Fantastic!

I’m going to Costa Rica!

Well, actually, I don’t know that for certain yet, but I am going somewhere cool and exotic next summer with International Student Volunteers. I really want to do sea turtle conservation in Costa Rica or work with Spectacled Bears in Ecuador.

It’s two weeks of volunteer work and then two weeks of adventure travel (such as jungle rafting, zip-lining, rock climbing, and snorkeling). I have to come up with close to $4000 but I’m not too worried about it. ISV helps you get sponsors, plus I’ll just work a lot of doubles at the PHouse, ask for strictly money for Christmas, and buy pretty much nothing other than food and gas. It can be done! The way I look at it, if I were to pay for airfare straight up (without the ISV group discount), 4 weeks worth of lodging and food, and two weeks of guided adventure travel, it would cost me much more than $4000. Plus getting to make a difference by volunteering with these amazing programs… I’m definitely there. Getting to travel the world is one of my life dreams and this is one hell of a way to start.

I’ve been doing a mental happy dance all day because of this.

Dead Sky Dawning

It’s a new day
And the dead sky is dawning
Rising from the fallen dreams
And lost memories
To haunt waking moments
With whispers of before

_{©2007 KLauderdale}

I Tend to Do That

About a month ago I was searching for a new planner because the one I have now is a) only until December and b) ugly and hard to read at a glance. I found a black one I really liked at Office Depot, but it was only for 2008. So I said okay, I can deal with this ugly planner for another few months, no big deal.

Today at Wal-Mart I found a cute little planner that is easy to read, for 2007-2008, and was $15 cheaper. Sooo now I have two planners for next semester and I really don’t need them both. Since I can’t return the black one because I have no idea where the receipt is, I guess I’ll use the new one this school year and the black one next fall, since the new one stops at July 2007 but the black one has all of 2008. At least I won’t have to buy a planner next school year, right?

Anyway, moral of this story: I’m an idiot.

Convincing Myself

I just ordered a 3/4-sleeve top, 4 pairs of undies, and a bra from American Eagle. I usually don’t shop there because it’s too expensive on my college kid budget, but I got all of the above for a mere $36 thanks to a combined 35% off and free shipping. I know I need to be saving my money, and I am! Right now I’m pretty much only buying things I really need (although the Philosophy Purity face wash is somewhat of an exception, but it’s supposed to be really good and besides I got a free sample of DiorShow mascara, which I’ve been wanting to try but not for the crazy price it retails at). Plus I’ve managed to save about $400 since I started at Prairie House, so there.

Besides, a good deal like that helps make up for the fact that my brand-new (albeit very cheap) printer does not print.

I have a reading test in US History tomorrow. First test of the semester, whoohoo. I think I’ll do pretty well on it since it only covers 4 essays, 3 of which I read thoroughly and one of which I tried to read thoroughly. At least it’s not over the notes, since I skipped that class – and Mass Comm – the last two times. I’ve been really bad about going to class this week. Monday I didn’t go at all, Tuesday I went to both my classes, Wednesday I only went to my astronomy class, and today I only went to my health psychology class. I also skipped and rescheduled a lab twice (it’s on the 27th now and I will not – CANNOT – reschedule it again). The first time was because I was late thanks to Zeus getting out of the house and today I blew it off to have dinner with Ellen, Chris, Megan, and Megan’s roommate. It was a lot of fun although I did feel a little guilty about skipping my lab for it. Next week I’m making a point not to miss any classes since skipping is not a habit I want to get into. Just gotta keep my mind focused on a 3.0 GPA.

Also, eight months today… RIP♥

Watching My Back

I found out Monday night that a girl I knew died of an overdose this weekend. Heroin or coke. She was only 22.

Yesterday my sociology professor anounnced that his dog had been hit by a car that morning and died.

Tomorrow is the eight month anniversary of my mom’s death.

It is not a good week.

Truth

I don’t know but I’ve been told
When the music gets down in your soul
It makes you want to loose control
And there ain’t nothin’ wrong with that.

Not To Mac

I’m skipping class today for the first time. Only a week in, isn’t that terrible? I just don’t feel very good today and I definitely don’t feel like sitting in a hard plastic chair being totally bored for two hours, when he already has the slides online. I’ll probably go to my second class though, if only because I like the people there.

My bag is supposed to get here today. I’m hoping it comes before I leave for class, which will be around 2:45, or after I get home at 5. I’m kind of a nerd when it comes to stuff like that. As soon as I get a new bag for school, or a purse, or wallet, or anything like that, I always sit down immediately and put all my stuff in it and get it arranged how I like it. Isn’t that dorky?

My Dad talked me out of buying a Mac… He pointed out that if all I’m going to use it for is school, why spend $400-500 more for a Mac when a Windows XP notebook will do the same thing [almost] as well? And yet Mac is still better, no matter how you look at it…*sigh* If only I was rich. Then I could just buy a Mac and that would be that.

Sister: “Do you have $4 in ones?”
Me: “No, I went to the bank today so I don’t have any cash on me.”
Sister: “You know, most people say that the other way… They went to the bank, so they DO have cash.”
Me: “Most people don’t wait tables.”

Rat Race: Too Young for That

I had a five year old try to order whiskey on Monday night.

His mom laughed and ordered him a “kid’s whiskey” instead. Definition: “Sprite with a shot of Coke.”

Five year old boys should not know what whiskey is.

Also: The guy at McDonald’s yesterday recognized me from the gas station I had seen him at earlier. It was a little strange.

Too Short

OMG.

I just saw a picture of my hair the day before I cut it, and it was so long and beautiful…

I miss it.

I need to get a hair cut again. Don’t want any length off, but I need some bangs & layers. Also thinking I may dye it a honey blonde because I took a picture of myself in my bathroom the other day and for some reason my hair looks that color and I love it. Not 100% sure about that though. Can’t really afford it right now anyway.

Okay my sentences are starting to be incomplete – 8 hours waiting tables will do that to you – so I think I’m going to go to bed.

{edit} Totally forgot to write about this – the weirdest thing happened on my way home from work. As soon as I turned off the loop onto King’s Row, I started thinking that I needed to watch out for animals in the road. I just…felt like I needed to be more careful than usual. Plus for some reason I kept thinking about the time I braked to miss a squirrel and a car going the opposite way didn’t even slow down and ran right over it, and the two times I’ve picked up dogs off Windsor and taken them to a less busy part of the neighborhood so they wouldn’t get hit. So I drove down Windsor and there are no animals anywhere, and as I was nearing my street I thought to myself, “Okay, I’m almost home, and no animals. It was just a weird vibe.” Right as I finished that thought, I turned onto my street – which is more of a curve than an actual corner – and directly in front of me was a dead cat. I slammed on my breaks and swerved and somehow managed not to hit it…Respect for the dead and all. It just freaked me out a little bit because it was like I somehow knew it would be there.

To Mac or Not To Mac?

I think I’m going to get a Mac laptop for school. I know they’re a lot more expensive than a Windows laptop, but I really don’t want Vista, and besides that it would be nice to have both a Mac and a PC. I think what I’m going to do is save about $400, buy a Mac on credit, pay the $400 as my first payment, and then pay the remaining $600 in a year. That would be $50/month, which I think is reasonable. I’m also looking at it as an investment in that I’ll use it through all 4 years of college and then some.

Really, I’m mostly justifying buying one because MacBooks are so damn sexy.

In other news, handcuffs are fun, I need to find a backpack for school, and I’m thinking about dying my hair a honey blonde. More on that tomorrow.