It seems I am always starting these blog posts with an apology for not being quite as faithful as I originally intended when starting this writing venture. So again, Dear Readers, I am sorry. Life seems to take precedence to whatever happens here. So what's been going on since August 19th, you ask? Tons.

I finally found out that I am leaving for Korea in December. I have to be there on the 10th--which makes it around 7-8 weeks until I leave. I found an awesome job at Starbucks (seriously--what a fab company!) and I really like the people there. It makes me sad that I am going to leave them after such a short employment post, but Korea will help me in the long run of becoming a professor...right? :)

On September 4th, my Yia Yia (my Greek Maternal Grandmother) passed away. It's still weird to know that she is gone and that I can't call her up and chat with her. I did spend some time with her this summer--we played cards and I actually won. My relationship with her has not always been what it was in the end times, but I suppose that is to be expected. She had her favorites and I clearly wasn't one of them--however, I know she was very proud of my accomplishments this year. I was looking through some old pictures yesterday in an effort to weed through the ones I would take with me to Korea and those I would leave behind. I found two pictures of her that made me smile--the first depicts us under an umbrella. When I was a kid, I sucked my thumb and held onto my ear--but in this picture, I am holding on to hers. The second photograph is of my Yia Yia when we went on a road trip from Florida to Charleston, SC; Myrtle Beach, NC; and then to Williamsburg, VA.

Here are the pictures of your viewing pleasure:





As of late, I have been collecting the things I've deemed necessary for the move. Coffee, mostly. :) I've also been asked to pick up a few things for Kat and Val :) I've also perfected the art of packing and repacking.

I can't promise that I'll write every week--but I'll do my best, especially when I'm in Seoul.

xox

Slacker McSlackerstein

I've recently decided that I'm a terrible blogger. It's true. Don't believe me? Look at when my last post was written. July 11th. Believe me now? Fab. Let's move on.

I recently acquired a new job--I'm a barista at a local Starbucks. :) And I really like it. Don't worry--I am still heading off to Korea. I am waiting on my first pay check so I can get this background check done. Finally. Sigh. I know I could just as easy ask my mom for the money but she has already shelled out so much $$ to help me that I almost feel that I should just wait until the 27th. It's only another week.

So what else have I been up to, you ask? Tons. Well...maybe not tons, but ya know, a lot. I've been doing some reading, knitting, memory making, and the like. I went to Florida for a month to hang out with friends and family--cried my eyes out when I had to leave my dad's house. He told me he was proud of me and that I had exceeded his expectations--which is not to say that he had low expectations of me..you know what I mean. He never got verbal confirmation from his father so it was important to me that he gave it to me.

It's been one helluva hot summer thus far...I'm waiting for Autumn to come around...like now. I generally find something good about every season, but I. Love. Autumn.

Sweaters. Spices. Pumpkins. Change. Leaves. Tea. Sigh. I. Love. Autumn.

My step-sister, Becky, is having another boy in November! I know the first name is Dylan but I'm unsure of the middle. Anywho, I'm knitting her a baby blanket for him--it's my first one ever and I'm pretty excited about it. :) Last week began this new tradition with local yarn shops in the Chicago area called a Yarn Crawl. Jess and I went around to 5 different yarn shops and got a chance to see what they have to offer. Some were fabulous, others, well, not so much. I told Jess that we should open up our own yarn shop with a book store and an espresso bar. And we'd have a resident cat. LOL. Girls are silly sometimes.

la la la

c

Hello again...

So it's been a while, dear readers. All apologies. No, seriously, I mean it. ;)

I've had my three interviews with my hagwon and I'm really excited! I should know this week if I am going to get a job offer from them--but I'm positive I will :) As interviews go, I pretty much nailed this one out of the park! I just wish I were leaving in August--even though I am now allowed to spend more time with my friends and family. I just want to get there and start making money. I am currently looking for a job that will hold me over for six months. Sigh. I've applied to 4 different locations of Starbucks (and I'm not even a fan of their coffee) and to a Sylvan Learning Center. Sigh. We shall see what happens. I will certainly keep you updated.

Last night I went with one of my besties to see a theatrical adaptation of Neil Gaiman's Neverwhere. It was awesome!!! The Lifeline Theatre specializes in bringing novels to the stage. And they're great at what they do! The tickets were reasonable and it was a really intimate crowd. Most, if not all, were fans of the novel and the driver of the shuttle bus (it's an odd place to put a theatre so they have a parking lot a few blocks away) even said that Neil Gaiman had come three Sundays ago! How fab is that? I know Gaiman comes here a lot for readings but to see an adaptation of one of his books is really cool! Mad props to Mz. Stoj for buying the tickets :)

Some books for you to check out:

Neverwhere by Neil Gaiman (duh!)
Me Talk Pretty One Day by David Sedaris


Some films to watch:

Away We Go (if you haven't seen it already)
Toy Story 3



xox

cm

Hopeful

Hello Dear Readers:


I've been quite busy getting things prepared for a teaching position in Korea (hope hope). I had my first interview on Tuesday night and things went rather well. I am now in the process of completing a writing sample so they can see that I am completely awesome...hopefully.

I'm kinda jumbly this morning because I'm thinking about my future. I'm hopeful...yet at the same time I've been so horribly depressed lately. It was feeling as if I didn't have a purpose without school. And now I will have to wait until December until I'm in Korea. I just want to get things going. I can only do so much right now though. So it's all sorts of frustrating.

I'm currently watching my niece and nephew and they're watching Twilight: New Moon.
I think I had too much coffee.
yarg.

c

It is finished.

So it's been a while, has it not, Dear Readers?

All apologies.

Graduation...Commencement...It's all done. My friends and family have left and now I'm just sitting here at my Mom's house, reflecting on the past, what was it? 42 days?

Much has happened--not all will be written about. But I am very blessed to have met so many amazing people, to have learned from the most brilliant professors, and for my base of friends and family to be solid. I did not waver, I did not falter. I actually graduated.


I know this is a short entry...but I do have to go.

We'll talk more, I promise.

xox
c

42 days, 3 hours, 14 minutes

42 days. Simply 42 days.

The proverbial four years have been reduced to 42 days. I wonder how they will play out.

Incase you're wondering what I'm talking about, I'm graduating in 42 days. But, ya know...who's counting?

I still have many miles before I sleep--so there is no slacking off during this last semester. It just feels weird to be finally getting where I have always needed to be. Perhaps I will always feel like I'm playing catch-up, unless I actually start believing what I've told everyone else, "Every flower blooms at her/his own speed." I don't want to make it seem as I don't believe in the advice that I give my friends--I just always feel behind regardless of it.

Midterms went over quite well. I just need to focus on getting things done as far as research. I wish I had taken more classes in my other semesters at Roosevelt so I would not have had to take a full five classes to graduate, but these things happen for specific reasons. And I do enjoy all of my classes.

With the China trip out of the way, I feel I am able to focus on these research projects that will be due in the coming weeks. I need to keep the momentum going. Then I'll be done, planning my goodbyes, and plotting my course to get to Korea.
I'm also contemplating studying for and taking the GRE when I'm out of school, before I go to Korea. It will be one less thing to worry about. And then I'll have to get the portfolio together for the MFA schools, and boost those scores for the PhD schools.
There is much that needs to be done after graduation...but all of that will come after these 42 days.

Oh baby, just you shut your mouth.

Oh oh oh ooohhh little China girl...

So I'm back from a 14 day excursion to China--I went to Beijing, Xi'an, and Shanghai. And now I can't sleep.

I don't sleep well on planes because there is just too much stimulation. On the ride over to Seoul (where we changed planes), I watched Twilight: New Moon, CSI: NY, Whip It, The Fantastic Mr. Fox as well as played a video game and listened to some music.
On the way home, I watched: The Imaginarium of Dr. Parnassus, Did You Hear About The Morgans?, CSI: NY, America's Funniest Home Videos, and I listened to some music as well as The Adventures of Sherlock Holmes by Sir Arrthur Conan Doyle. I kept falling asleep while watching Crazy Heart--which is not to say that I didn't like the movie, I was just tired. I had planned to do some reading on the plane but my row mates were sleeping and I didn't want to turn on the light to bother them. So I sat and watched movies while a little boy kicked my seat for 12 hours. Okay, it wasn't 12 hours, but it was a freakin' lot. I know it is tough to travel with children, and I did give the father and the boy some stern looks. I was just too exhausted to do anything about it.

Aside from the flight to and fro, I thought China was a pretty amazing place. I don't know if I'd live there, since I wouldn't be able to blog and have facebook (I'm amazed I lasted for 2 weeks without it), but I would definitely go back to visit. Especially Xi'an and Shanghai. I felt we didn't have enough time in Shanghai while we were there--it's a pretty big city and I'd like to explore it some more...but I want to actually know some mandarin when I go back so I don't get cheated by the taxi drivers.

I promise to post more stories about China later. Just know that it was an awesome trip and I'm glad to be back home.

xox
c