Wednesday, October 27, 2010

My To Do List

1.  Go for a run (hasn't happened since August... unless you count sprinting down Washington Boulevard because I underestimated how long it takes to walk to work)
2.  Lose twenty pounds.  The numerous blondies coated in ice cream, constant stream of wine and/or tequila, and shameful lack of green vegetables probably has something to do with it.
3.  Buy over-the-knee black boots.  Best replacement for pants I've seen yet.  This one has the best success rate of everything on this list, which is a problem in and of itself.
4.  Get rid of the mice living in our kitchen and basement.  I need a boyfriend so that I could just feign fear and then he'd heroically step up to the plate and murder these rodents for me and my three wonderful housemates.  However, since the dreamy boy I met on the Metro last week has yet to call me, I foresee a lot of neat and clean murdering in my future.
5.  Unpack my room.  Having roommates you want to hang out with all the time is a double edged sword.  My clothes are strewn about my enormous room in an appalling manner.
6.  Figure out how to order new contact lenses without having to pay for an expensive eye exam.  My last pair turned into my only pair and are currently enabling the typing of this titillating entry.
7.  Rally to Restore Sanity on Saturday.  So excited about this!
8.  Do some laundry.  I'm scared of the basement (see point 4) but my work shirts are starting to smell like feta cheese... and by "starting to smell" I mean, "have smelled".
9.  Buy food.  Edible things currently in my possession: jar of pb, box of cereal, bag of baby carrots, box of Constant Comment, quart of ice cream, and half a bottle of cheap wine.
10. Befriend the bartenders across the street.  For obvious reasons


Saturday, October 23, 2010

Arrested Development

isn't only a fantastic tv show.

My fellow early twenty-something's and I have it bad.  All I want to do is drink with my roommates and buy clothes to party in.  I have a bachelor's degree in classical music and no desire to pursue any sort of career other than waiting tables at a dive bar/deli.  



Actually, that's not true.  If someone were to walk up to me and say, "Hey there, little lady, any interest in an acting job?" I would be either totally pumped or incredibly nervous that this perv was going to cut me into bits and feed me to his pet iguana.

Being a real adult is hard.  Toilet paper no longer just magically appears under the sink cabinet... you have to like, go to Target and purchase it, then put it under the sink yourself.  It is not fun to buy things like toilet paper, paper towels, and laundry detergent.  And seriously, it's a cosmic joke that you have to pay money to obtain paper to wipe your own butt with.  Some things in life should simply be free.. like TP and coffee.

In other news my roommates and I saw a peeper last night.  Hindsight being 20/20 we should have like... told someone... but no harm (except mentally), no foul (except it was).  Hope we don't run into Mr. Grabby again.  

Thursday, October 14, 2010

it's a Grand Ol' Flag y'all

and it stoutly protects my right to eat a salad in my bed and watch House on hulu while wearing a t-shirt I received upon 5th grade graduation.  Because 5th graders should absolutely need a special ceremony when going from the 5th to the 6th grade, and 11 year olds and 22 year olds should absolutely be capable of wearing the same sized t-shirt.



I stress-ate about four pounds of fried food in Canada.  America how I've missed you.

Saturday, October 9, 2010

Lord (USAToday had a weird headline about God polling....what is that...)

This blog blows, and Im really sorry.

Its really hard to say what you want to say when youre being charged like six dollars for fifteen minutes of internet and need to communicate with your mom about how much money you are being gauged by the american bank you cannot call and complain to.

As a result, you get dashed off gut reactions to places that probably didnt do much to deserve it.  Aix really did suck though.  I may go back and finesse... I am a writer that requires time, I like to select the right words... haha Im lying.  But I could stand to structure them more. 

Whatever.

Como is beautiful, but cloudy and a bit chilly.  I found out like three hours ago that Halladay pitched a no hitter and screamed and fist pumped and all that.... two days late...  Poor Julie had to listen to way more baseball babble than she cared to ever know, but now there are two people in the know in Lago di Como!  Wonder if they won last night? 

France tomorrow, and thus ending the outrageous consumption of gelato and pizza.  Fact: my pants are uncomfortably tight.  Luckily Im  moving out of my parents house next week and thus will no longer be able to afford food.

I want TexMex.  And a TV.

Friday, October 8, 2010

Teeth and Venice is Sinking

Europeans have crappy teeth.  Because they smoke, eat pastries, drink coffee, and do not have fluoride in their water, nor whitener in their tooth paste.

Venice is my own personal version of hell, even though its pretty for the first hour.  Aside from running around la Fenice, its pretty boring.  Theres nothing to do but dodge old ladies, stare at very expensive things made of brightly colored glass, and the birds.  OH THE BIRDS!  In hell, pidgeons will surround me and swoop low at my face, threatening to poop in my freshly and rarely washed tresses.  Little bitches.  (We spent the afternoon there yesterday, and it actually wasnt that bad, I had some badass gelato)

Were in Verona though, and Verona is gorgeous.  Its the Italian Bordeaux.  But coated in opera.  Maybe Ill move here.

Our last night in Firenze (see Im Italian now) we saw Traviata.  And it was AMAZING.  Just, such gorgeous singing.  And no offense, but man do I miss listening to real singers... not my friends learning to sing famous arias....  I emailed my voice teach about lessons.

Como today!!!! HIKING AGAIN!!!!  I miss clean clothes

Monday, October 4, 2010

Things I Forgot and Things that are New

Barcelona:  I had my picture taken for Mercè 2010 promotion.  Totally weird, but sorta cool.  When the guy asked me if he could take my picture (it was 4 am and I was sitting stubbornly on the street) I questioned him rapidly in English to ensure that he was not going to put it on a website that said Dumb Americans Ruin Festival in Catalòn.  After assuring me it was not, I proceded to sit in the street while he snapped 5 or 6 pictures.  It has just now occured to me that he could be lying... 

Cadaques:  I watched my first game of cricket.  That game is weird.  They dress up like tennis, but its like wussy baseball that actually requires the players to move...

Cinque Terre: Was PHENOMENAL.  One of the best parts of the trip, easily.  My pictures frustrate me because you cant grasp how effin pretty and steep everything was, my little camera was sweating bullets trying.  We hiked the best portions, got blocked out of a few, and met some middle aged Aussies.  Also ate the best pesto in the world and had gelato 14 times in about 30 hours.  There should be shame, but really theres nothing but pride. 

Feeeeeeeerenze:  I dig it!  The city is touristy, but its beautiful and smells like leather.  HOWEVER, the hostel, which is honestly not that bad has some bones to pick.  AND THEY ARE AS FOLLOWS.  We are sharing a room with 7 other asian girls.  And they are ALL pigs!!!  They go to bed at 22:00 and wake up at 6:00.  YES SIX IN THE GODDAMN MORNING.  And they are none too quiet about it, either.  Apparently, if they dont turn on all the lights, smash their belongings on the floor, and shriek in their native tongues they will die.  And they might, because Julie and I might kill them.  Lord knows they dont even do anything, just run to the nearest computer.  I went to bed at 3 because I was reading the first book I got my hands on in a month, but I was silent, and just had my little reading lamp on, and I was roused at 6.  Luckily, there is free breakfast here, and its ballin. 
However, bone numero due is that the one bathroom the 9 of us share has both a toilet and a shower in the same room.  And by shower I mean hose and a drain in the floor.  Which would be tolerable, but there is something wrong with the toilet.  It is FULL of something I did not know humans to be capable of, and smells ungodly. 
We are leaving a day early.  Bologna and Verona on Wednesday, and Venice and Verona on Thursday, followed by a couple days stalking George Clooney at Lago di Como, then back to France on Sunday. 

The best part is that Julie and I still like each other.  And just this morning were planning our next absurd vacation.

I am wearing my glasses and my hair in a knot on top of my head until 14:00 when I will take a siesta.  The outfit is in protest of bitches wakin me up early on vacation, but Julie thinks its in protest of her since I will be with her all day.  I beg to differ.  Also, post-siesta Im hopeful someone will have destroyed the thing in the bathroom and I can shower and return to non-ugly state.

Friday, October 1, 2010

Oh yeah...

So we were in Barcelona for Merce, which is Barcelonas birthday, which was awesome!  We went to the Picasso museum fo free!, hiked around Parc Guell (no umlaut key in Italy...!!!) and I fell in love with Gaudi, so we went to Sagrada Familia (his church-in-progress) and took some pictures.  Two super important things about Barcelona: I met my soul mate, his name is Sergi, he is 31 and Catalòn, and 2. I danced to Goldfrappe with a few thousand other people for free and it was amazing.  Barcelona is pretty sketchy though, so we were both paranoid about getting our stuff stolen (which it wasnt) and getting harassed (which we did).  Its so so dirty, people piss in the street all the time and everywhere, and its just like, raw and gross.  Also fun, and occasionally really beautiful, but a grey place.

Then we went to Cadaques, which is famous simply for being beautiful and Dali lived there for a bit.  We showed up and it was just... paradise haha.  We had to run, with our backpacks, to the bus station, and got there about two minutes after the bus should have left.  Luckily were in Europe so we got to sit on the bus for another ten before it lumbered out of the station.  Anyway, we had a beautiful room and tv (we watched Casino Royale in German, its still really good) and the most glorious shower!!!!  We just laid in bed and walked around this gorgeous blue and white place.  Its sort of weird and amazing, but pictures dont do that place justice.  The colors are so vibrant its like the camera cant handle it.

Post Cadaques we had another night in Barcelona.... it was not great... and then we rode three trains to get to Aix-en-Provence in France.  Julie and I were both really excited for Aix, but it totally sucked!  It was a teensy French town, just like we wanted, but it was booooooringggg.  Cezanne painted a little near there or something, but it was not easy to get to, well advertised, or particularly interesting.  The only thing to do in Aix was spend money in stores like Cartier and Hermes.  Which we obviously would and could not do.  Julie did buy a pair of brown suede boots, but she also got eaten alive by some sort of bug that we never found.  Homeboy didnt touch me, but she woke up with about 75 bug bites on just one arm.  The weirdest part about that was that we were sharing a bed....  The tv was lame too.  It was horrible.  Also, I finally caved and bought shoes (I wore sandals from Target for the past three full weeks) which I was breaking in in Aix.... horrible.  So we were angry for the entirity of that bit of our little adventure.

Five trains later and we were in Genoa, which we were expecting to hate, but didnt!!  The guy at the hotel thought I was Italian since I knew enough to straighten out the room and ask where we could eat and was overjoyed, but then I let one little oui slip and I was French!!!  Just as exciting!!!!  I protested quickly in English, but he liked me better as a European.  Julie started speaking in Spanish, and then we gave up and ran away to our room.  We ate pizza and fell asleep.  Woke up, bought some fruit, and got on a train to Cinque Terre.

Which is where we are now!!!!   AND WE LOVE IT!!!!!!!!!!!  Originally told that the path was closed to four of the five towns (yikes!!) but even the elderly are hiking it, so well tackle that tomorrow.  We have eaten pizza, pesto!!!!!! ravioli!!!!!!!!!!!!! (so so good), and two rounds of gelato already, and Im just so happy to be here!  Our hostel is really nice, and perched on a cliff like everything here, its actually insane how steep everything is!

Cinque Terre > Aix-en-Provence

I really really really miss tv.

Like, so much it hurts.  I wanna watch House and Cuddy, I wanna watch Lemon and the gang, I wanna see how Claire and Phil are failing, and I sorta even wanna watch Steve Carrels final run as Michael Scott.

I will miss four episodes of House, and three each of 30 Rock, Mod Fam, and the Office.

Also, really wanna check out Sisterwives, and the new show with Will Arnett courtesy of the geniuses of Arrested Development.

We tried to watch tv in Provence, because that is the most mind-numbingly boring place, and the best thing that entirely french television had to offer in two full days was an episode of Greys Anatomy.  Which is another show Im contemplating watching. 

I MISS TV!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

I also miss showering being a fun experience... currently Im at a pretty nice hostel in Cinque Terre, and they hand out a shower token every day... you get five minutes of hot water for each token, and if you want more than 5 mins you pay like half a euro for em.  I would never ever classify myself as a particularly classy or squeaky clean lady, but man do I love a good hot shower now.

I have a new found appreciation for smoking bans in America.  All of my clothing ALL of it smells like cigarettes.  I wash it (in the sink of the hotel were in) and it leaves, and then I enter the world and back it comes.  Ive actually grown used to it, which bums me out a bit.

I love Cinque Terre though, and I love Julie, and if I were to move to Europe (an idea that i like very very much) it would be great.  Because i would have a laptop to watch tv on.  and a shower. !!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!