Fun fact: I'm about to graduate from my undergraduate university. I have a grad school all lined up, I'm all confirmed and working on a roommate and apartment for next year, and I can safely put off loan repayments for at least five years. Because I'm in chemistry grad school, I will be paid to go to school and get my doctorate. I'll have to work my butt off to get that money, but it's better than having to work to pay tuition on top of living expenses (i.e., food, shelter). Still, graduating puts one in a strange frame of mind, regardless of whether it's high school or college (college = uni, for any UK denizens reading this). I feel like reflecting on where the hell the past four years went, all of a sudden. I feel like giving advice to anyone who looks younger than me. I feel like making jokes about common lab glassware. And, of course, I feel like blogging about it instead of doing my homework.
I also feel like all the grown-ups in my life who always make weird statements about "how fast life goes" were right all along. I mean, where did the last four years go? I had to recap them just to prove that it really has been three years and nine months since I got here.
Freshman Year: 2009-2010
Cried when my family left
Became vegetarian
Made friends on hall
Didn't really make other friends
Found out that college is hard
Discovered Heroes and became addicted
Found spiritual home in shotokan karate
Had nervous breakdown in advisor's office over physics
Was angry in class most of the time
Passed Physics 1
Took 3 lab classes at the same time
Survived taking 3 lab classes, arguably
Started realizing that personal beliefs line up remarkably well with feminism
Sophomore Year: 2010-2011
Lost touch with freshman year friends
Kept doing karate
Took Ochem and German at same time
Made new friends
Applied to study abroad
Was accepted to study abroad program
Was accepted to University of Sunderland
Didn't do much else
May have survived taking OChem and German at the same time
Gained lots of confidence from karate
Junior Year: 2011-2012
Studied abroad in England
Made lots of new friends
Did lots of new things
Pierced nose
Discovered self outside of family-and-friend network
Liked who I found
Visited and fell in love with Edinburgh
Visited and didn't enjoy London
Had computer stolen
Came back to States
Promptly took hardest undergrad course load ever and didn't have a breakdown
Was sick all the time due to rain and cold, drafty, poorly-lit house
Missed England
Senior Year: 2012-2013
Missed England
Kept friends from sophomore year
Got new job in a teaching-ish position
Loved new job, much to my surprise
Took GRE
Did okay enough on GRE to get into grad school
Took lots of really hard classes and didn't have a breakdown
Got yellow belt in karate
Applied to grad schools
Got into top choice grad school
Kept missing England
Got green belt in karate
Lost motivation for last two assignments of undergrad like you would not believe
So, okay, it really has been four years. And if you want advice for college, here is my advice to you: Everyone's experience is different. If there is one thing I would love for everyone to do, it's study abroad, but I know that it's expensive and sometimes difficult to manage with a busy course load. So go, live your life, and enjoy what comes your way. If you need fantastic grades to get into your post-graduate whatever, then try hard. If not, well, I got into grad school with a solid B average. I don't get honor cords, which is kind of depressing given that I was valedictorian in high school, but whatever. The point is, I'm done and I did my best. Do I have regrets? Sure. Would I change anything? Nothing but keeping in touch with people and remembering to clean my hair out of the shower sophomore year.
Also, I can't help but include another fun fact:
The difference between a University and a College in the States is in the graduate programs. My school is a university; another school in Eastern Washington that starts with "Whit" is a college. Ugh, get it right.
Showing posts with label England. Show all posts
Showing posts with label England. Show all posts
10 May 2013
08 June 2012
Those Things You Wear On Your Legs -- Seventy Fifth Post
I have a bit of trouble with the term "pants" now. After new years eve in England, the guy whose house my friends and I stayed at dropped me off at the train station, seeing as I didn't have a car. We spotted some men's briefs in the parking lot, and he repeatedly corrected my calling them "underwear" to "pants".
So, now I have a hard time thinking about the word "pants" as applied to outerwear such as you would leave the house in. Like jeans, slacks, trousers, shorts (which I believe can also be british for underpants), capris, etc. However, I long ago attempted to instate "Fuck Pants Friday" on which I wore skirts and feel the need to bring it back. The problem is that I now feel like I'm encouraging people to go commando. You can do that if you want, but I wouldn't recommend it. And "Fuck Trousers Friday" just really doesn't have the same ring to it.
So, I guess I'll keep calling it pants, even if the english guy takes issue with that.
Actually, I won't do it this friday because I have great plans to use my housemate's printer and print off some new improved resumes and cover letters and go to some stores and fill out applications in great hopes of getting employed and stuff. I'll be wearing some of my fancypants, by which I mean slacks or trousers or something. "Fancypants" strikes me as something one would find in Victoria's Secret or La Senza or a similar sort of venue (i.e. lingerie store, if you're male and/or live in a hole).
I'll wear a skirt in the morning, if I bother to change out of pyjamas before noon. I have a fairly legit kimono, and it stifles my desire to wear real people clothes.
Because I need to share this with the whole internet, it's an awesome kimono. Sure, it's a little battered and also 100% polyester, and made by a costume company, but it's also got the funny extra bit that hangs down on the sleeves, and it has ties at the hips just like a karate gi (or will as soon as I get some fabric), and it's a really gorgeous red and gold brocade-style pattern with a pale yellow trim, and it won't be too hard to make a belt that has no velcro, won't attack the rest of the fabric, and will actually fit my waist.
Sentences die on my blogs... I really can't be asked to fix it.
Back to the kimono, it's pretty well-made, and is even machine washable, if not dryable. It was also a whopping $8. I love thrift stores. Support your local thrift stores. It's cool now, and sometimes you find something really cool, then you wash it to get rid of the old lady smell ingrained in your $6 wool-polyester mix winter Coat that becomes so central to your wardrobe that it gains a capital letter. That one I had dry cleaned, it's true, but that cost less than buying a brand new coat even combined with the cost of the coat.
And I couldn't find a coat where I liked the style and the cut and the number of buttons and the weight and the color at all, even for exorbitant prices. I wore The Coat just about every day in England. I should probably get it cleaned again (support local businesses that way, too! Yay!) or I could buy the "dry clean in your dryer" packets that my mom found and that I used on a silk shirt to great results.
I'm always torn between frugality and being a good citizen. I also don't have a car or a working bicycle, which doesn't help. Not a whole lot of thrift within walking distance of my university, which is the main thing that I want to live within walking distance of given the lack of wheeled transportation; our buses are expensive and, in my opinion, infrequent for a university town. Plus, my uni starts classes at odd times within the hour (8:00, 9:05, 10:25, 11:45, 12:50, 13:55, 15:15, etc) and buses run on half-hour schedules at equally odd points in the hour. It also takes at least an hour to really get anywhere that's worth the bus fare.
So, I make an hour walking round trip every now and then to cheap groceries, and rarely buy anything of interest during the semester because I can't find interesting thrift stores within half an hour's walk. I could drag friends with cars along, but I hate grocery and thrift shopping with people. I bargain hunt, I comparison shop, I lug things around for hours then put it back, then leave five thrift stores with probably nothing but possibly a wall hanging, possibly a box for tea, or possibly antique Sherlock Holmes novels. You just never know. Most of my possessions that I care about were found at thrift or antique stores.
This has been a very strange, ambling post.
I'll just wear a skirt under my kimono. Maybe walmart will want to hire such a free spirited, bold person.
So, now I have a hard time thinking about the word "pants" as applied to outerwear such as you would leave the house in. Like jeans, slacks, trousers, shorts (which I believe can also be british for underpants), capris, etc. However, I long ago attempted to instate "Fuck Pants Friday" on which I wore skirts and feel the need to bring it back. The problem is that I now feel like I'm encouraging people to go commando. You can do that if you want, but I wouldn't recommend it. And "Fuck Trousers Friday" just really doesn't have the same ring to it.
So, I guess I'll keep calling it pants, even if the english guy takes issue with that.
Actually, I won't do it this friday because I have great plans to use my housemate's printer and print off some new improved resumes and cover letters and go to some stores and fill out applications in great hopes of getting employed and stuff. I'll be wearing some of my fancypants, by which I mean slacks or trousers or something. "Fancypants" strikes me as something one would find in Victoria's Secret or La Senza or a similar sort of venue (i.e. lingerie store, if you're male and/or live in a hole).
I'll wear a skirt in the morning, if I bother to change out of pyjamas before noon. I have a fairly legit kimono, and it stifles my desire to wear real people clothes.
Because I need to share this with the whole internet, it's an awesome kimono. Sure, it's a little battered and also 100% polyester, and made by a costume company, but it's also got the funny extra bit that hangs down on the sleeves, and it has ties at the hips just like a karate gi (or will as soon as I get some fabric), and it's a really gorgeous red and gold brocade-style pattern with a pale yellow trim, and it won't be too hard to make a belt that has no velcro, won't attack the rest of the fabric, and will actually fit my waist.
Sentences die on my blogs... I really can't be asked to fix it.
Back to the kimono, it's pretty well-made, and is even machine washable, if not dryable. It was also a whopping $8. I love thrift stores. Support your local thrift stores. It's cool now, and sometimes you find something really cool, then you wash it to get rid of the old lady smell ingrained in your $6 wool-polyester mix winter Coat that becomes so central to your wardrobe that it gains a capital letter. That one I had dry cleaned, it's true, but that cost less than buying a brand new coat even combined with the cost of the coat.
And I couldn't find a coat where I liked the style and the cut and the number of buttons and the weight and the color at all, even for exorbitant prices. I wore The Coat just about every day in England. I should probably get it cleaned again (support local businesses that way, too! Yay!) or I could buy the "dry clean in your dryer" packets that my mom found and that I used on a silk shirt to great results.
I'm always torn between frugality and being a good citizen. I also don't have a car or a working bicycle, which doesn't help. Not a whole lot of thrift within walking distance of my university, which is the main thing that I want to live within walking distance of given the lack of wheeled transportation; our buses are expensive and, in my opinion, infrequent for a university town. Plus, my uni starts classes at odd times within the hour (8:00, 9:05, 10:25, 11:45, 12:50, 13:55, 15:15, etc) and buses run on half-hour schedules at equally odd points in the hour. It also takes at least an hour to really get anywhere that's worth the bus fare.
So, I make an hour walking round trip every now and then to cheap groceries, and rarely buy anything of interest during the semester because I can't find interesting thrift stores within half an hour's walk. I could drag friends with cars along, but I hate grocery and thrift shopping with people. I bargain hunt, I comparison shop, I lug things around for hours then put it back, then leave five thrift stores with probably nothing but possibly a wall hanging, possibly a box for tea, or possibly antique Sherlock Holmes novels. You just never know. Most of my possessions that I care about were found at thrift or antique stores.
This has been a very strange, ambling post.
I'll just wear a skirt under my kimono. Maybe walmart will want to hire such a free spirited, bold person.
29 March 2012
Back in the States
I've been back in the states for a few months now, and I'm really starting to get the reverse culture shock (whenever I have the time to think about something that isn't upper-division chemistry or speeches that I have to write and deliver, which isn't often; American uni is harder than British uni). I find myself walking down the street missing Sunderland, of all places (I had a distinct day where I hated the whole place down to the paving stones), missing pasties, missing people being able to pronounce pasties without sounding oddly profane... I miss people who say "to-mah-to" instead of "to-may-to", and I miss how oddly uncomplicated life is when you're living with people with whom you share no history.
I miss the days of the only drama in my friend group being that my roommate was being a bitch about something stupid or eating other people's food (I strongly suspect her of eating an entire half-package of soft cheese the weekend I went to Liverpool, and I was only gone for a night). Back here, one of my friends is turning uni back into high school, with her complicated, dramatic view of how friendship should work.
Here, for your viewing pleasure and also my personal ability to understand my life, is something of a schematic of why I miss my England friends:
Linear Complex Bio Major: is attempting to reinstate the clique mentality of american secondary school. Is not really speaking to High Valence Biochem Major. Fancies Unfortunate Biochem Boy. Bosses Distressingly Unknown Accountant and Myself as much as possible. Sees all decisions made by anyone in friend group as involving whole group; has a strong "we" mentality. Is enormously frustrated by single-ness; this manifests itself in her scaring off any friendly boys, much to her continued and compounded frustration.
Octahedral Biochem Major: has a much looser view of friendship. Is best friends with Unfortunate Biochem Boy. Is not really speaking to Linear Bio Major. Gets along fine and does not try to boss Myself or Distressingly Unknown Accountant, although she does tend to bulldoze the planning. Still, allows friends to be otherwise engaged without being offended.
Unfortunate Biochem Boy: is male. Is also most eligible junior science major bachelor who is determined to remain a bachelor. Does not fancy Linear Bio Major back; may or may not suspect that she fancies him. Is sometimes clueless about why the females that surround him are angry. Is a decent lab partner and generally decent friend in spite of some core dickishness, as revealed by conversations between Myself and Octahedral Biochem Major.
Distressingly Unknown Accountant: tries to avoid making decisions. Ends up being a bit of a pawn. Like Myself in this way, just times twenty thousand. Personal thoughts are largely unknown, but often professed to be known by Linear Complex Bio Major and English Major, her roommate.
English Major: is generally nice and sweet and a generally good friend. Lent Myself $20 and has not asked for it over the past month (guilt). Tends to follow Linear Complex Bio Major's theory of making decisions for others via the "we" groupthink. Tends to boss Distressingly Unknown Accountant, her roommate.
Myself: is pissed at the drama created by Linear Complex Bio Major and Octahedral Biochem Major's clashing. Misses simplicity found in England. May or may not fancy Unfortunate Biochem Boy; is flat-out determined not to actively pursue him. Is lab partners with Unfortunate Biochem Boy, wherein a reasonably good friendship has sprung up. Feels that, aside from not being awfully ready to pursue a relationship due to a need to figure out self first, most relationships that seem attractive would cause awkward tensions.
So. The main thing that's been unfortunately camping out in my thoughts is that, in England, relationships, even non-platonic ones, were socially simple. Logistically, not so much, but one could hook up with a guy without worrying about offending two of one's closest friends. Sure, the guy in question was my dearest England friend's boyfriend's best friend, but that was all we had in common.
In the unlikely event that Unfortunate Biochem Boy asks me out, I will have alienated Linear Complex Bio Major, who would see not using my influence with him to nudge him towards herself as the deepest form of betrayal. She will in turn take it upon herself to alienate me from Distressingly Unknown Accountant, which will likely also alienate me from English Major. Also, since he is besties with Octahedral Biochem Major, that relationship might be strained. They talk about everything, which would not bother me in the slightest, since I understand the relationship, but I wouldn't want to harm their friendship. If Unfortunate Biochem Boy stopped being as close to Octahedral Biochem Major, I would feel really bad. Although it's not likely to be a problem, the implications loom over me like an upcoming doctor's appointment. They probably won't find anything horribly wrong, but what if they do? So I stress.
See? See what happens when people get histories? Much better when the only thing shared by all parties is the fact that they live in the same flat, or know people who live in that flat.
Other things that I miss are the smell of british tobacco smoke (which is emitted by tabs, not cigarettes or the hookah that stunk up my whole house tonight, and is generally smelled when hanging out with my British friend), pizza places, chips, pasties again, public transport, and the lack of daytime rain. The close proximity of grocery stores like Aldi (where real food could be purchased for £1, or less than $2) and the fifty million news agents, supermarkets, and fruit and veg stands that populated the three blocks surrounding my flat are also sorely missed. I have to walk ten minutes up hills to get even to a (british-type) supermarket, found in the states as convenience stores attached to gas stations. These walks are not associated with any sort of commute. The cheapest grocery store is also the furthest away, of course.
I also miss drinking and dancing. Parties big enough to have drinking games are full of strangers that only want to play pong and who don't want to dance and parties small enough to want to play drinking games are populated by non-beer-drinkers. I miss the casual drinking, where you know that someone has got your back, even if they're just as drunk as you, and they won't leave you at the club. I miss the siren songs of dubstep and rave music pounding through my body as I relax in the anonymity of a club and allow my body to thrash around, not really caring if I can match the rhythm of the music or the person next to me.
I'll be investing in air freshener to ward off any hookah stink that might make its way into my room (although keeping my door shut has done wonders so far tonight) and possibly also investigating the potential of Richmond cigarettes, the smell of which I didn't mind in England and which I rather miss, although I'd need to be stealthy and not get addicted or make my clothes stink of the smoke. That being said, I probably won't. I'm spending most of my disposable income, of which there really is none, on food and booze lately.
I miss the days of the only drama in my friend group being that my roommate was being a bitch about something stupid or eating other people's food (I strongly suspect her of eating an entire half-package of soft cheese the weekend I went to Liverpool, and I was only gone for a night). Back here, one of my friends is turning uni back into high school, with her complicated, dramatic view of how friendship should work.
Here, for your viewing pleasure and also my personal ability to understand my life, is something of a schematic of why I miss my England friends:
Linear Complex Bio Major: is attempting to reinstate the clique mentality of american secondary school. Is not really speaking to High Valence Biochem Major. Fancies Unfortunate Biochem Boy. Bosses Distressingly Unknown Accountant and Myself as much as possible. Sees all decisions made by anyone in friend group as involving whole group; has a strong "we" mentality. Is enormously frustrated by single-ness; this manifests itself in her scaring off any friendly boys, much to her continued and compounded frustration.
Octahedral Biochem Major: has a much looser view of friendship. Is best friends with Unfortunate Biochem Boy. Is not really speaking to Linear Bio Major. Gets along fine and does not try to boss Myself or Distressingly Unknown Accountant, although she does tend to bulldoze the planning. Still, allows friends to be otherwise engaged without being offended.
Unfortunate Biochem Boy: is male. Is also most eligible junior science major bachelor who is determined to remain a bachelor. Does not fancy Linear Bio Major back; may or may not suspect that she fancies him. Is sometimes clueless about why the females that surround him are angry. Is a decent lab partner and generally decent friend in spite of some core dickishness, as revealed by conversations between Myself and Octahedral Biochem Major.
Distressingly Unknown Accountant: tries to avoid making decisions. Ends up being a bit of a pawn. Like Myself in this way, just times twenty thousand. Personal thoughts are largely unknown, but often professed to be known by Linear Complex Bio Major and English Major, her roommate.
English Major: is generally nice and sweet and a generally good friend. Lent Myself $20 and has not asked for it over the past month (guilt). Tends to follow Linear Complex Bio Major's theory of making decisions for others via the "we" groupthink. Tends to boss Distressingly Unknown Accountant, her roommate.
Myself: is pissed at the drama created by Linear Complex Bio Major and Octahedral Biochem Major's clashing. Misses simplicity found in England. May or may not fancy Unfortunate Biochem Boy; is flat-out determined not to actively pursue him. Is lab partners with Unfortunate Biochem Boy, wherein a reasonably good friendship has sprung up. Feels that, aside from not being awfully ready to pursue a relationship due to a need to figure out self first, most relationships that seem attractive would cause awkward tensions.
So. The main thing that's been unfortunately camping out in my thoughts is that, in England, relationships, even non-platonic ones, were socially simple. Logistically, not so much, but one could hook up with a guy without worrying about offending two of one's closest friends. Sure, the guy in question was my dearest England friend's boyfriend's best friend, but that was all we had in common.
In the unlikely event that Unfortunate Biochem Boy asks me out, I will have alienated Linear Complex Bio Major, who would see not using my influence with him to nudge him towards herself as the deepest form of betrayal. She will in turn take it upon herself to alienate me from Distressingly Unknown Accountant, which will likely also alienate me from English Major. Also, since he is besties with Octahedral Biochem Major, that relationship might be strained. They talk about everything, which would not bother me in the slightest, since I understand the relationship, but I wouldn't want to harm their friendship. If Unfortunate Biochem Boy stopped being as close to Octahedral Biochem Major, I would feel really bad. Although it's not likely to be a problem, the implications loom over me like an upcoming doctor's appointment. They probably won't find anything horribly wrong, but what if they do? So I stress.
See? See what happens when people get histories? Much better when the only thing shared by all parties is the fact that they live in the same flat, or know people who live in that flat.
Other things that I miss are the smell of british tobacco smoke (which is emitted by tabs, not cigarettes or the hookah that stunk up my whole house tonight, and is generally smelled when hanging out with my British friend), pizza places, chips, pasties again, public transport, and the lack of daytime rain. The close proximity of grocery stores like Aldi (where real food could be purchased for £1, or less than $2) and the fifty million news agents, supermarkets, and fruit and veg stands that populated the three blocks surrounding my flat are also sorely missed. I have to walk ten minutes up hills to get even to a (british-type) supermarket, found in the states as convenience stores attached to gas stations. These walks are not associated with any sort of commute. The cheapest grocery store is also the furthest away, of course.
I also miss drinking and dancing. Parties big enough to have drinking games are full of strangers that only want to play pong and who don't want to dance and parties small enough to want to play drinking games are populated by non-beer-drinkers. I miss the casual drinking, where you know that someone has got your back, even if they're just as drunk as you, and they won't leave you at the club. I miss the siren songs of dubstep and rave music pounding through my body as I relax in the anonymity of a club and allow my body to thrash around, not really caring if I can match the rhythm of the music or the person next to me.
I'll be investing in air freshener to ward off any hookah stink that might make its way into my room (although keeping my door shut has done wonders so far tonight) and possibly also investigating the potential of Richmond cigarettes, the smell of which I didn't mind in England and which I rather miss, although I'd need to be stealthy and not get addicted or make my clothes stink of the smoke. That being said, I probably won't. I'm spending most of my disposable income, of which there really is none, on food and booze lately.
16 July 2011
Fifty Ninth Post
Hi, everybody.
You may or may not know about my past flirtation with the world of vlogging. It started in february, but then I ran out of time to edit videos and had to do school things.
I filmed myself rambling about "zen" tea that destroys me, but that one never went up.
I filmed my house, but that will never go up.
But yesterday, I filmed and edited a video thanking JK Rowling. It's not very good as far as videos go. I just have my built-in iSight camera and microphone with which to film, and, while adequate, they are not the best.
However, it's a start. I have a slightly romantic view of vlogging- I'll just make videos on my built-in camera and post them, crappy as they are, and people will watch them and like me! Then I'll have internet friends.
Unlikely.
I kind of want a video camera for when I go to england, but I doubt that will happen. Most likely I will just blog, post a lot of pictures on the study abroad blog, and make about one video the whole time I'm in another country.
ANYWAY. Back to the Harry Potter vlog post.
The idea of the original video (italktosnakes' "Want to say "thank you" to JK Rowling?" video) was for lifelong fans to thank JK Rowling for the impact she's had on their lives for the past fourteen years.
I talked a little bit about how Harry Potter has impacted the world in general: Ravelry.com has groups devoted to Harry Potter, there is a whole new genre of music that grew up from the internet, and someone has invented a sort of "ground quidditch".
Fact: Harry Potter had no impact in my life at all until five years ago when people started wondering why I had never read them (Answer: for the lulz gained from people's shocked reaction).
However, since I read the books in quick succession last summer, I've noticed depths to Harry Potter that I might have missed as a child. Harry is not just some kid who plays a mix of rugby, baseball, basketball, and bocce on broomsticks; he's not even a particularly lucky/talented kid who vanquishes ultimate evil. He embodies some of the good things that we like to think about ourselves, as a good protagonist should (at least in "children's" literature, as the series began). He's heroic, he's loyal to his friends, he's a natural leader. He also, however, embodies things that we like to ignore about ourselves. This is where we leave the realms of children's stories and get into the depths of human nature. His awareness of his wizarding prowess leads him to be reckless, foolhardy, and arrogant. Harry is a real person, in other words. He's a real teenager, unfortunately. He mopes, he whines, he takes out his anger on the wrong people. What makes him a protagonist, someone that people want to emulate, is the fact that he deals with the stupid human faults to which he is prone. In spite of his failings, he manages to get himself back on track and save the world.
Imagine if everyone could do that.
You may or may not know about my past flirtation with the world of vlogging. It started in february, but then I ran out of time to edit videos and had to do school things.
I filmed myself rambling about "zen" tea that destroys me, but that one never went up.
I filmed my house, but that will never go up.
But yesterday, I filmed and edited a video thanking JK Rowling. It's not very good as far as videos go. I just have my built-in iSight camera and microphone with which to film, and, while adequate, they are not the best.
However, it's a start. I have a slightly romantic view of vlogging- I'll just make videos on my built-in camera and post them, crappy as they are, and people will watch them and like me! Then I'll have internet friends.
Unlikely.
I kind of want a video camera for when I go to england, but I doubt that will happen. Most likely I will just blog, post a lot of pictures on the study abroad blog, and make about one video the whole time I'm in another country.
ANYWAY. Back to the Harry Potter vlog post.
The idea of the original video (italktosnakes' "Want to say "thank you" to JK Rowling?" video) was for lifelong fans to thank JK Rowling for the impact she's had on their lives for the past fourteen years.
I talked a little bit about how Harry Potter has impacted the world in general: Ravelry.com has groups devoted to Harry Potter, there is a whole new genre of music that grew up from the internet, and someone has invented a sort of "ground quidditch".
Fact: Harry Potter had no impact in my life at all until five years ago when people started wondering why I had never read them (Answer: for the lulz gained from people's shocked reaction).
However, since I read the books in quick succession last summer, I've noticed depths to Harry Potter that I might have missed as a child. Harry is not just some kid who plays a mix of rugby, baseball, basketball, and bocce on broomsticks; he's not even a particularly lucky/talented kid who vanquishes ultimate evil. He embodies some of the good things that we like to think about ourselves, as a good protagonist should (at least in "children's" literature, as the series began). He's heroic, he's loyal to his friends, he's a natural leader. He also, however, embodies things that we like to ignore about ourselves. This is where we leave the realms of children's stories and get into the depths of human nature. His awareness of his wizarding prowess leads him to be reckless, foolhardy, and arrogant. Harry is a real person, in other words. He's a real teenager, unfortunately. He mopes, he whines, he takes out his anger on the wrong people. What makes him a protagonist, someone that people want to emulate, is the fact that he deals with the stupid human faults to which he is prone. In spite of his failings, he manages to get himself back on track and save the world.
Imagine if everyone could do that.
30 April 2011
Fifty Third Post
As we approach finals week, I find myself less and less inclined to do homework. Rather, I have taken to watching Doctor Who, both the old and new series somewhat simultaneously.
The old series is kind of hilarious. It's got intriguing plotlines and terrible costumes, effects, and fight choreographers. I'm in 1964, and it's in black and white. William Hartnell is the first Doctor, and in this season, he and his 15-year-old granddaughter Susan (I have yet to figure that one out) are trying to return two british schoolteachers, Ian and Barbara, back to London, 1964. Unfortunately, the Tardis is rather broken. Instead of returning them, it drifts aimlessly through space-time, dropping them in unfortunate places about the universe. I'm almost done with the first season, though, and I have high hopes for their safe return.
The villains are... Well, they're more to be pitied than mocked, since they have such terrible costumes. The Daleks, of which I know only through nerd culture references, are introduced early on, although I doubt that they are intended to be a far-reaching series villain. At one point, the group runs across a race of rubber suit-wearing villains with odd headdresses, and that same story arc also features a brain with eyes that lives in a jar. The villains grow more sophisticated as the series continues, and in the second-to-last story arc (I cheated and looked at the descriptions for the next couple episodes to see when the story arc ended), the villains are actually humans trying to kill off an alien race.
I mentioned that I'm also watching the new series, which is only four or five... maybe six seasons along now, as opposed to the 20-odd seasons that the original series boasts. It picks up where the original series left off, featuring the ninth Doctor (played by Christopher Eccleston). He's nothing like the first, which is to be expected. It did throw me off, however, when I watched an episode with an energetic middle-aged action-hero man who saves London from an invasion of animated plastic with the help of a 19-year-old London girl (Rose Tyler, a long-running companion, according to the infographics that keep popping up in my RSS feed) before watching an episode with two suspicious teachers and a cranky old man living in a telephone box in a junkyard (and nothing much else happened).
It was less than promising. However, even in the 20th century, they didn't make 20-odd seasons of a TV show if there was no interest. With any luck, the series would get better. Plus, I keep hearing about a guy with a scarf... the fourth Doctor, I think. I want to make a similar scarf, but I'm not going to until I've seen at least three episodes with him wearing the scarf. Imagine the awkward, nerd-cred destroying conversation with a true believer:
True Believer (TB): "...I like your scarf."
Me: "Thanks."
TB: "Make it yourself?"
Me: "Uh, yeah. It's my Doctor Who scarf."
TB: (excited and suspicious, and justifiably so) "You've seen the original series?"
Me: "Well, some of it..."
TB: "Have you seen the episode with the fourth Doctor when he... (describes episode)?"
Me: "Erm, no. I'm still in the first Doctor's seasons."
TB: "..." (hopes crushed)
Me: (forever labeled as poser)
So yeah, I'm going to wait, no matter how much I want that incredibly long, incredibly stripey nerd culture icon.
I do feel, however, that I have seen enough episodes to qualify for a Tardis mug, found on thinkgeek.com (what a wonderful site!).
Here's some photoshopped fun from the wedding in England (or is it photoshopped? Hmm?).
Also, I realised how crotchety I'm getting when I reread the bit about "even in the 20th century". I'm not sure if that makes me elitist against the 20th century or what, because it really wasn't that long ago. Besides, I spent a pretty solid half of my life in the 1990s. Of course, I watched things like Zoom, Other PBSkids Shows, Mr. Rogers' Neighborhood, Sesame Street, Barney, Wheel of Fortune, Jeopardy, The Price is Right, MacGyver, Hercules, and Xena: Warrior Princess. I may have also caught a couple episodes of a show with Superman in it, since I have odd memories of phone booths and underwear right before a meeting to which the guy with glasses was late. I was under the impression for a few weeks that when one wanted to dress business casual, superhero costumes were in order. I was also convinced that any trouble I found myself in could be solved by having MacGyver around. Hercules or Xena would also be suitable alternatives.
In retrospect, I'm really not sure why my parents let me watch these shows. Anyway, I now pick my own shows, half of which are for the shirtless men that inhabit the strange world of TV land. It's not like I get any attractive men without shirts at college, and a girl has her needs.
That sounded weird, so it's time for bed. Goodnight, world.
The old series is kind of hilarious. It's got intriguing plotlines and terrible costumes, effects, and fight choreographers. I'm in 1964, and it's in black and white. William Hartnell is the first Doctor, and in this season, he and his 15-year-old granddaughter Susan (I have yet to figure that one out) are trying to return two british schoolteachers, Ian and Barbara, back to London, 1964. Unfortunately, the Tardis is rather broken. Instead of returning them, it drifts aimlessly through space-time, dropping them in unfortunate places about the universe. I'm almost done with the first season, though, and I have high hopes for their safe return.
The villains are... Well, they're more to be pitied than mocked, since they have such terrible costumes. The Daleks, of which I know only through nerd culture references, are introduced early on, although I doubt that they are intended to be a far-reaching series villain. At one point, the group runs across a race of rubber suit-wearing villains with odd headdresses, and that same story arc also features a brain with eyes that lives in a jar. The villains grow more sophisticated as the series continues, and in the second-to-last story arc (I cheated and looked at the descriptions for the next couple episodes to see when the story arc ended), the villains are actually humans trying to kill off an alien race.
I mentioned that I'm also watching the new series, which is only four or five... maybe six seasons along now, as opposed to the 20-odd seasons that the original series boasts. It picks up where the original series left off, featuring the ninth Doctor (played by Christopher Eccleston). He's nothing like the first, which is to be expected. It did throw me off, however, when I watched an episode with an energetic middle-aged action-hero man who saves London from an invasion of animated plastic with the help of a 19-year-old London girl (Rose Tyler, a long-running companion, according to the infographics that keep popping up in my RSS feed) before watching an episode with two suspicious teachers and a cranky old man living in a telephone box in a junkyard (and nothing much else happened).
It was less than promising. However, even in the 20th century, they didn't make 20-odd seasons of a TV show if there was no interest. With any luck, the series would get better. Plus, I keep hearing about a guy with a scarf... the fourth Doctor, I think. I want to make a similar scarf, but I'm not going to until I've seen at least three episodes with him wearing the scarf. Imagine the awkward, nerd-cred destroying conversation with a true believer:
True Believer (TB): "...I like your scarf."
Me: "Thanks."
TB: "Make it yourself?"
Me: "Uh, yeah. It's my Doctor Who scarf."
TB: (excited and suspicious, and justifiably so) "You've seen the original series?"
Me: "Well, some of it..."
TB: "Have you seen the episode with the fourth Doctor when he... (describes episode)?"
Me: "Erm, no. I'm still in the first Doctor's seasons."
TB: "..." (hopes crushed)
Me: (forever labeled as poser)
So yeah, I'm going to wait, no matter how much I want that incredibly long, incredibly stripey nerd culture icon.
I do feel, however, that I have seen enough episodes to qualify for a Tardis mug, found on thinkgeek.com (what a wonderful site!).
Here's some photoshopped fun from the wedding in England (or is it photoshopped? Hmm?).
Also, I realised how crotchety I'm getting when I reread the bit about "even in the 20th century". I'm not sure if that makes me elitist against the 20th century or what, because it really wasn't that long ago. Besides, I spent a pretty solid half of my life in the 1990s. Of course, I watched things like Zoom, Other PBSkids Shows, Mr. Rogers' Neighborhood, Sesame Street, Barney, Wheel of Fortune, Jeopardy, The Price is Right, MacGyver, Hercules, and Xena: Warrior Princess. I may have also caught a couple episodes of a show with Superman in it, since I have odd memories of phone booths and underwear right before a meeting to which the guy with glasses was late. I was under the impression for a few weeks that when one wanted to dress business casual, superhero costumes were in order. I was also convinced that any trouble I found myself in could be solved by having MacGyver around. Hercules or Xena would also be suitable alternatives.
In retrospect, I'm really not sure why my parents let me watch these shows. Anyway, I now pick my own shows, half of which are for the shirtless men that inhabit the strange world of TV land. It's not like I get any attractive men without shirts at college, and a girl has her needs.
That sounded weird, so it's time for bed. Goodnight, world.
16 March 2011
Fifty Third Post
I have been accepted to through a study abroad program to Sunderland University in England!
Read about that at a dedicated blog that I set up so that my family and friends won't stumble upon this blog that may or may not malign them from time to time. I named it "Raeann's Study Abroad Adventure" because that's what it's about.
And... Yep.
It is midterms. You might get an interesting post over spring break. If you want one tonight, it'll have to be about Arthurian literature; if you want one tomorrow, it'll be in German.
Actually, that might happen.
However. I've been typing on this crappy keyboard that puts the b on the wrong side of the little ergonomic hump thing and has a two-thumb spacebar that clunks horrinly if I use just one thumn.
I don't care enough to fix it when my Bs come out as Ns any more.
Deal with it.
Read about that at a dedicated blog that I set up so that my family and friends won't stumble upon this blog that may or may not malign them from time to time. I named it "Raeann's Study Abroad Adventure" because that's what it's about.
And... Yep.
It is midterms. You might get an interesting post over spring break. If you want one tonight, it'll have to be about Arthurian literature; if you want one tomorrow, it'll be in German.
Actually, that might happen.
However. I've been typing on this crappy keyboard that puts the b on the wrong side of the little ergonomic hump thing and has a two-thumb spacebar that clunks horrinly if I use just one thumn.
I don't care enough to fix it when my Bs come out as Ns any more.
Deal with it.
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