Let's see, what has been happening...

On Sunday, my mother got me a bus ticket and wished me adieu. I was on the ol' greyhound, on my way back to Pittsburgh. I sat with a guy who was a truck driver and let me tell you, he did not stop talking the entire time. I guess life is lonely on the road. He was amusing though, so it was quite alright. I even got to see a picture of him as a child dressed up like Peter Pan.

Tuesday was a perfect fall day. The sun was shining, the leaves were blowing around, and the air just smelled like fall. I love that. That night, my friend, Abby, and I were feeling brave so we decided to attend a yogarythmics class. The flier promised that we would leave feeling a greater sense of well being. As it turns out, it was totally right. The class was small, only 9 of us. We worked on being in touch with our chacras and releasing our "inner child". The entire class was about free form movement and doing what felt right for your body. We ended by meditating with the lights off for a long while. I entered one of those strange states where you can recognize that you're alive, but that's about all. You don't think about anything and you aren't aware of your body. It's perfect. I love yoga classes and I sometimes forget that, but not anymore. I am making people refer to me as "yoga girl" currently.

Today I recieved a package from my mother filled with lots of Halloween treats. It was the perfect pick me up. :)

Your Own Bed

Being sick away from home is no fun. No fun at all. There is no mom to make soup, no dad to tell jokes, no little sister to offer hugs, and no cat to pet.

I have the flu. The I can't move, my head hurts all the time, I'm not hungry, I want to die FLU. I went to the doctor yesterday and her advice, aside from consuming grotesque amounts of gatorade, was to go home. So that is exactly what I did.

My dad came to get me and I'm currently laying in bed. I am feeling better already.

It's 2:23 a.m., my head hurts, my eyes hurt, my neck hurts, but none of that matters because I am basking in that post-study glow. Sure, I may not know everything about microfilaments and the actin that makes them, but I do know that I've studied as hard as possible. And that's as good as it's going to get Dr. Moore. That's as good as it's going to get.

I'm leaning back in my chair, looking out the window to the city, and listening to This Providence. Well deserved in my opinion.

Yesterday

Once a month for my Global Sociology class we gather together late at night to watch a foreign film. This evening was one of those nights. I put on all of my layers and left the comfort and warmth of my dorm room to head to the farthest possible building where the film was being shown. It was bone chillingly cold outside, and the whole time I was walking there I kept thinking to myself “This had better be worth it.”

Yesterday was the title of the film. I knew nothing about it, except that it depicted life in South Africa. 94 minutes later I was sitting in my seat trying desperately not to cry. The film was simple it told the story of one woman, her husband, and her daughter. That is all. It took place over the course of only one year. Yesterday, the wife and mother, learns that she has HIV. Her husband has contracted the illness as well and is suffering much more so than she is. He is forced to leave his job in Johannesburg and come home to their small village. The villagers are frightened and do not want the husband around, so Yesterday and Beauty, her daughter, build a make-shift hospital for him. Eventually the husband dies and Yesterday realizes that she too will die soon. The most emotionally intense scene in the film occurs right after the death of her husband. Yesterday is so upset and angry that she destroys her hospital with a sledgehammer. It doesn’t sound like much, but the grief on her face, the stark African landscape, and the music in the background make it one of the most upsetting scenes I have ever seen.

Yesterday is intense, simple, and poignant. Exactly what a film should be.

It's Monday. I am in the library. Shock. I lost a cottage cheese eating contest today.

Saturday night was not one of the best nights I've ever had. Actually it was one of the worst. So, by Sunday morning it was time for something fun. I bundled up in a cute fall outfit and hit the street. I had no destination. Just a lot of time, my iPod, and a building hunger for a delicious bagel.

My first stop ended up being a bookstore where I was able to replenish my stationary collection. I got these really cool cards with hand-sewn flowers on them. I also got a fresh moleskine that I believe is going to have a very interesting life.

Soon after I ran into a bagel shop, and let me tell you, bacon cream cheese is the BEST idea ever. Absolutely delicious.

I kept meandering and ran into this tiny church. It was smack-dab in the middle of town. It was fenced off and had a gorgeous garden surrounding it. The place was almost magical. It was perfection surrounded by definite not perfection. I desperately wanted to go inside, but the door was locked.

After spending plenty of time meandering around, I noticed that 9 out of 10 people were carrying little white paper bags filled with mini doughnuts. I stumbled out of a really fun coffee shop and low and behold the doughnuts were right next door. I got a bag of powdered sugar ones and spent ten or so minutes in a state of pure bliss. They were that good.

A perfect Sunday morning.

Run Run Run

Today I got one of those urges to run. Now, you must understand, this doesn't happen very often. Generally, intense physical activity is something I shy away from. I'm more of a yoga girl. Anyhow, I threw on a tee-shirt, excersise pants, my super awesome new tennis shoes and went for it.

At first I was just going to run in the Power Center, but since it was an absolutely gorgeous fall day out, I decided to run around town. It was marverlous. I ran for blocks and blocks and blocks and it felt great. Eventually I decided to take a side street and see what there was to find. Unfortuantely I soon became lost. The buidings were a maze and I was stuck inside.

I figured that my best plan to get un-lost was to follow a person that looked like they were going somewhere that I might want to be. I did just that. The man I was following quickly figured out that I was being suspicous. He kept turning around and shooting me death stares. I decided that I should probably stop.

I was still very lost, but I embraced it. I took my time and ran slowly checking out all of the buildings around me. I stumbled upon some pretty neat places. My favorite was this magical looking toy store that I spotted across the street. It was glittery and colorful and looked like the best place on earth. I made a mental note and hope to find it in the future.

I believe that I am also in a new movie. I ran straigh into filming. It was incredibly cool. There were cameras and lights and props everywhere. I did some research and it happens to be a new Russel Crowe film. Neat, huh?

An hour later I finally made it back here, got an overpriced strawberry smoothie, and called it a day.

Last night we ordered food. I got a slice of pie a la mode. Tell me that that isn' t the coolest thing ever.

Currently the sun is shining, there isn't a cloud in the sky, and I am headed to the Warhol. Best Saturday EVER.

Pony Epress

A few of the things that constitute a perfect day...

• blue sky, sun shining
  
• wearing a dress


• being with people I love


• the presence of bacon chocolate


• a large piece of salmon


• watching an episode of Gossip Girl


• buying a new sweater


• driving around with the windows down


• picking flowers


• shopping for food


• GETTING A LETTER

There is almost nothing better than the feeling of recieveing a letter in the mail. Every day I check my mailbox. Sometimes there is nothing, sometimes I am pleasantly surprised by a fresh issue of Vanity Fair, and then there are those perfect days when I get a letter.

People say it all the time, but the art of letter writing is sadly disappearing. With texts, twitters, facebooks, and e-mails there is no real need to send snail mail. But where is the fun in that? The feeling of ripping open an evelope and logging into an e-mail account cannot and should not be compared.

Sometimes I feel outdated, but I genuinely love sending and getting letters. It is, hands down, my favorite form of communication. Picking out stationary, stamps, pens, and envelopes is thrilling to me, as lame as that sounds. I am currently infatuated by the thick, luscious Crane and Co. stationary that I purchased at a bookstore the other day. Sending a letter is almost as much fun as recieving one. Almost.

So while the world advances and letters become even more obsolete, I am going to be doing just the opposite.