where did the month of january go?
seriously, the past 4 weeks have been a blur of nothingness. much needed r&r (in the form of reading books and watching tv) with a little bit of class and winter fun thrown in. but other than that...nothingness
my roomie returned yesterday (yay for not living alone!) and we caught up on the events of the past 6 weeks or so (since mid-december)
so weird to talk about christmas and new years and everything else that happened that seemed like it was so long ago and yet still recent...
and to think that tomorrow is february. and next week spring semester starts, which just so happens to be my final semester of study.
really should work on a countdown.
possible countdown lists:
- assignment night
- last day of classes
- graduation
- my half-birthday (may 12, just so you know)
or maybe i should focus on the "things to do before i graduate" list:
- eat at matt's (where they put the cheese in the hamburger patty)
- go to a baseball game (twins or saints)
- go to a hockey game (any level or team)
- try the high ropes course at moa (according to sarah)
- see the como park zoo (free but have yet to go despite living down como for three years)
- go to a musical, broadway production, theater, play, etc
- go to a concert at first ave
- go speed-dating (just 'cause)
of course, i'm open to suggestions
Monday, January 31, 2011
Saturday, January 29, 2011
winter fun
being whimsical and spontaneous brings me great joy
i love the days when i am able to wake up one morning with no plans only to find something fun to do either that day or the next.
and the last couple days have been a prime example of such spontaneity
thursday at lunch i was sitting and eating when friends when the decision was made to go snowshoeing the next afternoon.
which 5 of us did. and it was fantastical and fun.
this was a first for me as i never put on snowshoes in my life. we walked around the trails for a couple hours, over the rivers (literally over small streams and a lake) and through the woods (literally). we went off-roading for the additional challenge to walk up and down hills through thorny bramble and over logs. we even took turns side-stepping our way out on fallen trees over the frozen streams.
potential for falling and hurting myself: yup.
exhilarating: yup.
succumbing to peer pressure because i never, ever thought i would do such an activity: yup.
friday evening, i checked my facebook to find a message from a couple friends with an invitation to go the the winter carnival.
for those of you who don't know, the end of january/beginning of february is a celebration of the winter season here in st paul. this celebration includes a ice sculpture contest, chairs made of ice (i sat in one and have a picture to prove it), snowplow competition (college students program little bots to run using gps navigation) and several other events.
one highlight is the fact that wells fargo hosts an open air ice skating rink during this carnival where you could rent the skates there (free for those of us who have wells fargo accounts). so we (m, j and i) decided to try it out. and i must confess that i'm horrible at skating. i'm pretty sure this was my second attempt ever and it was not pretty. but it was fun. and i'm glad to be able to say that i skated in public. i just hope there were no cameras rolling...
after the winter carnival we went out to eat at a burger bar and then found our way to bread and chocolate, where i bought a delicious fudge-oatmeal bar.
i have no idea what winter festivities i should plan for the coming days/weeks
i love the days when i am able to wake up one morning with no plans only to find something fun to do either that day or the next.
and the last couple days have been a prime example of such spontaneity
thursday at lunch i was sitting and eating when friends when the decision was made to go snowshoeing the next afternoon.
which 5 of us did. and it was fantastical and fun.
this was a first for me as i never put on snowshoes in my life. we walked around the trails for a couple hours, over the rivers (literally over small streams and a lake) and through the woods (literally). we went off-roading for the additional challenge to walk up and down hills through thorny bramble and over logs. we even took turns side-stepping our way out on fallen trees over the frozen streams.
potential for falling and hurting myself: yup.
exhilarating: yup.
succumbing to peer pressure because i never, ever thought i would do such an activity: yup.
friday evening, i checked my facebook to find a message from a couple friends with an invitation to go the the winter carnival.
for those of you who don't know, the end of january/beginning of february is a celebration of the winter season here in st paul. this celebration includes a ice sculpture contest, chairs made of ice (i sat in one and have a picture to prove it), snowplow competition (college students program little bots to run using gps navigation) and several other events.
one highlight is the fact that wells fargo hosts an open air ice skating rink during this carnival where you could rent the skates there (free for those of us who have wells fargo accounts). so we (m, j and i) decided to try it out. and i must confess that i'm horrible at skating. i'm pretty sure this was my second attempt ever and it was not pretty. but it was fun. and i'm glad to be able to say that i skated in public. i just hope there were no cameras rolling...
potential for falling and hurting myself: yup.
exhilarating: yup.
succumbing to peer pressure because i never, ever thought i would do such an activity: yup.
after the winter carnival we went out to eat at a burger bar and then found our way to bread and chocolate, where i bought a delicious fudge-oatmeal bar.
i have no idea what winter festivities i should plan for the coming days/weeks
Friday, January 21, 2011
life on buffer
so today, instead of working on homework, i pondered life (while watching alien shows all day since i don't have class on fridays). technically most of the pondering took place while shows were buffering.
and i started to think of how my life is like watching episodes and movies via internet where the scene moves along for some time but then buffers for some time and you can do nothing but wait.
i'm still working on the metaphor, but i'm liking it so far.
cause i totally get the whole buffering zone, aka waiting.
it's really annoying when you can do nothing but wait, whether patiently or impatiently...
life seems to be on hold at times. the clock keeps ticking, the sun keeps moving, the snow keeps falling. yet sometimes i sitting and waiting to see what comes in the midst of constant movement.
and i started to think of how my life is like watching episodes and movies via internet where the scene moves along for some time but then buffers for some time and you can do nothing but wait.
i'm still working on the metaphor, but i'm liking it so far.
cause i totally get the whole buffering zone, aka waiting.
it's really annoying when you can do nothing but wait, whether patiently or impatiently...
life seems to be on hold at times. the clock keeps ticking, the sun keeps moving, the snow keeps falling. yet sometimes i sitting and waiting to see what comes in the midst of constant movement.
life on buffer
so today, instead of working on homework, i pondered life (while watching alien shows all day since i don't have class on fridays). technically most of the pondering took place while shows were buffering.
and i started to think of how my life is like watching episodes and movies via internet where the scene moves along for some time but then buffers for some time and you can do nothing but wait.
i'm still working on the metaphor, but i'm liking it so far.
cause i totally get the whole buffering zone, aka waiting.
it's really annoying when you can do nothing but wait, whether patiently or impatiently...
life seems to be on hold at times. the clock keeps ticking, the sun keeps moving, the snow keeps falling. yet sometimes i sitting and waiting to see what comes in the midst of constant movement.
and i started to think of how my life is like watching episodes and movies via internet where the scene moves along for some time but then buffers for some time and you can do nothing but wait.
i'm still working on the metaphor, but i'm liking it so far.
cause i totally get the whole buffering zone, aka waiting.
it's really annoying when you can do nothing but wait, whether patiently or impatiently...
life seems to be on hold at times. the clock keeps ticking, the sun keeps moving, the snow keeps falling. yet sometimes i sitting and waiting to see what comes in the midst of constant movement.
Thursday, January 20, 2011
the great move-in
sounds odd to be talking about moving in, but that's kinda what it feels like right now in my apartment since i have boxes and bags just waiting for me to unpack...
i took 6 days to unload my car. for realz. cause i like to do it in stages. and of course, i only want to go outside once or twice a day when it's so cold outside.
i cleaned the kitchen floor today. this was essentially a first time for this since i hate cleaning, but it was grody and disgusting and needed to not be that...
yesterday i pounded together a shelf to help me organize. it was noisy (and i feel bad that i harassed the my neighbors a floor below), but very refreshing. i liked being able to use george (if you don't remember, my hammer is named george - i even wrote his name on him just so i don't forget). and being able to do something physical and mind-numbing and productive. i like being able to see a finished work. granted, i should have been reading philosophical discourse about what it means that "the word became flesh"
one of these years i need to go through my clothes and shoes and figure out what i don't need/want...
i am always amazed how weird it is to shift from home to home. my parents' home is where i spent my formative years and get back to at least a few times a year to be with family and sleep in a room that still has a wall that i decorated. but luther is also home. the buildings and people are sometimes more familiar to me than my hometown. sad but true since i think i have spent more time on this campus the last four years than at my parents' over the last 9 years...
i took 6 days to unload my car. for realz. cause i like to do it in stages. and of course, i only want to go outside once or twice a day when it's so cold outside.
i cleaned the kitchen floor today. this was essentially a first time for this since i hate cleaning, but it was grody and disgusting and needed to not be that...
yesterday i pounded together a shelf to help me organize. it was noisy (and i feel bad that i harassed the my neighbors a floor below), but very refreshing. i liked being able to use george (if you don't remember, my hammer is named george - i even wrote his name on him just so i don't forget). and being able to do something physical and mind-numbing and productive. i like being able to see a finished work. granted, i should have been reading philosophical discourse about what it means that "the word became flesh"
one of these years i need to go through my clothes and shoes and figure out what i don't need/want...
i am always amazed how weird it is to shift from home to home. my parents' home is where i spent my formative years and get back to at least a few times a year to be with family and sleep in a room that still has a wall that i decorated. but luther is also home. the buildings and people are sometimes more familiar to me than my hometown. sad but true since i think i have spent more time on this campus the last four years than at my parents' over the last 9 years...
Saturday, January 8, 2011
menagerie
animals are funny.
why?
because they are.
especially pets in the wiechmann household.
permit me to explain...
karma: a runt westie. much smaller than the typical westhighland terrier, he doesn't get along with other dogs. but has a deep love and respect for other creatures, especially cats and a rabbit. big fan of running, and it doesn't matter if the running is outside without his leash (we've learned not to run after him since he thinks we are playing when we chase) or inside in circles. current relationships: mothers chili, bff with grey, and big bro to bill (bill is the obnoxious tagalong).
chilaxitive: cat. mother of gray, raised by karma. very finicky and tends to not like being petted. however, loves sleeping on beds with people who don't kick her or push her off the bed. in a feud with gray, so she drinks not out of the water dish but a dish in the bathroom we set out specifically for her.
gray: tomcat. believe it or not, but gray is gray (on a side not, who would ever name their pet the color of their fur beside my sister who was told not to name the pet so she wouldn't get attached?). is a sweetheart with people, not so loveable with other cats. the other day, karma was cleaning his ear for him. likes to sleep on chairs in the dining room. or on the floor. or on a rubbermaid tote. the garfield to karma's odie. talent: opening the front door.
agent bill ticklemeister: rabbit. specifically a minilop. decided that he really likes roaming not just a dorm room and hallway but a house. currently follows karma (and random members of the family) around like a puppy dog or an obnoxious younger sibling. his speed has forced us to put up a childgate in front of the back door when we let out karma. hobbies: likes to run circles around legs (and has often been kicked when one or both stop), enjoys pushing balls around, playing tag with karma.
seriously, these pets are crazy. but fun. and entertaining.
right now, karma is laying in his bed while bill is chilling on the floor right next to him. they're friends. not typical. an unlikely friendship much like the fox and the hound...
earlier, karma would jump onto a chair and bill would follow. i would walk to the kitchen (for delicious snacks, of course) and i would have groupies as karma and bill followed. and bill hangs out on the other side of the gate for karma to come back in...so weird.
and the sad thing is, these bffs will have to part ways in about a week...
why?
because they are.
especially pets in the wiechmann household.
permit me to explain...
karma: a runt westie. much smaller than the typical westhighland terrier, he doesn't get along with other dogs. but has a deep love and respect for other creatures, especially cats and a rabbit. big fan of running, and it doesn't matter if the running is outside without his leash (we've learned not to run after him since he thinks we are playing when we chase) or inside in circles. current relationships: mothers chili, bff with grey, and big bro to bill (bill is the obnoxious tagalong).
chilaxitive: cat. mother of gray, raised by karma. very finicky and tends to not like being petted. however, loves sleeping on beds with people who don't kick her or push her off the bed. in a feud with gray, so she drinks not out of the water dish but a dish in the bathroom we set out specifically for her.
gray: tomcat. believe it or not, but gray is gray (on a side not, who would ever name their pet the color of their fur beside my sister who was told not to name the pet so she wouldn't get attached?). is a sweetheart with people, not so loveable with other cats. the other day, karma was cleaning his ear for him. likes to sleep on chairs in the dining room. or on the floor. or on a rubbermaid tote. the garfield to karma's odie. talent: opening the front door.
agent bill ticklemeister: rabbit. specifically a minilop. decided that he really likes roaming not just a dorm room and hallway but a house. currently follows karma (and random members of the family) around like a puppy dog or an obnoxious younger sibling. his speed has forced us to put up a childgate in front of the back door when we let out karma. hobbies: likes to run circles around legs (and has often been kicked when one or both stop), enjoys pushing balls around, playing tag with karma.
seriously, these pets are crazy. but fun. and entertaining.
right now, karma is laying in his bed while bill is chilling on the floor right next to him. they're friends. not typical. an unlikely friendship much like the fox and the hound...
earlier, karma would jump onto a chair and bill would follow. i would walk to the kitchen (for delicious snacks, of course) and i would have groupies as karma and bill followed. and bill hangs out on the other side of the gate for karma to come back in...so weird.
and the sad thing is, these bffs will have to part ways in about a week...
Thursday, January 6, 2011
2011
hard to believe that this is a new year. my year started off on somewhat the wrong foot with a very interesting (in the midwestern sense of the word) beginning.
as i posted on facebook, i had a very interesting first two days of the new year.
jan 1 (around midnight, so it might have been jan 2) - got peed on by a sleeping toddler. not cool. will be funny someday, but still not cool yet.
jan 2 - driving to sioux falls for approval interview when i was rear-ended...and still made it to my interview on time
jan 3 - drove to mitchell (and past the scene of the crime) to deliver a shovel to some boys who were snowed in but didn't have one...
jan 4 - only time i left the house was to go take the dog for a walk. and it was glorious outside! (if i can find the sd card adapter for my micro-sd, i'll post pics of the snowy fields)
jan 5 - a sister turned 24 (marks the last birthday of my immediate family until may). went to church office with my mom so she could chat with the pastor and another bible study leader about their upcoming bible studies for their respective women's circles
jan 6 (today!) - decided it was time to pull out old computers and deal with copying music and pics onto my hard drive
additional notes:
- car accident: i'm fine. haven't noticed any pain or whiplash (well, my wrist was sore for about 2 days, but fine now). car still runs and drives, even though the bumper is busted and the alignment is a bit off...i got off easy compared to the person who hit me, whose front end did not look pretty and whose face hurt from the air bag deployment
- approval interview: for candidacy in the elca, i had to go through the final step toward ordination which consisted of an interview (panel of 2 in my case) who recommend me for approval and was voted on by the entire committee the next day...now i'm free to be ordained!
- bible study prep: i like how the pastor meets with the leaders so that they can bounce ideas off each other and ask questions before they lead...i think i shall remember this when i have my own congregation...which i hope to have next summer now that i've been cleared for ordination...
- computers: pulling out the old computers...which are dinosaurs and do everything in slow motion...
this means that they took waaaaay longer to start up, and using them requires patience...
this means that i could check my email and download 6 gb of data off flashdrives to my new computer before the old one even booted up...
this means i'm going to take all day to get the old pics and music off my old computers...
as i posted on facebook, i had a very interesting first two days of the new year.
jan 1 (around midnight, so it might have been jan 2) - got peed on by a sleeping toddler. not cool. will be funny someday, but still not cool yet.
jan 2 - driving to sioux falls for approval interview when i was rear-ended...and still made it to my interview on time
jan 3 - drove to mitchell (and past the scene of the crime) to deliver a shovel to some boys who were snowed in but didn't have one...
jan 4 - only time i left the house was to go take the dog for a walk. and it was glorious outside! (if i can find the sd card adapter for my micro-sd, i'll post pics of the snowy fields)
jan 5 - a sister turned 24 (marks the last birthday of my immediate family until may). went to church office with my mom so she could chat with the pastor and another bible study leader about their upcoming bible studies for their respective women's circles
jan 6 (today!) - decided it was time to pull out old computers and deal with copying music and pics onto my hard drive
additional notes:
- car accident: i'm fine. haven't noticed any pain or whiplash (well, my wrist was sore for about 2 days, but fine now). car still runs and drives, even though the bumper is busted and the alignment is a bit off...i got off easy compared to the person who hit me, whose front end did not look pretty and whose face hurt from the air bag deployment
- approval interview: for candidacy in the elca, i had to go through the final step toward ordination which consisted of an interview (panel of 2 in my case) who recommend me for approval and was voted on by the entire committee the next day...now i'm free to be ordained!
- bible study prep: i like how the pastor meets with the leaders so that they can bounce ideas off each other and ask questions before they lead...i think i shall remember this when i have my own congregation...which i hope to have next summer now that i've been cleared for ordination...
- computers: pulling out the old computers...which are dinosaurs and do everything in slow motion...
this means that they took waaaaay longer to start up, and using them requires patience...
this means that i could check my email and download 6 gb of data off flashdrives to my new computer before the old one even booted up...
this means i'm going to take all day to get the old pics and music off my old computers...
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)