Quotes of the Day

It's Saturday! Hopefully the weather stays fine and safe and everyone has a beautiful weekend. Can you believe may is right around the corner? I have been nervous about my upcoming adventure but also immensely excited. These are some good quotes to keep in mind..that I have to keep in mind even when I do get those crazy pterodactyl butterflies in my stomach.

“Twenty years from now you will be more disappointed by the things that you didn’t do than by the ones you did do. So throw off the bowlines. Sail away from the safe harbor. Catch the trade winds in your sails. Explore. Dream. Discover.”

–Mark Twain

“To change one’s life; Start immediately. Do it flamboyantly. No exceptions.”

–William James

“You can have anything you want if you are willing to give up the belief that you can’t have it.”

–Robert Anthony

“There is no man living that can not do more than he thinks he can.”

–Henry Ford

To Do or Not To Do

This is how my week has felt! I am surprised I even managed to make it til Friday. I think the decision to buy donuts for the office on Tuesday helped me look forward to Friday even more. Despite having a difficult week, I am now starting a "transition" week where my only job is to complete my extensive to-do list of things. All of these are in some form related to my leaving for three months and although I am not leaving the planet, I might as well be!

Just a sample of the fun things on my list....

• Take care to DMV to get a "safety inspection" since DEQ doesn't exist in Michigan and yet I need it to renew my Oregon car tags. Confusing, right? 
• Mother's Day gift to be sent before I leave
• Vacuum, scrub, and was my car before leaving it in a friend's garage for three months
• Shopping! (Ok, this really is a fun one but my list is HUGE)
• Clean. Ugh. I despite cleaning the toilet, tub, and sink. It's worse than putting away the laundry. 
• Eye exam. I swear my eyesight is getting worse because of school! (or just old age...)
• Figure out how to buy or IF I should buy an iPod

And the list actually keeps going. As I sat completing a huge stack of paperwork the other day I realized little things I needed to get done so I started making a list in Google then went home and looked at the paper list I had already been compiling. I do believe I am up to 30 individual tasks that need to be completed before Thursday evening. 

Today I started throwing random things in a corner with my luggage and new summer clothes. This pile shall be what I eventually end up packing and bringing with me. How many pairs of shoes is TOO many? I mean, I have to be prepared for everything, right??

Quote of the Day: Abraham Lincoln Edition

I haven't done one of these in a while and I need a few funny quips to lighten up my day. I have a lot going on right now but I have not forgotten about you, faithful blog readers, have plenty of posts coming up before I leave for Florida next Friday for a 3-month internship.

“If you look for the bad in people expecting to find it, you surely will.”

“No man has a good enough memory to be a successful liar.”

“A house divided against itself cannot stand.”

“I don’t like that man. I must get to know him better.”

“Always bear in mind that your own resolution to succeed is more important than any one thing.”

“If I had eight hours to chop down a tree, I’d spend six hours sharpening my ax.”

“Most folks are about as happy as they make their minds up to be.

“In the end, it’s not the years in your life that count. It’s the life in your years.”

reverb10: April Prompt

What's blossoming?

(Source)
Oy. I guess my maturity and security are blossoming at the moment. I am becoming more secure in myself and knowing myself well enough to not get frustrated or upset when I don't do things a certain way or perform like others around me. That has been a huge thing for the last year. Also my maturity in terms of understanding who I am and where I want to be at next year at this time. I have specific goals in mind that are going to be difficult to come by but at this moment, I am very positive and excited about the future.

Trivia & Scream

Awesome night out with the ladies--kick ass at Buffalo Wild Wings trivia then saw "Scream 4" which was just as great as the first three. A big update is due tomorrow after I sleep in..........aahhh, sweet sleep.

Wordless Wednesday (Kind Of)

If part of getting older is having AMAZING birthdays then I can't wait to see what 60 looks like! A more detailed post coming tomorrow - I have a paper to finish!

Last of the 20's

It is my last day of my 20's and I do believe I celebrated in the most perfect way. My day went like this, pretty normal: work, Fast Track, work and class. I got a less than lovely grade on one of my final assignments but luckily the professor is awesome and let's me redo it. Thank goodness!

After class, two of the girls and I went to Sidetracks for some drinks and some chatting. We were there for almost 4 hours! I had two of the best drinks I do believe I have ever tasted in my life:

Two words: COCONUT MOJITO
Three words: VANILLA JAVA PORTER

I am not sure there are words to describe HOW good these were but when I like something, like a beverage, I say that I would like a pitcher of it. For these two, I would like an IV please and possibly a pitcher on the side in case my IV runs out.

We also shared a big ol' plate of fried pickles with ranch and I had fish tacos for my actual "dinner." All was so delicious and I even had enough to take home! It was so great to go to dinner with two wonderful friends and just relax. Technically I still have one project to finish before Thursday night but I am pretty confident with that considering it is related to academic advising.

Sorry no pictures tonight....I was so hungry I left my phone in the car during dinner! Don't you worry though, there will be plenty of pictures of food for the next few days.

Honestly, I was sometimes unsure if I would even make it through my 20's. They were filled with a lot of hardships and heartbreaks,  jobs and unemployment, and unsavory people and dear new friends. I was reading over another blog that I started when I was around 19 or 20 and just reading through a few entries I felt embarrassed but also relieved that I am no longer that person. I had no idea what was in store but I never, ever thought I would be where I am today. It is truly amazing how things can turn out, especially when you release control and listen to your heart.

FYI

In case you didn't know by now, Red Robin has garlic fries.

  They are heaven and after eating a basket....or two...you will reek of garlic and have it coming out your pores. So deliciously lovely and worth every sinful calorie!

Birthday Week!

I am totally turning my birthday into a week of activities which pretty much means anything cool or interesting I do is related to my birthday. I am NEVER normally like this but I am just in the spirit this year! Despite this also being the end of the semester and having major papers and projects do, I am in a great mood. It still is crazy to me that I am half way through grad school! I never thought I would be here.

It was 84 degrees yesterday here in Ypsilanti and I took it as a "trial" for what I will have to deal with in Florida. The difference being that inside it will be cooler rather than how it is now, for example, in my office, all warm and humid. My hair is also not enjoying this weather so much...I look all crazy ala Nick Nolte's mug shot. I am a little nervous about dealing with this kind of heat for three months!

Fun stuff today:

Donated blood! I haven't done it since last summer and I have been eating lots of meat and protein plus drinking lots of water so that I was able to donate today. It is one of the saddest things when you get in there and they won't let you! I even got a free t-shirt and the nurse thought I was just so cute and nice and very much a "pro" at this donating blood thing.

Presented my academic poster on ethnography (ugh!) tonight and we had pizza (from the professors) and I made carrot cupcakes plus brought candy in the theme of my student group that I observed, the Astronomy Club. I brought mini Milky Ways and Starburst. It was much more relaxed than everyone was thinking it would be and was so much fun to just talk with everyone. I really love my grad school peeps! Some of us dressed up-I figured it would help with my presentation a bit.

Movie to watch: "Morning Glory"
I was going to watch this last night but the time got away from me and instead I read one of the new books I got over the weekend.






Tomorrow:
My last Fast Track. It is a day when freshman students and their parents come to campus, tour, hear from different departments and register for classes. I won't be there the whole day (no cookie for me!) but it is a fun way to break up the monotony of being in the office.

Wednesday: EPICNESS! And, an oil change.

Movie Reviews ala Netflix, #2

I shouldn't be but I have been totally addicted to the show "Bones." It is about a forensic anthropologist (Emily Deschanel) and a FBI agent (David Boreanez) that work together to solve murders. It has been recommended to me by Netflix for quite a while but I just didn't feel like starting another series. As I was looking for any reason to procrastinate last month, I decided to watch one episode before bed. BAM! I was totally hooked! I ended up finishing the series but luckily they still have new episodes coming so I can continue my love affair with this show.

The Fighter
I wanted to see all of the Oscar nominated movies and although I didn't get a chance to see this one before they came out, I was really happy I didn't take it off my list. I was so incredibly moved by this movie and was holding my breath during the last fighting scenes even! I think Christian Bale is an amazing actor but also Mark Wahlberg is so diverse and he shows so much depth in every role that he plays. At one point I thought back to when he was Marky Mark and said "How the hell did he get here?" and by "here" I mean a well-respected actor and director. One of the best movies I have seen in a really long time. Highly recommend. 

 Exit Through the Gift Shop
This movie got a lot of hype because the artist, Banksy, is pretty well know, as is his art. This was one of those documentaries that are really interesting but you aren't sure why. I loved getting to see how street artists do their work but I also felt kind of sad that their work wasn't valued and it was slightly overshadowed by the "director" character.

Half Nelson
I have been meaning to watch this movie for years and now I know why. Ryan Gosling does an amazing job at playing a teacher who has serious issues but also a serious love for his students. I wasn't sure where this movie was headed but I liked the emotion and nature of people that it showed.






More reviews below!

Quote of the Day

 “The greatest discovery of all time is that a person can change his future by merely changing his attitude.”

---Oprah Winfrey

Absolutely. 
I should get this tattooed on my forehead.
But backwards so that when I look at it in the mirror I can read it.

I have a fun filled week (hopefully) with lots of posts coming up! I turn 30 (gasp!) in T-minus 3 days and have a lot going on this week in addition to finishing up the semester. I haven't been this excited for a birthday in a very long time so hopefully my positive attitude holds up!

Cupcake(S) Friday

I was at a conference at University of Michigan earlier this week and by the end of the day, I was just in a "mood" and pretty worn out. I haven't been feeling well for the last week and after the conference ended, I still had a class to go to. I figured I had a few options:
1) Go home, catch a small nap and then see how I feel.
2) Go home and go to bed.
3) Go straight to school and suffer through class.
4) Walk around a little, get some fresh air and see if I feel better.

Can you guess which one I went with?

Option #4. It was very sunny out and I felt like maybe if I just woke myself up a bit and walked around in the sunshine, things would be better. I walked around downtown Ann Arbor and happened upon Cupcake Station which I had seen on one of my previous trips downtown.  A little word of truth here: I don't think Ann Arbor and I get along very well. I get lost and frustrated more often than not when I head here but I still think it is a pretty awesome place to explore. Even though I wasn't hungry and had a massive headache raging, I decided to get myself a little treat for later. Bonus-it was $2 cupcake, $1 mini cupcake day!

First one was a mini carrot cupcake with walnuts (my favorite cake) and the second is....oh...drool...

Bart's Favorite: Our very moist Vanilla Bean cake frosted with Peanut Butter Buttercream, rolled in Butterfinger pieces and drizzled with Dark Chocolate


And one more picture for the road.....

P.S. The fresh air helped but by the time I battled traffic and got back to Ypsi, I was exhausted! Cupcakes were dinner along with a whole lot of water and some Tylenol PM.