PP is good to me.

Love Compatibility of Libra with Gemini

Libra and Gemini are both air signs, and it may be hard for a Libra and a Gemini to keep each other grounded when you're both so busy dreaming and scheming. You both live in a world of ideas and ideals. The attraction between you is more mental than physical, and communication is important to both of you. Your Gemini will stimulate your creativity, and you'll teach him or her how to speak or write with grace. You may find yourself a lifelong playmate, lover and best friend in a Gemini. One thing's for sure, you'll always keep each other young at heart.

done and done.

today, i felt like i was going to die. the day hit about 3 o'clock, and i was ready to punch the next person who touched me or treated me like dirt (no thank you, f-ing snotty volunteer).

though is was just hours previously that i was successfully achieving a goal of winning over CSG! hahaha... reminding myself of that made me feel better.

also, i got to see the wonderful mollyL thursday! oh girl, i miss you. and i'm glad you read my blog (even though it's gibberish for the most part, haha).

right now, i'm full of delicious fish and asparagus and watching a film on Radiohead, and i feel ok again.

happy easter everybody. He Is Risen!

things to come

i hung out with my future roommates last night, and it's making me excited for that move-in date. me and amy get along super well, and zach is super fun to hang out with.... we bonded last night, haha! we're all chill people, so i see some good times ahead.

now we are starting the apartment search more officially. zach is going to NY, NY this week, and after he gets back we're really going to get on top of looking. i think Ukrainian Village is the neighborhood we are headed too, so watch out. anybody got a 3-bedroom near the blue line for rent??

GRAM has been lovely.

so i was delighted to find out that my job get's me into the Grand Rapids Art Museum for free! i new there were certain employee reciprocities, but you never really know who's going to let you in, in the end. but they let me have myself and a guest, and we had grand time. (forgive the pun)

i was pretty impressed by what they had up. the last time i had gone, they were between temporary exhibits, and it seemed like the only contemporary art there was a big piece in the lobby by Ellsworth Kelly, and i'm not the biggest fan of his. but their current (main) exhibition was Frank Stella's Moby Dick work. my favorite was the giant print and it's accompanying wood/copper plate:





























(Fountain, 1992)

it's massive. i wouldn't even know how to start planning a monster like this! it took Stella 15 years to complete. hats off to you, Frank.

smitten.

here's a text i received last night:

"spiders are singing in the salty breeze, spiders are filling out tax returns Spinning out webs of deductions and melodies on a private beach in Michigan"



lol.... kudos to Wilco also. love it.

astrology time!

Aries Man & Libra Woman

It will take someone with a lot more backbone than the Libra lady has to withstand his daily doses of bluff and bluster. ( Source: AquarianAge Romance )

A yin and yang combination. Another Venus meets Mars --- intense, selfish, volatile and sexy. ( Source: AquarianAge Romance )

This is not a great match and it is very unlikely to lead to lasting love. You and an Aries boy may seem to be a terrific match at first. You've both got great minds, curious approaches to life and you both love to talk and to socialize. Unfortunately, while you hate arguing and always want everything to be peaceful, Aries boys love to fight! They'll even play devil's advocate to start a fight for no reason... they actually think this is fun. All this conflict will make you feel constantly uneasy and stressed out. He will also get tired of you flip-flopping on your decisions, because he's a charge ahead guy who likes to set a mission and then carry it out. He's just not flexible or calm enough for you, and there will be no harmony in this relationship. You may be super-attracted to him, but that can only take you so far. A great match for a short-term fling, but disaster in the long-term. ( Source: Jellybean's Astro-Soulmate Guide )

Refined Libra girl is ready and willing to play delicate flower next to Aries tough and strong exterior, but in the long haul, Aries boy might be a tad too aggressive and rough around the edges. Enjoy it while it lasts, because it certainly won't be boring! ( Source: FUNgirl - Astrology )

shivers

the chicago skyline still thrills me when i walk out of work. i worked an event tonight, so by the time i got out, it was dark and the buildings were all lit up. it really is a sight to see, even though i look at it everyday. it's a good city we have here.

also, if you want to see some fantastic art, the art institute has finally opened it's newest prints and drawings exhibit. it is on modern and contemporary drawings, and it's good. real good. every time i walk through the galleries, i get shivers. it's reasons like that, that i love working there. how spoiled am i!

potluck-hangover

the AIC DOVS potluck was a grand success. we had a good turnout, everybody brought such delicious stuff, and i ate like i've never eaten before. there was so much food we had to designate a main entree room, a dip room, and a dessert room. we didnt even get a chance (or we didn't have enough room in our stomachs) to break into 2 of the deserts. but that's ok, because since i hosted the potluck, i get to keep the extras!

thanks to everybody for helping make this a success! i love my coworkers...

i can't take it anymore

my roommates are being bitches. i'm sorry, but being mean and bitter to me does not make me want to be your friend.

making assumptions, talking behind my back, and writing passive aggressive notes on the fridge... it's so petty, it's making me sick.

frustration

so i think my roommates think i've gone crazy. i will admit, my lifestyle has gotten a bit soap opera-esque, but i'm not unhappy with anything. i thrive on this kind of excitment, i love running around and meeting new people. i am having so much fun, after work, in work, and i am entering a new stage in life and i am ready for it.

i think my problem was that i was very unsatisfied with my life before. i felt depressed unsettled. i was ready to move back to grand rapids and see what kind of life i could live there. and now that i've dove head first into this new life of AICers, i'm failing in my combination of both lives, and people of my old life don't like the new life.

so i feel a bit trapped. i don't want either extremes, and building contacts and friendships at the AIC is just as important to me as maintaining old friendships. plus it doesnt help that my weekends are tuesdays and wednesdays, so my schedule is so opposite of everyone else's that it makes things look even worse.

what to do, what to do...

happy st pattys everyone

so i'm hoping that making out with a giant red-bearded leprechaun man on the eve of st patrick's day is going to bring me great luck. this guy was magnificent. though that could be the beers talking.

tomorrow (actual st patty's), i'm going to celebrate the day like any viking would want me too... by drinking and pillaging. perhaps while wearing a viking helmet. i must make my ancestors proud!

too many birthdays

it's annie's birthday today, and yesterday it was my brother's and ethan's birthday, and thursday is annika's birthday. holy birthday. sarah b's birthday was just a week or so ago, allison's, benji's, sophie's, patrick's are all coming up. also multiple cousin birthdays are coming up by the end of march, and lydia's and chad-eric's, and anat's, and tim's, and heather's. i'm going to go broke.


ps happy birthday everybody!

typical

i like that when i go to a gay bar, i end up with a couple business cards and a condom in my pocket. it's pretty hysterical.


i dont really understand the way things are for me right now... but life is pretty fun nonetheless. thank you art institute. lol...

beer me some wedding

oh, no. i'm not getting married. but my roommate is in august! but i'm proud to say i'm finally ready to go to her wedding. see, i am a bridesmaid, and we all bought our dresses a few months ago and i ordered mine a size or 2 too small. but i told my roommate, i would lose that weight and fit into that dress, and today, officially i tried the dress on, and it fit!! it made me very happy, because it's nice to have that affirmation of success. my "meredith" diet is working. now i'm hoping that i will be able to really take my dress in this summer!!

"the new girl"

tomorrow, i start my new job... at the art institute!!!! i'm so excited, and nervous. i really need this job to work out for me, so i need to rock their socks off. but at least no matter what happens, it will be a fun job. i mean, i get to hang out with art all day! and edvard munch is one of my favorite artists, so i really couldn't be luckier. God has really designed this all to work out so incredibly smoothly for me;

- i mean my cover letter was addressed to the wrong business (it was an older cover letter, addressed to the museum of contemporary art - whoops!!!!) but they still called me for an interview;
- one of my dogwalking coworkers quit the week of my interview, but this led to my boss interviewing people she thought could hire the same day i found out i got the job;
- i was able to train my replacements and still have a couple days off for fun and "business casual clothing" shopping;
- a friend has me watching his dogs for a week and paying my very graciously for it, making up for a week without any income;
- my dogwalking boss still loves me - she is such a wonderful person! she gave me an unbelievably fantastic reference to the AIC when she didn't even know i had interviewed there, and she would give me another great reference if i ever needed it;
- my quitting the sverige shop was also good for my boss, she can't afford her own employees hardly anymore, and we have a great relationship so i know she would also give me a great reference if i ever needed it;
- public trans will be my new best friend! no more driving everywhere and worrying about parking and snow!!

thank you Lord for providing for me. may my performance be in your hands.



art art art art here i come!!!

the doors

so i don't really know who follows this blog, or if anyone other than molly and sofia read it/know it exists. but i always think it's probably for the best. especially when i feel so inclined to write in it at 3:11 am.

it is at moments like these that i like to listen to the doors. they just seem to capture a lot of what i want to feel in their music. i started listening them the summer i was 19. i think vargo and those nunica people made me really want to listen to the doors. i can visualize the standing by bonfires or in circles indoors, drinking, smoking, shootin the shit, and listening to music i wouldn't think to listen to until years later. "riders on the storm" remains one of my favorite songs.

that summer may have been a little crazy and extreme, but it is memorable none the less. i realize that my life so far has been pretty exciting, and every year is different and more interesting. and most importantly i can think fondly back to these past times and enjoy them in the present still.

January 20, 2009

so this year i'm all about starting the year off on the right foot. in almost every aspect, this is going well so far. a lot of good thinks are happening to me (thank you good Lord!), but there are still heartbreaks that make me extremely sad. like when did adultery become OK?? oh the poisons of the world... we shall never escape them i suppose.

but on the lighter side of life, one of the great steps of this year is the Inauguration of our new President!! Wow. it's so amazing. i only wish i didn't have to work so i could watch on tv today. i can listen up on NPR but i'm training someone too, so another distraction from the historic speech. oh well... maybe i'll spend the afternoon watching videos online...

green

sometimes, i have been know to indulge in some green activities. they just come upon me a times. and i love them.

a friend of mine told me about this ann arbor based "hip-hop" artist called Dabrye. my friend had done some mixing/producing for this guy, so listening to it the other day made me think that dabrye was perfect for green activities. and it is!

i wouldn't exact say dabrye is pure hip hop, it definetly has a major electronic influence. and judging from my friends equipment, the electro and slightly techno aspects of it are the majoring of dabrye's talents. he also brings in rappers, giving it it's hip hop basis, but it flows really well together. it's very smooth but still saves a bit of an edge at the finish.

my only dislikes are that dabrye seems to switch from it's hip hop and electro natures quite drasitcally. one song will be totally mellow, and the next will be violent rapping. i know you want both buddy, but just pick a sound and go with it.

but oh man, kraak and smaak, i must go. lush out.

art i like

movin' on up...

ahhhhh hurrah hurray! a good mood i be in!

i'm so selfish in this recession, getting jobs when i don't need them... well that's not so true... i got a job at the Art Institute of Chicago! i found out yesterday, and it is like an answer to prayer. the whole thing is so surprising, i had no idea that i would get this job, applying for it because i didn't think i'd get it! it's not a super job starting off, i am a temp Guest Services Assistant for the Munch exhibit in february. but it's a foot in the door and i get the chance to apply for full time after the first 90 days. so i'll work a lot more for less pay, but i'm pretty sure it's worth it.

so now i will leave dog walking behind, and give someone else the chance to be bff with all of my favorite pooches. Oh Boozer, Max, Gincho, Pumpkin, Rasta, Hawk, etc.... i will miss you guys so much! it's weird that you can bond with dogs that aren't even yours, but some of these guys, you could just tell they were happy to see you. you build a relationship with these guys, and will be very sad to leave them like this!

though i have to say, this chicago winter does not make me miss dog walking, i am very excited to be white-collared and commute by eL like everybody else. stupid snow...

i hate snow, i like soup

so having grown up in illinois and michigan, one would think that 23 midwestern winters are something i've grown accustomed to. but this winter.... oh my oh my.... this winter... is kicking my ASS. i have always professed to loving snow, up until this winter. i don't mind the cold, that northern blook in my thrives, i say! but perhaps this unusually harsh and snowy winter on top of my ourdoorsy job, on top of my first car with no 4-wheel-drive, has finally pushed me over the edge.

i was praying that our big snow had come, and we could get little snows for the rest of winter, but no. we got dumped on again. i spent a half hour digging my car out today even though i wasn't going anywhere, just because i know that if i didn't do it today, there would be no hope tomorrow. the first snow taught me that, and i got lucky last time. especially since the school across the street was out for xmas break and there was extra parking.

but this time, i'm getting desperate. i shoveled my spot nice and clean, tested it, and left it, and i am prepared to defend that spot with my life!!! well ok a beach chair and a large card-board box. please be a good chicagoan and don't steal it!!!!


on the brighter side of life, the cold and snowy weather has brought out my fondness for cooking again. i usually go through fazes of cooking, and i'm rediscovering how fun soups are. thanks to a cook book SB gave me for my birthday, and a soup pot my mom gave me for encouragement, i made a fantastic tuscan bread soup. it was a smashing success, and i'm currently making an adapted non-bread version right now with the left over stock and veggies. it's exciting.

i'm planning my next meal/soup. there was a delicious Garlic Chicken and Artichoke dish that is prepared in a crock pot that i am thinking about trying, or a cheese soup that looks divine... it's weirdly exciting. and my roommates like it because i'm a very sharing person.

soups on!

tigers

so if anyone of you doesn't know me, then you wouldn't know about me and the tiger. muwhahaha.

but my real question is, are you a friend of the tiger??
you can become one by going to this website.

http://www.savethetigerfund.org/Content/NavigationMenu2/Community/TigerFriend/default.htm

why should you be a friend of the tiger? well my friends, they are just the tip of the iceberg. you save the tiger, save the world. tigers are in danger for the same reasons our world is in danger, so therefore, like i said, you save the tiger, you save the world.

just think, all the forces that drives us towards our own destruction are things like poverty, overpopulation, pollution, and ignorance are why our children may never know a tiger to exist in the wild. you may say, who cares. people are what really matter, not that pesky environment. but i say, tigers are our brothers. they stand for power and balance and survival, just like we should.

plus they are so darn cute!/kickass!