Saturday, September 27, 2008

a lesson in galavanting

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Sup. Sorry I didn't post from the booth, i got distracted by all of the nothing i was doing. Better luck next time. It's Saturday afternoon here and the weekend is rolling along greatly. Heeeere's the recap!

I have no class on Fridays so the party starts Thursday for me. (For those of you unsure of how the class selection process works: First semester of your freshman year you are assigned classes by your advisor, but for the rest of college you choose your own courses online. Don't like waking up early? Sign up for afternoon classes. Don't like going to class, period? Don't sign up for classes. Cinchy.) So on Thursday after school Christie and I went on a scootering trip down to The Cliffs to go swimming. My foot almost burned off from the heat of the brakes, so that felt really good. We stuck the camera in my shirt with the lens poking out the top to get awesome speed shots going down the hill but all we captured was the underside of my chin. Then we started putting the camera on cars and that worked until it fell off one and I got scared and stopped. Over summer I made my camera into an underwater camera by putting it in 2 ziploc bags with scotch tape and then took it in the pool. It didn't work for 3 days after. Now I am cautious. Anyway though, after scootering we were dying of thirst so we took the on campus shuttle back up the hill and then went to Chili's to get bottomless strawberry lemonades. We sat at the bar and pounded them, one after another, slamming our fists on the bar each time we needed a refill. It's unlimited, so you pretty much have to do that. I made a video of our trip plus some other stuff from this year so far. Bon appetit:


(song: The Devil Never Sleeps, by Iron & Wine)


Other things you may have seen in the video: Super Hero Bowling, a game of Around the World played at the basketball hoop in front of my apartment, garage sale cabinet loading.


Friday
I went thrift store shopping with Kelsey and got lots of treasures: old leather belt, frying pan with a rooster on it, dictionary, moroccan table cloth, and i almost got a toaster that prints Mickey on your toast but it was 7.99 and that is a rip. Oh and I got a photo album to put my Europe pictures in, but there were already pictures in it from the previous owners. I call them Debra and Jonathon and they apparently had a fantastic trip to Washington DC. Here is their best photo, in my opinion:


Nice jelly bean hat Jonny




That night a group of 12 of us went to Critical Mass. The last Friday of every month, thousands of people meet at the fountain in Balboa Park and then mob the streets on bikes. It is nuts, there is no set path... whoever's in the front of the mass chooses where to turn and the whole pack follows. Cars have to dive out of the way and we go through red lights and scream stuff and just generally take over. It is seriously awesome, it feels like you're part of some huge movement and you end up in like every part of San Diego at some point. I didn't bring my camera but here's a picture of a past Critical Mass. But imagine way way way more people. And while you're at it, imagine me doing a flip off a ramp.





About 2 hours into the ride I was lagging, man. Then some stupid idiot wearing shants (shorts pants combo) and a Fubu shirt hit me with his mini bike and I crashed. I skidded on the ground on my shoulder and got grease all over my shoes and body. Fashion Tip: don't do that. If anyone had seen it they would have been crying. Luckily I was pretty much at the very end by this point so no one saw. But the downside of that is that no one was there in general. Therefore I lost the path AND my friends and I didnt have a phone hahahha I've been in better situations actually. Juan from Walgreens let me use his cell phone to call my mom... to get Kelseys phone number... so she could call a different Kelsey... so that Kelsey could call my friend Taylor to tell him I crashed so they wouldn't be looking for me. While I was on the phone, a girl with short hair came in and Juan called her Sir. Poor Juan, it could happen to anyone. My chain was all out of whack so my roommates came all the way to North Park to pick me up in a car since they hadn't come on the ride. Bless their hearts. I chatted amicably with Juan while I waited for them on a handicap go cart and he gave me a water bottle and a paper towel so I could try to make myself look less like a sweaty girl with a tomato for a head. Juan will be in my wedding.

Despite the loser ending to the night, Critical Mass was SO fun and I'm definitely doing it again. GO BIG OR GO HOME. or in this case, fall off your bike and go home.


This morning Kels and I woke up at 6:30 (we like to do this) to go to breakfast in Ocean Beach. We got there right when The Old Townhouse opened at 7:00... an accomplishment. It is my favorite breakfast place (located on Newport Avenue in OB... look for a blue and white sign that says Restaurant) because there are plenty of old men wearing red suspenders and trucker hats, and they have kook waitresses who make airplane noises when they refill your coffee. Plus it used to be cheap, but the nostalgia seals the deal. Many cups of coffee and two veggie omelets with toast later, we set off on the early riser's Garage Sale Circuit. We got a cabinet for 5 bucks and we are going to paint it purple and use it to start a furniture refurbishment business. (Fast forward 3 months... its still sitting in the courtyard). On an unrelated note, I forgot to take off my pajama shorts when I put on my dress this morning and have been wearing them all day. It is the second day in a row that I've done that, which I think is noteworthy.

Here are some pictures from this morning:











Anyway, I wish you luck in your endeavors this weekend!

Until we meet again,
Kristen


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Wednesday, September 24, 2008

and so it continues

Hi again. With the pressure of The First Entry lifted, I feel comfortable enough to speak with you freely. I'm Kristen and I'm a junior in the Fashion Merchandising program at Point Loma. I'll take this opportunity to make myself look legitimate. Here are a few things you should know:
  • I grew up in Rancho Bernardo (30 minutes away from Point Loma) where I played the baritone in the high school marching band and went camping with my Girl Scout troop (TROOP 8113 REPRESENT) until I graduated.
  • I know for a fact that Harry Potter isn't in any way connected to Satan and neither is Ron. Snape I won't vouch for, but I wish him the best.
  • I spent last semester studying abroad in Rome and it changed my life. I wasn't actually very cool before I left and now I completely am. Living in another country increased my legitimacy by at least 50%. I'll devote a blog to my Italian life one of these days so you can see what I mean.
  • I love adventures and I love life. My aunt gave me a journal with the lyrics to "I Hope You Dance" (the hit single by the renowned Leeann Womack) written inside and, although the tune of the song makes me actively nauseous, they are the words I live by. I always scream them at people when they're lying in bed or on the couch (or similar) and I'm trying to force them into doing something they don't want to do. "Seize the Day" would also work.
  • I am a direct descendant of Pocahontas. (the term 'direct' is used loosely here, but i am related)
  • I go to the best school on the planet. Point Loma is exactly like The O.C. except with all the trashy drunk nasty people cut out. So basically take the opening credits of that show and it looks like Point Loma. What I'm trying to say is that we're next to the ocean. More like on it. Practically in it.
I have a lot to say and I'm anxious to start saying it. This blog is not going to simply be a log of my grueling exam schedule and the daily Caf offerings (although the return of Pita Day will definitely make the cut, should that day arrive)... I have big plans for the semester. Dangerous plans. "You're only young once, but you can be immature forever"... just keep that in mind.

On Friday I work the Info Booth, which is a little desk inside Nicholson Commons where I sit and answer people's questions while "providing a sunny presence" as my boss Joe says. I get an average of 1 question per day and besides that my main responsibility is to write the weather report on the white board. I'll try to drop in and shoot the breeze with you from there since I'll probably (read: definitely) have some time on my hands. Until then...

Your new friend,
Kristen


P.S.
Here are a few pictures to give you a feel for things around here.


my roommate christie (left) and i autotiming ourselves on The Cliffs


Super Hero Bowling... school hosts this and its realllly fun. we're Rosie the Riveters (Rosies the Riveter... um...) and that's Michael Phelps on the right. green shirt is anyone's guess...


friends at Mission Beach. (i'm 3rd from the right, selfishly elbow blocking christie)


the nightly drive to Fiji Yogurt. my window is down...


my other roommate kelsey and i paint our kitchen table


midnight kickball on the soccer field


the funniest thing ive ever seen in my life


The Greek, our on-campus amphitheater


a view of my apartment. note the anti-lamp on the side table... its been so long now that we're deliberately refusing to put a bulb in it.


mustache TV. close but nope

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and so it begins

HELLO WORLD.

with love,
Kristen