. . . . . entries for 28.10.07 . . . . .
Guess who's in Rochester?
. . . . . entries for 26.10.07 . . . . .
Today: lunch, shower, medical balderdash, two hours of ?, dinner, coffee, Darjeeling, paperquest.
Tomorrow: shower, packing, Dinky, train all day, in the frozen North with Mr. Ferraro around 11. <3
I just DMed a paperquest with my suitemates. They all really liked it. Kelsey says I am a good DM.
. . . YES!
. . . . . entries for 24.10.07 . . . . .
Got out of lab early today - woooooo! (I was DREADING sitting through three hours of lab.) I picked up some mail on the walk back, including another note from Uncle Eggy. At first I thought he was going kind of crazy, because there was just a squiggle where my name belonged, followed by a neat and orderly Sherman. I realized a couple minutes later that the rascal had just signed backwards - and upside-down, a detail of his own invention.
Uncle Eggy kind of rocks.
HUM went reasonably well, although I gather some of my classmates found the material on it a little esoteric. We'll see, I suppose, when we get the tests back.
Here, because it is relevant, I will copy and paste an email Professor Jones (sociologist whose research involves magic in France) sent us HUMorists, as we now call ourselves.
"Myth: the midterm is on Thursday during lecture
Fact: the midterm is on Wednesday during lecture
Myth: the midterm will drain your youthful vigor, reducing you to a repulsive, desiccated husk
Fact: the midterm will make you stronger, wiser, and give your hair a healthy sheen
Myth: the midterm will cover Virgil, Ovid, and that one guy with the toga
Fact: the midterm will cover everything up to and including week five
Myth: the midterm will include verbal, arithmetic, and logical components (with spatial reasoning for extra credit) and will be used to determine your future career path
Fact: the midterm will comprise three sections: (1) quote identification; (2) two short passage analyses (1 paragraph each); (3) one short essay based on a selected passage (1-2 pages) based on a selected passage.
Myth: the midterm is designed hoodwink you with sneaky questions about minutiae, arcana, esoterica, and a little bit of trivia
Fact: the midterm is going to focus on salient, obviously pivotal, passages and concepts and on themes that have been clearly emphasized in lecture and discussion
Myth: the best way to prepare for the midterm is by going on a strict Redbull and Powerbar diet and reading wikipedia articles on antiquity all alone in your dorm all night long until your eyes bleed
Fact: the best way to prepare for the midterm is by eating balanced meals, getting lots of rest and exercise, reviewing your notes from class, going over your own underlining and marginalia in the texts, and organizing a study group with your classmates
Myth: cruelty and sadism are the driving forces behind the midterm
Fact: cruelty and sadism are only minor motivations compared to our deeper pedagogical aims
Myth: After the midterm, debauchery
Fact: After the midterm, Ovid"
. . . exactly. :P
. . . . . entries for 23.10.07 . . . . .
Thursday night, the moon will be full.
What I miss most about home, I have realized, is not the free time or my old room or even the people: it's the smell of the season on the shore of the river, stronger there than it is anywhere else, whether it's the earthy scent of thawing snow moistening the ground or the dry decay of autumn leaves. I caught whiffs of scents like these here last night, and I commenced pining for the Mohawk and the bikepath.
And I'll have you know, today was beautiful here at Princeton: it was windy, and leaves were falling and tumbling over one another all the time, and it finally *does* look like right and proper fall here.
But it would've been prettier from the bikepath.
Midterm number one went okay. I don't think I got a perfect score, but I did pretty well.
Lecture was awesome. We shall see if precept can compete.
I'm in a rocking out kind of mood.
MIDTERM DAY!
Granted: I only have one midterm, and it's check-out, and I have twice the time for it that I theoretically need, and it's open-note, open-book. I'm not horribly worried about it, BUT it is timed such that I must forgo lunch in order to take it, unless I finish early, in which case I can grab food before HUM.
So: I am up early, making tea, with plans to layer and go to breakfast and eat a lot. :P Maybe peanut butter will be involved.
Precept today has the potential to be awkward, since I did not reread a ton of the Aeneid, but I reread enough to get a sense of the flavor of narrative (and allegory? who knew?) which I completely failed to get from Dryden's accursed rhyming couplets sophomore year, either because it was so long ago or because the couplets killed my brain.
I also have CWR today, likewise potentially awkward because we missed class last week and the prof never told us what the hell to do in the meantime, so I did not do anything because honestly. . . a) no one did and b) I had a lot of other junk to do. Sigh.
Well. It's P/D/F anyway. I don't think she'll fail us all.
Wish me luck, my lovelies.
. . . . . entries for 22.10.07 . . . . .
I took a party matchmaker quiz and got the following results:
1) Green Party 88%
2) Democratic Party 75%
3) Reform Party 56%
4) Libertarian Party 50%
5) Natural Law Party 50%
6) Constitution Party 25%
7) Republican Party 13%
I think it's got me.
. . . . . entries for 21.10.07 . . . . .
More HUM-induced understanding: apparently the companion birds of Minerva (and Apollo? this isn't as clear yet) had always been transformed into birds from humans who had been victims of some kind, and one replaced the other based on what manner of unpleasant information the latter imparted. The crow used to be the companion of Minerva until she dared speak an unpleasant truth.
Out of character for Athena? I THINK SO.
Should I study and do backreading? Or should I read Ovid for precept on Thursday? (I just do not care enough for the Aeneid to read it, and Ovid might actually be a good review/compare-and-contrast of some stuff that also crops up in other reading.)
. . . well I'm *gonna* read Ovid but that's not what I asked. :P
. . . . . entries for 20.10.07 . . . . .
"To extenuate" means "to make less serious." So that is what "extenuating circumstances" are - circumstances that make things less serious. As in, perhaps, circumstances that make things SILLY.
This brings the legal jargon to a whole new level of giggleworthiness.
Wow. Fuck people. Seriously.
So I just finished reading/skimming Major Choices, this handy paperback they give us to guide us through, um, choosing our major. Mostly I am struck – nay, floored – by the sheer scope of opportunities I now have. I am struck by the anthropology major who founded a successful nonprofit corporation, and by the other anthropology major who now writes for The Daily Show; I am struck by the comparative literature major who writes and edits for The New Yorker. I am led to wonder "how can I go wrong?" by all of this, and also "so what the hell are the differences between psych, socio, and anthro anyway?"
I want to take classes in so many damn departments first semester next year. English and/or comp lit, psych, socio, and anthro are the ones leaping out at me right now. So if I took a semester full of all of those. . . :P
. . . . . entries for 19.10.07 . . . . .
Plato's Republic is useful in following the construction of Philip Pullman's world in His Dark Materials. I should reread those sometime, perhaps in retirement.
 I am a Bowler Hat.I'm very proper, often politically correct, precise and dapper. I generally look down on the masses, but I usually try not to let it show. What Sort of Hat Are You? |
I do love those quizzes.
If I were not a bowler:
 I am a Halo.I believe I am perfect. Others may not think so, but those others are wrong. What Sort of Hat Are You? |
Freerice.com is really amazing.
. . . . . entries for 18.10.07 . . . . .
|
Really? :P
So you know how theaters and lecture halls have long rows of chairs and you're trying to get out after lecture and you're tired and in a hurry and you walk right into an arm rest and it fucking HURTS?
I have a rather large bruise now, on top of hitting my head most indelicately last night, due to my lack of realization that our desk chairs are (for whatever reason) pseudo-rocking chairs. :P
. . . . . entries for 17.10.07 . . . . .
Some parts of reality never fail to make me tired and sad.
One who has played Final Fantasy is aware that essentially everything in the game is an allusion of some kind, or a function of fantasy so basic that it cannot seem original. (Nevertheless, the games are totally freakin' sweet.) Usually the kid playing through them for the first time - say, me, in middle school - hasn't the foggiest idea what most of them mean, but they are there.
So: Lucretia. I am reading Livy, and I see the name. Lucretia is the most virtuous of any noblewoman in early Rome. The evilest son of the evil ruler is so amazed by her beauty and work ethic that he wants her all for himself - in so doing, of course, he will destroy her. He rides out to her home in a provincial town and threatens to frame her for adultery with a slave and kill her unless she submits to him, so she does.
She calls her husband and father and tells them what happened, begging them to have revenge on the prince. They agree that she is free of guilt, since her heart and mind never sinned: nevertheless, she kills herself then and there.
Afterwards, Brutus (who is not actually a brute) picks up the bloody knife and declares he will purge Rome of the Tarquinii. (The Tarquinii are rat bastards, and we already like Brutus for pretending to be an idiot so he won't be deprived of his rights. Go Brutus!)
I tell you - if someone were to play through Final Fantasy VII and actually follow all the apparently allusory threads, they'd receive a fantastic education in mythology. Kind of like Neil Gaiman, only more work-intensive, since the allusions tend to be more isolated and less explained within the "text."
To some extent, facebook has managed to supplant the casual day-to-day blog in the realm of the Internet. Alas, poor blog.
. . . . . entries for 16.10.07 . . . . .
| You Are Changing Leaves |
 |
. . . yep. That's me. Pretty, but soon dead.
No CWR class tonight, due to flu on the part of my professor, and so there may be a nap before I read more Livy, because I am rather damn tired.
Also, I must not forget to pick up a big stack o'PPN magazines to distribute to dorms.
On each day between this Thursday and the following Thursday, I must read 146 pages to finish the Aeneid and Metamorphoses on time. I have my HUM midterm on Wednesday, so it would also behoove me to finish all the historians.
I believe it can be done.
. . . . . entries for 15.10.07 . . . . .
Well this is interesting.
. . . . . entries for 14.10.07 . . . . .
| Your Scholastic Strength Is Deep Thinking |
 You aren't afraid to delve head first into a difficult subject, with mastery as your goal. You are talented at adapting, motivating others, managing resources, and analyzing risk. You should major in: Philosophy Music Theology Art History Foreign language |
Hm. :P
And one better.
And another!
I really like my ENV reading. :P
Color me intrigued.
"For his offering of their lives made in common by them all, they each of them individually received that renown which never grows old, and for a sepulchre, not so much that in which their bones have been deposited, but that noblest of shrines wherein their glory is laid up to be eternally remembered upon every occasion on which deed or story shall fall for its commemoration. For heroes have the whole earth for their tomb; and in lands far from their own, where the column with its epitaph declares it, there is enshrined in every breast a record unwritten with no tablet to preserve it, except that of the heart."
Thucydides: the original Erinesque believer in the afterlife of history, apparently.
. . . . . entries for 12.10.07 . . . . .
"You are a fluke of the universe. You have no right to be here.
Deteriorata - deteriorata!
Go placidly amid the noise and waste, and remember what comfort there may be in owning a piece thereon. Avoid quiet and placid persons, unless you are in need of sleep. Rotate your tires. Speak glowingly of those greater than yourself, and heed well their advice, even though they be turkeys. Know what to kiss and when. Consider that two wrongs never make a right, but that three do. Wherever possible, put people on hold. Be comforted that in the face of all aridity and disillusionment, and despite the changing fortunes of time, there will always be a big future in computer maintenance.
You are a fluke of the universe. You have no right to be here, and whether you can hear it or not, the universe is laughing behind your back.
Remember the Pueblo. Strive at all times to bend, fold, spindle, and mutilate. Know yourself. If you need help, call the FBI. Exercise caution in your daily affairs, especially with those persons closest to you - that lemon on your left, for instance. Be assured that a walk through the ocean of most souls would scarcely get your feet wet. Fall not in love, therefore: it will stick to your face. Gracefully surrender the things of youth, birds, clean air, tuna, Taiwan, and let not the sands of time get in your lunch. Hire people with hooks. For a good time, call 606-4311. Ask for Candy. Take heart, in the deepening gloom, that your dog is finally getting enough cheese, and reflect that whatever misfortune may be your lot, it could only be worse in Milwaukee.
You are a fluke of the universe. You have no right to be here, and whether you can hear it or not, the universe is laughing behind your back.
Therefore, make peace with your god, whatever you conceive him to be: hairy thunderer or cosmic muffin. With all its hopes, dreams, promises, and urban renewal, the world continues to deteriorate.
Give up."
I wonder which is more harmful to the environment: printing out assigned articles or reading them on the computer.
Nationstates is rather entertaining.
This school is a riot. I'm doing my homework for student government elections, poking around on facebook, and I leave one of the class president advocate groups. I've seen the guy around in Rocky but I don't know him personally, whereas I do know a couple of the other candidates; likewise, some of them seem better-qualified than he is. His campaign appears to hinge on a goofy slogan, which also doesn't do much for me.
So almost immediately after I leave, he invites me back to the group and messages me, asking if I have any ideas for the class.
GOOD GRIEF.
Also, I need to talk to the Gravel folks some more about coming here. It might actually be possible.
. . . . . entries for 11.10.07 . . . . .
 I taste like Peanut Butter.I am one of the most blendable flavours; I go with sweet, I go with sour, I go with bland, I go with anything. I am practical and good company, but have something of a tendency to hang around when I'm not wanted, unaware that my presence is not welcome. What Flavour Are You? |
(If I were not peanut butter, I would be:
 Cor blimey, I taste like Tea.I am a subtle flavour, quiet and polite, gentle, almost ambient. My presence in crowds will often go unnoticed. Best not to spill me on your clothes though, I can leave a nasty stain. What Flavour Are You? |
. . . and I am not, alas, curry, coffee, or chocolate. Oh well.)
O blog,
how neglected you are.
Take heart. You're not the only thing I'm neglecting. :P The Greek histories we're discussing in precept today have gone nearly entirely unread by yours truly, in spite of the fact that they are apparently entertaining in their silly (partially made-up) contents. Mraf.
Today feels cozy. I wish I could just curl up in it and sleep again.
Life is hectic, but good.
. . . . . entries for 9.10.07 . . . . .
Thunderstorm. :)
ARG lab.
. . . . . entries for 8.10.07 . . . . .
So what should I be for Halloween, if anything?
O I do not wish to read Aristotle, nor to start my lab. I should have been a pair of ragged claws scuttling across silent seas. Or something.
. . . . . entries for 7.10.07 . . . . .
Incidentally: no freaking clue where the dentist down here is. We went looking and we followed the directions and it was nowhere to be found. I feel so fizzled out.
Oh, the parents,
the parents,
they are tiring.
. . . . . entries for 6.10.07 . . . . .
Mug-painting!
. . . . . entries for 5.10.07 . . . . .
. . . so apparently there is a tango lesson to be had in the Mathey common room tonight.
I think I want to write a short story from the point of view of a marine animal caught as bycatch.
. . . . . entries for 4.10.07 . . . . .
Point of interest: don't eat caviar.
Precept was also a riot. Life is good, and it is the weekend, and I am writing.
Everyone has midterms, but not at Princeton. At Princeton everything is WEIRD.
Lecture was a riot - let's hope precept goes well.
I <3 Symposium. If either lecture or precept manage to somehow harm my love of this book, I will smite someone.
. . . . . entries for 3.10.07 . . . . .
Dear God,
Eighty-degree weather is no more acceptable in October than it was in September; if anything, it is far less so. Be careful about the weather, or people will start to worry your condition has worsened.
Best wishes,
Erin.
. . . . . entries for 1.10.07 . . . . .
"Nothing left to say
Or nothing comes to mind
I've eaten all the red
I'm left with all the rind
. . .
Nothing left to say
Or nothing comes to mind
I wonder if I'm dead
I'm fairly sure I'm blind" -Jason
What sticking power those lines have, rattling about in my head as they do.
Anyway. I posted them because I don't have a lot to say on present goings-on, which largely consist of reading, reading, and the occasional important non-reading item which I have to squeeze in somewhere. I am assuming most of you are privy to my grumbling on the topic, so. . . yeah. Leave it at that.
"Do you drink?" the acquaintance asks, and when she says "no," he asks "why not?" as if the reasons aren't obvious. Oi. Erzähl mir bitte - tell me why you *do.*
This beat is familiar. I think I remember how to swing it.
come home?
.:people:.
{ting}
she looks like the real thing
{mari}
out and about
[kelsey]
THIS IS AMERICA
{yianni}
stop being depressed
{alisa}
other
[shannon]
close and far
{frank}
islands where no islands should go
[cassie]
eating knowledge
{colin}
my dm
[emily]
shoulder to the wheel
[brian]
nostalgic for fantasy
[nicole]
industry insider
{elle}
angry enviro
[matt]
never heard of miyazaki
[pirate dan]
are you reading this?
[olga]
distracted
[messiah dan]
messiah/believer
{max}
approach focus
[natalie]
wait a minute
[susan]
solitude
{greg}
manbeargreg
.:past:.
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.:skin:.
turtles! turtles! by araglas
(heavily modified by yours truly)