The happs

As opposed to Amy, food is something that I think about rarely.

I don't think I really get hungry like most people. I do like food, but its something I do when I'm bored or about to faint, not something I do because I love the thing itself. Now, there are exceptions to that. There are some foods I really love (Orange chicken, guacamole, dokbokki, and ramen) which I will eat whenever, wherever, however. But other than that, food is like ehh.

When I haven't eaten for a long time, I don't really get hungry and I don't crave food. My stomach starts to hurt and growl and honestly, that feeling itself makes me lose my appetite even more. Often I will become 'hungry' about 3 hours after I've eaten for about half an hour and then it will pass into a kind of empty grumpy feeling and I won't end up eating very much food, if any at all. So I have to get my food before I pass the hungry stage, or I won't eat at all. Tsk tsk michelle so fickle.

Anyway, In other news. College is getting pretty serious, I suppose. I mean, not THAT serious, considering I spent all my free periods watching shows today instead of doing homework because, guess what, I DON'T HAVE ANY!!!

I've had this idea ever since I was a kid that the longer the break the more homework you get, and thats why the two semesters idea was so awesome, because its like a month of no school, but turns out, this is a three day weekend and I don't have any homework....at ALL. What?

What is this madness? I haven't been this free during the school year since I was five and the local school had a snow day so mom said I was off school too. I haven't had this much time during the school year since I finished a weeks worth of first grade in one day cause I loved it and it was all coloring.

I don't know about real college, but community college seems to be like the best idea since sliced bread.

I'm like, making friends, and spending half of my classes thinking about what I would do if half of the students in the school turned out to be a mofia and held up the school. (yeah pretty sure I imagined every single scenario, so I'm set. If anything bad happens, I'm prepared to be the heroine)

In other news, its raining buckets outside and I get to see Amy this weekend YAY PARTYYYYYYY

-Michelle

Arbitary College Updates and the Truth About Introverts

At first I felt a little gypped because even though I got a job, it is of course only a minimum wage job and I don't get as many hours as I'd like. But after having worked here for a few shifts, I'm starting to reconsider.

To be honest, I can't really believe I'm even getting paid for this. Every ten or twenty minutes or so someone does come by to ask me to do something, but other than that I can sit in here doing homework for three hours straight with, in total, much less actual distraction than if I was sitting in my room with food and a laptop at my fingertips. I'm not making much, true, but I am making something, and something is more than nothing, especially when I'm basically being paid to do my homework while intermittently meeting a lot of cool people and bringing beleaguered freshmen joy by informing them that they've received a package from home.

Note: someone just walked by the front desk wearing a hoodie with the hood pulled up and a fedora on over that. It's the little things.

My other topic I was thinking of writing on was the college experience. I attended UCM all last year feeling like I was missing out on some great thing because I wasn't getting the College Experience. I mean, I didn't particularly want to have the college experience at the time, but I knew that in years to come I would probably regret not taking advantage of these years by having crazy good times and being a kid while I still could.

This year, I am much more optimistic. Basically what I decided to do was not be lazy and not be a whiner about things because I kind of did a lot of that last year and I ended up not knowing anyone and having pity parties about my unsociability alone in my room.

So far it seems to be going swimmingly.

Another interesting thing is that I realized that not only are there people in the world who are less outgoing than me (crazy, I know), there are a lot of them and I didn't realize how many until I decided to not be so introverted. And I can let you in on a little secret about introverted people; it is incredibly, dauntingly difficult for us to make friends with anyone unless the other person actively pursues a relationship with us.

Sometimes it is not even a matter of being too shy to go meet people. A lot of introverted people, myself included, often feel like friendships that begin on a surface level won't be worth the effort in the long run, so why bother making friends in the first place? You might ask, well don't basically all friendships begin on the surface level? Well you would be right. But the introvert, being one to actively use statistics in favor of their own apathy, will assume that the majority of the friendships they make will not progress past that initial shallowness or last more than a few months or a schoolyear. So what's the point of starting?

What that variety of introvert needs, generally, is a person/people who will restore their faith in humanity enough that they actually want to take a risk (not that friendship is all that risky - again, many introverts are very irrational). So I decided to be the sort of person who can actively pursue friendships. Easier said than done of course, especially for someone like me, but I've made a start at least.

Now you know more about introverts than you ever wanted to know! After this, when you meet one you'll know what to do.

Here is what I had for dinner last night. I don't like going to the dining hall very often because it is loud and dirty from accommodating the unwashed masses of freshmen, but I do love the sandwiches they make there so it brings me back.

They do have romaine lettuce in the salad bar but usually there are leaves with slimy/rotting edges sprinkled throughout so I avoid it. You can't tell what's in the sub because of my love for bbq potato chips, but basically it is ham and cheese and banana peppers with extra mayonnaise. If there is mayonnaise to be had, I always go the extra mile.

Amy

Food

I think about food a lot. In fact, whenever I am not eating food, I am thinking about food. Even if I am not consciously thinking about food, my mouth is thinking about food. It doesn't matter if I'm full or not, I am always thinking about food.

In my special education class, we leaned about a genetic disorder that causes you to think about eating/food constantly to such an extent that you will never not be thinking about food and you'll try to devour anything remotely resembling food (chalk, paper, leather, coal). I was like, that much be what I have only a little milder. Because I think about food so much, and I think maybe I should keep track of what I eat in the interest of health or longevity or something, I have decided to take a picture of what I'm eating whenever I eat something new (I eat the same thing a lot, so this will be incentive for me to branch out). For instance, I took a picture of my first dinner on Tuesday to give you a taste of what I often eat when I am absolutely voracious:

That is two cups of cooked rice, half a can of black beans, salt, garlic powder, sriracha, and doritos. I cannot stress to you enough how delicious this is.  I said it was my first dinner because after my night class I came home and had exactly the same thing sans doritos plus a granny smith apple because those things are amazing. I wish I had taken a picture of my fruit bowl before I devoured it, because it was awesome. I got this gift card from Dad for Parker's and among other things I bought a really big bag of mixed fruit. I was kind of afraid that the fruit wouldn't keep when I was just keeping it on a bowl on my desk, but so far it's been almost three weeks and every apple/orange I have eaten in that time has been just as crispy/juicy delicious as it was on the day I bought it, so that's awesome. I only have one orange left and I'm saving it for this weekend when I'm horribly alone (it is going to be awesome, everyone is leaving for Labor Day).

Anyway. Another thing I eat often is ramen. I know that stuff is pretty junky so I don't have it every day, or even every other day. But when I do eat it I am in transports of joy, because that stuff is so. good.

And there isn't much of it in a serving so it's not too bad. I have it with siracha, because I have everything with sriracha. I bought a few different flavors for the sake of variety, but so far the only good kinds have been the chicken flavors. Beef and Oriental are quite frankly disgusting.

Also, I found this at Parker's:

They have a British Foods section! Well, perhaps it was more like a "teatime, wot" section, because most of it was tea or biscuits and spreads. They even had Jaffa Cakes. And marmite. I have no idea what marmite really is but according to some it is some kind of spreadable, edible tar. Apparently it is an acquired taste. I bought the Rich Tea biscuits on the right because they weren't ridiculously expensive and they make me feel sophisticated if I drink them with tea. They taste like animal crackers.

Next I have to take a picture of the soup I make with rice. I can't believe I forgot to today. It was Southwestern style and tasted like heaven because I put in extra garlic. :3

I am putting off going to the actual kitchen because it is kind of gross and there's no microwave. But I would like to fry up some potatoes because that sounds so good I can't even think about it right now.

To the dining hall! The sandwiches there are from another world (only because they have banana peppers on).

Amy

P.S. I'm pretty sure this post was of interest to only one person in the world (hint: it's me). But I sure had fun writing it, so you'll just have to deal.

Not Having to Hate School

The Burden of the Student

How could a student ever like school?
Think as you will, but a student's no fool.
Rise before sun has shown,
and its rays through the sky have sewn.
Follow the ant-like movement
To wherever the teacher has sent.

How could a student ever like school?
Think as you will, but a student's no fool.
Think of dreams broken on sight.
Of doing, without a single fight.
Think of a childhood, wasting away,
Think of the sorrow at the end of the day.

How could a student ever like school?
Think as you will, but a student's no fool.
A stigma couldn't help but be born,
from a child whose life to school be sworn.



I contemplated making pictures for this blog and then I decided that 1. Would take too much time and 2. I can probably communicate my feels better through words this time.

If you can't get the "deeper meaning" as they say, of that poem, what I'm trying to say is that pretty much my entire life I've hated school, and it wasn't really by choice. Hating school was just as much a choice as doing school.

And I know people who like school and my mom are going to be like, "Oh michelle such a pessimist!" or "Oh michelle hate is such a strong word!"

I know hate is a really strong word but in all honesty my entire life there was nothing that I wanted to do LESS than school, and you know what I've been doing my entire life? School.

Its not because mom was a bad teacher or she did everything wrong or anything, its just that it was something that I had to do, and I also felt as though I had to spend a lot of time and energy disliking it. I think that adults sometimes forget that kids/young adults don't know/remember what its like to not do school during the "school year".

Someone is also probably thinking, "wow school would have been so much easier for her if she'd just embraced it and accepted the fact that she had to do it."

Yeah well when was the time in your not totally-mature and wise-adult life that you embraced something you hated and were like, "wow! I'm genuinely surprised! This isn't half bad!"

So when I knew that I was starting at a Junior College, I was excited but mostly I was sulky and annoyed and sad that the easiest days of school were behind me (being that that isn't saying much).

But then it started and I was like,
"What is this madness?"

Its literally like a constant party. Not like a crazy all-night-college-party, but its like, I get to got to school three days a week and see my friends every single time I got there. I get to play games in between class and nap in comphy chairs and meet new people and write two page double space papers and bring my own lunches.

Like, is this just college or is this what all school is like? Is this the real life....or is this a fantasy?

I get to be with people...ALL THE TIME. I have Teachers that specialize in what they're teaching me. I run by the clock and pack my own bag.

I make plans to meet with friends like every hour and in between, I'm making new friends.

Its ridiculous. And probably the coolest thing that's ever happened to me.

I feel like its still summer, but not the kind of summer that you quickly learn to hate, the kind of summer that is full of scheduled activities that you love to do.

So the main point here is, I'm able to spend a lot less time dreading school and doing school and hating school.

So a lot more time to enjoy being a teenager and having like .2 responsibilities.

-Michelle

College

At first I thought this semester was going to be pretty hectic but then I thought back to last semester and decided that I'm better off. For a sample of my feelings on least semester, let's take a trip down memory lane by reading a choice excerpt from my journal in the first few days of classes:

Almost every class I have this semester is so full of work that I'm already starting to hyperventilate a little [...] I am completely, one hundred percent screwed. I'm going to look back on this semester as the Era of All-Nighters, I can just feel it.

I only pulled one all-nighter that semester, but still. It was bad. So this semester's going to be better, even though I'm not taking any Happy Fun Times classes like choir (was supposed to be Happy Fun Times, but wasn't actually).

The problem with French is going to be my speaking. I have fine comprehension, certainly better than many people in my class, but my speaking is horrible. It's interesting to realize how my different methods of learning Korean and French are affecting my aptitude - colloquial Korean isn't too hard for me to navigate and I can speak it fine for my level of study, but reading and writing it is a real struggle. But I don't even know what colloquial French is. I don't even know what words are okay to leave out if I want to abbreviate a sentence.

Gosh language is hard. But I love it to death. I'm going to have fun in this French class if it kills me. Even though the teacher is teaching the class in French, he talks pretty slowly and clearly so I didn't have any major embarrassing moments of uncomprehension. And I'll be darned if I'm outdone by the only guy in the class.

Freshmen are everywhere these days. I heard there are more freshman than ever this year because the president is trying to make up for lost state funding by increasing enrollment (read: accepting students the college would not normally have accepted and making them pay higher tuition), so I guess that would account for the dining halls being overrun by a den of thieves and scoundrels. I have been brainwashed into bemoaning the existence of freshmen, because that is what everyone does (but really, they can be pretty clueless sometimes). But it turns out that upperclassmen aren't all that great themselves. So far I've heard an inordinate number of people badmouthing our C.A. in the hallway, which is dumb because she's super sweet and only means well.

Basically college is the same rat race as ever. It is not really a rat race but it can seem pretty arbitrary a lot of the time. Last night at Campus Christian House I met the first person I have ever encountered who said all he wants is to get out of college and become a functioning, useful member of society. We high-fived over our common goals and went our separate ways to conquer the world. Strangely enough I have not met anyone else who has admitted to feeling the same way. I guess everyone else is taking advantage of their last years of low responsibility.

Amy

P.S. Korean phrases! Here is one that I was reminded of while sitting in Government class today:

이젠 위인들이 무섭지

We're afraid of greater men now 

College

Ah, well.

I have made a video so that I don't have to explain and explain and explain. Also so that when I'm 90 I can look back and be like,
"Ah, so thats what happened."
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9xzc16YTblU&feature=youtu.be

-Michelle

Sisters, Sisters

Caring, sharing, every little thing we're wearing.

Well, I'll tell you we don't do much sharing. Neither of us can really stand it. Though we often give things to each other, sharing isn't really something we can tolerate.

But anyway, as you may not know, Amy went to school on Wednesday.

Since Thursday morning we have exchanged about 300 texts. In three days.

Today dad saw an old picture of us together and said, "You girls used to be inseparable"

Just because we watch the same show in different rooms or are both on tumblr in different rooms  in the same house and talking through text and facebook doesn't mean we're not inseparable.

I think the ability to communicate just as well via text as in person with someone is a really unusual skill. At least, I don't have it with many people. (I'm sorry, Angela. Talking via text is really hard with you. Don't worry, we'll skype while you're in Korea.)

And that's all I have to say.

Even though we both have phone this semester, you can still expect quite a few interesting horrible-drawing and stream-of-conscienceness posts.

-Michelle

Why Flossing with Braces is the Worst Thing Ever

Now I recently had someone tell me that when the situation is dire, they floss with their hair.
I can only imagine what kind of dire situation I would have to be in to do that, and it the kind of situation that involves a desert island, no other humans, and a gum infection.

Why would I ever clean my pearly whites with a strand of  biomaterial that has been on my person for who knows how many years? Not to mention its been bleached and bleached and re-bleached, and dyed. That probably makes it cleaner, but its still growing out of your body, and as far as I'm concerned, nothing that is growing out of your body is, at any given time, completely 100% clean.

But anyway, the conversation reminded me that I haven't really flossed my teeth in two and half years, and you know why?
The answer to all my mouth problems, BRACES.

These chains that enslave me stop me from doing just about anything.

In the beginning, before I learned my lesson, I tried to be a good little girl, and floss. But oh ho ho, did I learn.

I can, pretty easily, floss the bottom 13% of the gap between my teeth. And guess where all the stuff is that you need to floss? the top 87%.

Its like i literally have to sew. To do it. It's like I have to string it between wires and above and below brackets to floss for real.
(I would never sew those two colors of material together with that color of thread. I don't make fox paws like that.)

But its not just like sewing,

There is a small, very very small space between the two brackets, below the wire. Its relatively (extremely) hard to get a limp string through the space, and I don't always have the kind of time it takes.

So, as a result, I am never able to floss my teeth (but do not be alarmed, there are other ways of cleaning your teeth.

NOT with your hair.)

-Michelle

P.S. I got a left handed mouse instead of a touch pad. Can you tell?
P.P.S. Yes, I did get pink tips in my hair. I try hard to keep everything accurate, as you can see.