugene that has lots of amazing murals, and I took pictures on my phone of the first one I noticed, but quickly realized there were many. I wanted to post a picture, but it's not working for some reason and I don't want to fix it right now. Maybe later.
I have one more weekend in Portland, and then the weekend after that is probably when I will move. This is going to be amazing, but there's so much I want to do before I leave.
Of course, since I didn't have internet most of yesterday, I ended up calling quite a few people anyway. Here are some of the things I wrote waiting, or on the bus back to Portland:
"I got a place - I signed the agreement this morning and I have the keys in my purse, sitting next to me on this bus. It's not my own place, but it's a room in a vegetarian house with a couple and another person. Besides being veggie, the household suits me because they are well organized; for example they have a chore rotation with a detailed list of what to do and where to find supplies.
I would have preferred my own place, but the second studio I saw also wanted a one-year lease and furthermore, this room was extremely low-hassle. They didn't even require a co-signer, and hence I was able to finish with all the formalities before leaving Eugene. They may be moving to a new house in the six-month range, but they are solid through definitely November and probably December. So, even if I have to find another place later, I'm good through most to all of first term and it will be less difficult because I will have a couple months of rental history."
There is a part of downtown Eugene that has lots of amazing murals, and I took pictures on my phone of the first one I noticed, but quickly realized there were many. I wanted to post a picture, but it's not working for some reason and I don't want to fix it right now. Maybe later.
I have one more weekend in Portland, and then the weekend after that is probably when I will move. This is going to be amazing, but there's so much I want to do before I leave.
Sunday, September 7, 2008
A trip to Eugene, part one
I'm sitting on a bed in a hostel in Eugene. I don't actually have internet right now; I'm going to post this when I go downstairs after I rest my feet a bit.
I arrived here yesterday on Amtrak. I had an appointment to see a room that was probably too far in the spaghettiesque South Hills anyway, but someone else saw it earlier in the day and took it right away. About an hour ago I saw an apartment that I liked, but they wanted a 1 year lease which doesn't work for me. I have two appointments so far for tomorrow: a room and a studio, I think.
Before my appointment today I walked around Eugene. I started out for the libary because the internet here was on the fritz, and on the way I passed by a nice apartment complex. I picked up a flyer and I like the floor plans and the price, so I'll probably stop by during office hours tomorrow to see if there are any studios available.
I'm not actually quite sure how I got to the library because I got directions from a few different people, all of which were approximate. But eventually I got there, and discovered it's right next to the bus station. I sent off an email and headed east across the big residential rectangle west of campus. Tired, I finally stopped at the edge of the UO campus to read Dune for a while.
I had no idea that Jambo had more than one store, but evidently they do and there's one right next to U of O. I love Jambo!
I dragged back across that residential rectangle but didn't find anything. I walked past the place I had the appointment with and stopped back at the hostel for a bathroom break and to refill my water before I went to see it. Now I'm back, hot and tired.
Today has highlighted something: I don't know WHAT I'm going to do besides school when I live here alone. It's five-thirty; I don't have any more appointments and even if I recheck my sources and make some, they won't be today. Normally I'd have dinner with my family and then hang out with friends - but those people are all in Portland. I don't really feel like reading my book because I already read some earlier. Should've brought two.
Addendum: I now have internet and am posting this. Serendipitously, a friend of mine I haven't talked to in a while called just as I was bemoaning my boredom. Thank you, universe!
I arrived here yesterday on Amtrak. I had an appointment to see a room that was probably too far in the spaghettiesque South Hills anyway, but someone else saw it earlier in the day and took it right away. About an hour ago I saw an apartment that I liked, but they wanted a 1 year lease which doesn't work for me. I have two appointments so far for tomorrow: a room and a studio, I think.
Before my appointment today I walked around Eugene. I started out for the libary because the internet here was on the fritz, and on the way I passed by a nice apartment complex. I picked up a flyer and I like the floor plans and the price, so I'll probably stop by during office hours tomorrow to see if there are any studios available.
I'm not actually quite sure how I got to the library because I got directions from a few different people, all of which were approximate. But eventually I got there, and discovered it's right next to the bus station. I sent off an email and headed east across the big residential rectangle west of campus. Tired, I finally stopped at the edge of the UO campus to read Dune for a while.
I had no idea that Jambo had more than one store, but evidently they do and there's one right next to U of O. I love Jambo!
I dragged back across that residential rectangle but didn't find anything. I walked past the place I had the appointment with and stopped back at the hostel for a bathroom break and to refill my water before I went to see it. Now I'm back, hot and tired.
Today has highlighted something: I don't know WHAT I'm going to do besides school when I live here alone. It's five-thirty; I don't have any more appointments and even if I recheck my sources and make some, they won't be today. Normally I'd have dinner with my family and then hang out with friends - but those people are all in Portland. I don't really feel like reading my book because I already read some earlier. Should've brought two.
Addendum: I now have internet and am posting this. Serendipitously, a friend of mine I haven't talked to in a while called just as I was bemoaning my boredom. Thank you, universe!
Wednesday, September 3, 2008
Chaperones
On Friday, I'm going to be an "adult chaperone" for my high school as they go to the zoo.
I don't really like the zoo, but I think it's hilarious to be a chaperone at literally the first possible opportunity after graduation.
I don't really like the zoo, but I think it's hilarious to be a chaperone at literally the first possible opportunity after graduation.
Monday, September 1, 2008
Still looking for a place
I had an adventure this weekend.
I didn't really want to. I wanted to stay in Portland, but after not getting that apartment I had to look for some more. Now normally my dad would just take me south for the weekend, but he had something going on Saturday and my mom was going to drive me there.
I failed to get any appointments for Saturday, but I couldn't just stay in Portland because there might be new ads on Sunday morning. This put me in kind of a bad mood because there was specific hanging out I wanted to do and I did not want to put it off all weekend. I complained a little bit and my mom suggested paying gas money to my friend to drive me down there. I wasn't even sure he'd want to drive that much, but he was into it. We hung out in town a little while, then drove down I-5 to Salem and visited the waterfront before heading to my dad's.
The plan had been to stay at my dad's overnight, and then we'd drive to Eugene in the morning. By chaotic luck, my dad had a work situation encroaching all the way into Sunday and couldn't make the drive to Eugene anymore. So it ended up that my friend took me to my uncle's house in Corvallis on his way to his brother's in Eugene. (I almost could have stayed there, but they weren't necessarily spending the night.) My uncle took me to Eugene to go apartment hunting in the morning, drove me up to Salem and we had dinner with my dad before he drove me the rest of the way to Portland.
I saw one apartment, and I like it even better than the apartment I didn't get last week. The previous one was a studio that might have been a remodeled garage; this one is one side of a duplex with a bedroom, bathroom, and kitchen. It has laundry and a little bit of space in the back as well. I really hope I get this one, not only because of the time crunch but because it seems just perfect. I hope this is one of those "meant to be" things and not a "wishful thinking" one.
In the event that I don't get this apartment, I'll have to take a midweek trip which will be a pain in the butt. But I'll have to look at some rooms, and I'll have to contact some property management companies, which have mostly been closed on weekends thus far. Both these places I've looked at are with independent landlords, and I prefer that, but they're not as common, or at least not as easy to find on the internet.
I didn't really want to. I wanted to stay in Portland, but after not getting that apartment I had to look for some more. Now normally my dad would just take me south for the weekend, but he had something going on Saturday and my mom was going to drive me there.
I failed to get any appointments for Saturday, but I couldn't just stay in Portland because there might be new ads on Sunday morning. This put me in kind of a bad mood because there was specific hanging out I wanted to do and I did not want to put it off all weekend. I complained a little bit and my mom suggested paying gas money to my friend to drive me down there. I wasn't even sure he'd want to drive that much, but he was into it. We hung out in town a little while, then drove down I-5 to Salem and visited the waterfront before heading to my dad's.
The plan had been to stay at my dad's overnight, and then we'd drive to Eugene in the morning. By chaotic luck, my dad had a work situation encroaching all the way into Sunday and couldn't make the drive to Eugene anymore. So it ended up that my friend took me to my uncle's house in Corvallis on his way to his brother's in Eugene. (I almost could have stayed there, but they weren't necessarily spending the night.) My uncle took me to Eugene to go apartment hunting in the morning, drove me up to Salem and we had dinner with my dad before he drove me the rest of the way to Portland.
I saw one apartment, and I like it even better than the apartment I didn't get last week. The previous one was a studio that might have been a remodeled garage; this one is one side of a duplex with a bedroom, bathroom, and kitchen. It has laundry and a little bit of space in the back as well. I really hope I get this one, not only because of the time crunch but because it seems just perfect. I hope this is one of those "meant to be" things and not a "wishful thinking" one.
In the event that I don't get this apartment, I'll have to take a midweek trip which will be a pain in the butt. But I'll have to look at some rooms, and I'll have to contact some property management companies, which have mostly been closed on weekends thus far. Both these places I've looked at are with independent landlords, and I prefer that, but they're not as common, or at least not as easy to find on the internet.
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