A.S.S. -- a tribute.

This is a well-deserved tribute to the women of the Tucker Hall third floor long hall who resided there in its heyday -- the five founding sisters of A.S.S. Here's to the lounge parties, the Pokey Stix orders, the trips to Fountain. And, to the late night Ihop runs, the water balloon fight turned bad, the spontaneous haircuts. Although we are separated by distance, the fish purchases, runs on the secret trail and discussions on the bridge will not be forgotten.

From the District...

The ACP/CMA conference in D.C. has been great. There are people here from college papers, yearbooks, radio stations, etc. from all over the place. I've been to some interesting sessions -- some are better than others, but I've been able to take at least something away from each of them. One of the best has been a session on profile-writing by an ESPN reporter. I really enjoy writing profiles and wouldn't mind doing that sort of writing at a metro daily or magazine. It finally stopped raining after 48 straight hours of downpour. I was really upset that I left my umbrella in the taxi to hell, but I guess it worked out. It was a cute umbrella though.

Anyways, I'll be returning soon to North Carolina-land. I'm hoping it's as nice and cool there as it is here!

P.S. If you are ever in D.C. and want to eat at a restaurant no where near anything that is sketchy-as-hell, please take a $35 taxi to Generous George. There you'll find a great atmosphere complete with scary clown statues and Pepto-Bismal pink splatter painted walls, as well as an inch of grease on the floors. Mmmmm... delicious.

Freshman year vs. sophomore year: a reflection:

There has been a specific request for a post on this topic, so I will oblige.

After completing nearly two months of Sophomore year, I realize that this is a whole different ball game than my freshman year of innocence.

First, what happened to all of that free time? Oh, I know, it was probably getting a job. I remember sitting around, making trips to the gym and the dining hall just for fun, watching season after season of the O.C. Now when I have free time, I feel guilty/weird and I just don't know what to do. I end up doing things like writing in this blog.

Second, meal times are completely different. I'm not exactly sure what I eat these days. Somehow, I eat three meals a day, I just don't know where they come from. Freshman year, however, each meal was a huge social outing. Step one: check the dining web site to find out what's being served and where. Step two: round up at least 25 of your closest friends (otherwise known as your posse). Step three: walk in a ridiculous pack to the dining location of choice -- usually Fountain. Make sure to wear your red lanyard from orientation for quick identification in case you get separated. Step four: eat things like 3 bowls of Lucky Charms or a huge plate of curly fries. Step five: stop by the C-Store on the way back to the room. You'll probably get hungry again soon.

And, another thing I left behind with my promotion to sophomore status was my notion that every single person in my classes were older than me. Somehow, I even thought my classmates in English 101 were like, seniors. This was/is not the case. I see these people and they are not juniors or seniors but MY AGE. I guess I just thought everyone was wiser than I was, because they were probably less clumsy/didn't fidget as much in class. People like Alison Harman -- really mature and smart. I guess those weren't age differences.

Lastly, a big difference in my sophomore life is Matt Walton. I see him. All the time.

Tabitha Earp on why dolphins are foes and not friends:

"It was really scary to watch it! These dolphins would just come up behind these girl [dolphin]s and just rape them!"

"The media has made them into these adorable creatures, but they just aren't!!"

I can see what she means -- these animals look pretty fierce.

Request granted!

I've had several requests for photos in the blog (SAJA). I had no idea this blog was going to be so popular and I'm hoping that I can keep up with the demands!

Here are some photos for your viewing pleasure:

Here I am at the Great Wall of China, Summer 2007

And myself with President George W. Bush at the Republican Party Convention last year.

Enjoy!

My second post.

Due to popular demand, I figured it was time for another post.

I mean, so much has happened since midnight last night, I thought it would be a good idea to fill you guys in.

To start with, I have a serious problem with the sporadic bathroom breaks the Wolf Line drivers like to take. Especially when I'm on the bus, in a hurry to get somewhere. Today was the fourth time this has happened. I caught the South East Loop around 9:20 to get to my 9:30 appointment in Tompkins. All was good, I was jamming to some music, avoiding awkward eye contact with the sole other passenger who happened to be sitting straight across from me. Then, we pull up to Kilgore Hall. Busfriend departs the bus. New busfriend boards. Here's the maddening part: EXIT BUS DRIVER. I check the clock. 9:24. Yikes!! Ok, quick bathroom break, I can handle that. Ok, quick bathroom break becomes long bathroom break + cigarette break. That turns into me running to Tompkins and arriving for my meeting 4 minutes late.

Enough griping. I got to draw some awesome cupcakes for tomorrow's paper. And tomorrow happens to be Friday.

Happy weekend!

Coming back from Fall Break is tough.

So instead of focusing on school, I'm focusing on spending my $25 iTunes giftcard ASAP. It's funny that when I actually have money to spend on songs, I can't for the life of me decide what to download. So far, I've got a good mix -- Queen, Coolio, Riloy Kiley, Timbaland. I still have 10 songs left and I'm taking suggestions.

Also, I'm looking for another job. I'm thinking something in Cameron Village? I really don't want to work at a restaurant. I can really only work on Fridays, Saturdays, and Sunday mornings. Maybe someone will hire me? I promise I'm reliable.

Lastly, internships are stressing me out!!! The process is so long. I'm trying to decide where to apply, if it's worth it to apply to far-away places, etc. The News and Observer would be awesome, but I know several other people that are applying from State. I guess I could work at the Cary News and get another job? ARGH I don't even want to think about it. Why are the deadlines so freaking early.

Love!