streamlining:

www.thesaradarling.com.

“Now, there is no thought or reverie. There is nothing but gossip and making plans to shop or watch television. The cellphone and the P.D.A. have basically replaced thought.”

being on a college campus is surreal.  my freshman year of college, experienced about 6 years ago now, was hybrid.  i worked part-time, 20 hours a week, lived at home, and took 9-12 credit hours (3-4 classes) a semester mainly in the afternoon/evening.

then, the last 3 years have found me finishing my freshman/sophomore years by taking 3-4 classes a semester through evening and then primarily internet classes while working full-time.

now, i am going to school, more than full-time, with 8 classes, and am on campus monday through friday.  which means i get to experience things like having to take a core class i somehow missed in an auditorium of 150 kids, where attendance is taken at the beginning and end of class using an electronic clicker (that of course we had to purchase) and pointing it at the screen.  this clicker, i am told, is also used for us to take quizzes. 

now, there are enjoyable things about going to school full-time, which is, well, being able to just go to school full-time.  oh, and the library.  i heart the library, and that things are generally cheaper on campus for students.  the boy had a traditional 4 year college experience, wherein one makes friends on campus, dates people they met in class, has a band, hangs out, whathaveyou.  i can’t imagine going to college with friends of mine.  to me, that’s high school. 

i also get to experience blaring music on the quad, random student events like this weeks “dis-orientation week” where i am encouraged to do something to my senses (i’ve not paid attention), lines at the bookstore, having to show up early to get parking, girls who attend classes in miniskirts (how is that comfortable?), half-desks, and of course a slew of sophomoric (in every sense of the word) guys who discuss inane things at loud volumes. 

odd.

my mother refers to the Iranian President as “that Moody I’m-a-Dinner-Jacket guy”.

real name? Mahmoud Ahmadinejad.

this makes me laugh and cringe, concurrently.

legend has it that Ernest Hemingway was once prodded to compose a complete story in six words.

his answer?

“For sale: baby shoes, never used.”

some people say it was to settle a bar bet. others say it was a personal challenge directed at other famous authors.  either way, it is considered some of his best prose ever.

this week, my six word story would be:

quitting is the best start ever.

what is your six word story?

one of my favorite coworkers came back from lunch and set a snickers bar, my favorite, on my desk.  he does this occasionally, because they are a favorite.

he also came in, yesterday, and said that some people leave this place and he could not care less.  but he is very excited for me, but incredibly saddened to see me go.

chalk two points up for the “things i will miss about this place” side of the board.

flamingo, my boss, decided she wants our IT person to look in to getting her a macbook air to replace her old laptop that just broke.  this, despite the following issues:
- it is not easily compatible with our other software or systems
- it is far and above much more expensive, and without some of the key things she needs on a daily basis and our non-profit would pay for it
- she is not very tech-savvy, and has worked on pc’s HER WHOLE LIFE.
- despite this, she can’t do some basic things on the pc
- our it director has become her own personal tech person, and doesn’t want to mess with it.

her reasoning?
- i went to panera bread, and all of the people around me had them, and it looked so cool and lightweight.

chalk a big point (or several hundred) up on the “things i will miss when hell freezes over” side of the board.

“Everybody has a theology; everybody has things they believe about God. The only question is if those things are true. To paraphrase A. W. Tozer, what you believe about God affects what you believe about everything else. Sounds pretty important if you ask me.”

interesting thoughts from Glenn.  i like things that are true for everyone, regardless of one’s “official” status or religious affiliation. 

“she pined in thought, and with green & yellow melancholy, she sat like patience on a monument and smiled at grief…”

–Twelfth Night, Shakespeare

“What’s the point of wearing your favorite rocketship underpants if nobody ever asks to see ‘em?”

– Calvin

 sublime.
also? i think there is definitely reasons to wear them, regardless.

i’m totally losing it.

must not lose my shit!

edit: much better now.  sometimes, you just need to breathe, and reboot.  two more weeks before my stress level goes down down down.