Impolite.

Sunday mornings are the only reason I wish I had a TV. I love Sunday morning news shows. I used to watch The Sunday Morning Show on CBS, then Face the Nation, then flip over and watch Meet the Press. It was wonderful. I am watching Face the Nation online right now. It is last week's episode from the DNC. Bob Schieffer just showed the newest McCain ad where Hilary says bad things about Obama. The purpose is to divide the democratic party, just like McCain's VP pick. It makes me mad, but I guess that is politics.

Face The Nation August 24, 2008

I haven't done my research on Obama's VP pick yet. I really need to. Kevin and I always talk about politics. He and I also talk about how uninformed the average American is. It makes me sad. I am not nearly as informed as I should be, but I am working on that.
We saw some statistics about how few college students read about politics, or read a newspaper, or just read! It is astounding how few people are actually getting their information from reputable sources. Most people rely on the internet, especially wikipedia. I have no problem with wikipedia when it isn't the only place someone is getting their information. Kevin recently wanted to buy a book on American history and I think it is a great idea. I want to be more informed from a list of real sources. The internet is a wonderful tool, but I am afraid we are raising a nation of idiots who only want to wait two seconds for inofrmation, which they probably won't retain.

Microfridge!

Sounds like a really bad name for a lame superhero from the movie about that scary toaster. I hated that movie.
I just got my microfridge. It is a fridge with a microwave attached to the top of it. Classy huh? Well, at first I wasn't going to to get one. Then I realized that the very special dining hall closes at 2 pm on Sunday afternoons and 7:30 on weekdays. It also doesn't open until on the weekends. Ummm...no.
Not going to work for me. I need me some coffee before that and some something or another to munch. Hence, the microfridge, rented of course. I'm thinking right now what shall be my first food to go into my fridge. I need breakfast for tomorrow...how about berries, cereal, milk, and coffee! mmmmm. Coffee.
I went to the Vitamin Shoppe today and got some immune system booster junk and some make your throat not feel so scratchy stuff. There is all sorts of things floating around this dorm and city, I'm taking care of me. So, Mema, and Mother, do not worry...and yes, to all of you who Mema told milk of magnesia really does get rid of zits. I'm not even kidding.

In Memory of Dr. Bledsoe, "Daddio"

I spent a month in Aspen, Colorado this summer. Aspen means so much more to me than just a beautiful place where there is great (expensive) shopping and a great music festival. Aspen is a healing place.
Last year, I went to the music festival two months after I lost my dad. The mountains were one of his favorite places to go. He actually lived in the North Georgia hills and spent a lot of his time "rambling" around the country looking for new places and visiting old places. He told me before he died that he wanted to visit me in Aspen if I got to go. At the last minute, I did get to go.
Those two months last summer were some of the hardest I have ever experienced, but also the most healing. You cannot not joy or peace without experiencing the counterpart, pain.
Every day, I rode the bus into town to the festival and cried the entire way. I would walk the trails and look at the mountains and ache for my dad. One time, I even thought I saw him and it ripped my heart out. However, amongst all this pain, there was a cleansing and purifying aspect to that mountain town that I couldn't realize or even truly appreciate until I went back home. Maybe it is the way the wildflowers grow, or the still and grandeur of the Rockies, or maybe it is the feeling of being small as I watched storms form and sweep through the valleys. I found a huge part of myself and a great understanding and appreciation for my dad last year. He did come see me (spiritually speaking). I found him again, and even more of myself, this time in Aspen. The air seemed even cleaner, the flowers and mountains so much more beautiful. I found myself letting go and becoming stronger. Aspen is a place like no other that will always be a place of peace and revitalization for me.

The End of Productivity

Curb Your Enthusiasm is the end of productivity as I know it. The first few days in the dorm my internet didn't work. I now works thanks to the IT people here. This computer used to be my dad's and he had the IP address manually configured and I couldn't access the school's IP address until someone showed me how to change it. So, now I have internet. Clearly.
Back to Curb. I watch it all the time. My favorite seasons are the 5th and 6th. Currently I am watching the beginning of the 5th season. Great show. There is a hilarious episode where one of Jeff's (Larry's manager and friend) brother-in-law talks about how wonderful Bush is and how a great president comes along every 77 years. Of course, Larry and everyone else on the show thinks this guy is full of it.

Perfect Cup

Every morning I walk myself down to the dining hall and get my cereal, fruit, milk, and coffee. There are at least five different coffees to choose from and that is wonderful, but who needs that many decision after rolling out of bed. Personal coffee makers make the best choice. You make a decision once, go to the grocery and make another decision for which coffee you want. Luckily, this decision lasts for a few weeks or so.
However, this morning I made my choice: 6th Street Bistro Blend. Bold and dark. Usually I get to the cashier, whip out my card to pay and the lady always asks me if I want a bag. I always decline a bag. I really shouldn't though. I dropped my cereal this morning. Once again, this is not the point. Here's the point: I got the perfect blend in my coffee this morning. I didn't put too much sugar or too much half and half. It was amazing. I need to remember that perfect coffee is the color of a dirty penny. It looks like a penny from the 70's, probably like the ones the school here should still have since it is stuck in the pre-computer age.
Speaking of the 70's, my mom and I are 30 years apart to the day. She completed her undergrad 30 years ago. I feel like I have time warped to her college days with the way this school is run. Oh well.

Moved to NYC

Sometimes you don't know what you truly want until you have it.
I kicked and screamed about moving to NYC for graduate school. I really considered not going at all and doing something completely different with my life. I've been a musician since I was little and thought that it was always what I wanted to do, then I get this great opportunity and get the coldest feet in the world.
However, despite my kicking and screaming, I came anyway. I love it.
This morning I went for a power walk in Riverside Park. It was lovely. I've decided to add a block everyday to my morning walk until I'm walking for over an hour. I saw the fattest squirrels I have ever seen in my life on the walk. One squirrel was on top of a water fountain defending it from all the sparrows who were attempting to eat near by.
I've spent my first week here in NY trying to get to know my neighborhood, shopping, and practicing. School starts next week and I'm excited to see what the classes are like.
We had to take this ridiculous placement exams and I thought I bombed them all. To my surprise, I exempted half the piano classes, one of the aural skills classes, and a history class. HA! Yay for Florida State. You can get a good education there. Sometimes I feel like people here hear where I did my undergraduate work and think I am not as good as they are, total puff of course.