This Here's the Wildest Ride in the Wilderness!
I've been incredibly productive today, journal. I've cleaned, I mean really cleaned--even the window sills! I've laundered. I was able to finally finish my taxes because I finally received an important document in the mail (finally!). I wrote three letters. I dug up vaccination records that were hidden better than the ark of the covenant and Kate Gosselin's sense of shame combined. I researched a million and one things for ETSU and my move: housing, graduate assistant positions, apartments, why the hell there's still a hold on my account, class registration, deadlines, the entire 2010-2011 academic calendar, etc., etc. As such, my mind is reeling with too information and I feel like I'm Brendan Wallace on white wine and adderall. Before I start harassing late-night McDonald's employees and getting lightning bolt tattoos, I need to unload some random shit. Then I'll share some potentially interesting things.
- ETSU is a dry campus. Really, ETSU?
- I need to find out if ETSU is in a dry county, because if so, mama's gonna need to find a speakeasy or smuggle in some hooch from the get-go.
- I consider the above pertinent move-in information.
- I'm seriously considering applying for a GA position with the (get ready for it) Department of Appalachian Studies and Bluegrass, Old Time and Country Music Program.
- I'm leaving Orlando for Appalachia. APPALACHIA.
- Please see SNL Appalachian Hospital sketch.
- Speaking of SNL: I have seen Brownie Husband. I have seen my pathetic future.
- I have to go to Colonial and get them to release my HS transcripts (AGAIN) to Valencia because for some reason VCC cannot get their shit together and never sent my VCC 'scripts to ETSU.
- I'm starting to feel slightly panic-y about all things grad school because apparently, deadlines aren't important in the mountains. Everything is all, "we encourage you to apply early..." but then doesn't have a deadline. Not for housing, not for GA positions, not for taking care of holds on your account, or even when to start registering for classes. Even the program director is all, "Oh, we'll take care of that when it comes around." Whaaaat? Simpler folk, I expect.
ANYWAY. That's that. Here's what I originally wanted to post: what I've been reading over the past two weeks or so, just in case anyone cares or needed a few suggestions.
+ Who is Mark Twain by Mark Twain himself. An amazing, never been published collection of what Twain considered his "literary remains." A gift from my Puffin, I've been reading this on and off since February. Hilarious. Sassy. Insightful. Get to know Samuel Clemens and you won't be disappointed.
+ Watchmen by Alan Moore. Most likely not new to any of you, but my first foray into graphic novels. I was quite pleasantly surprised by how much I loved it. Moore is typically lauded for the psychological depth of his characters in the novel, and I whole-heartedly agree with the critics there. However, what struck me most was Chapter IV, and how beautifully Moore constructs Dr. Manhattan's flashbacks. Top notch.
+ Life of Pi by Yann Martel. Something I've been wanting to read ever since I heard Esra Mirze mention it a few years ago. An odyssey that explores faith, spirituality, courage, and the reader's own willingness to believe, on the great expanse of the Pacific Ocean.
+ The Zombie Survival Guide by Max Brooks. Not going to lie, this is a bathroom book. Good for a laugh when you've got nothing else to do, but not much else--Brooks is well aware that he's cashing in on the current zombie trend and he milks it for all it's worth. Truth time: it's not worth much.
+ Still Life with Woodpecker by Tom Robbins. Relentlessly recommended by Choate, I finally sat down with this one. It took me a few days to digest--I recommend approaching Robbins' dizzying prose with time to spare. He is self-indulgent to a fault, and a bit manic at that, but his perspective is refreshing and hilarious. And, he taught me a new word for vagina, so cheers to that.
+ Coraline by Neil Gaiman. While I don't think it deserving of its comparisons to the Narnia series or Alice, I did find Coraline to be an excellent little introduction to the gothic genre for kids.
+ The Passionate Fact: Storytelling in Natural History and Cultural Interpretation by Susan Strauss. A nice introduction to what I hope to be studying at ETSU. Strauss is a storyteller for the National Parks service, and she provides some amazing insight to the power of story when used for preservation. Love.
Aaaaaand I think that's it. I've started American Psycho (Bret Easton Ellis) but I'm only a handful of pages in, so I'll reserve judgement on that.
- ETSU is a dry campus. Really, ETSU?
- I need to find out if ETSU is in a dry county, because if so, mama's gonna need to find a speakeasy or smuggle in some hooch from the get-go.
- I consider the above pertinent move-in information.
- I'm seriously considering applying for a GA position with the (get ready for it) Department of Appalachian Studies and Bluegrass, Old Time and Country Music Program.
- I'm leaving Orlando for Appalachia. APPALACHIA.
- Please see SNL Appalachian Hospital sketch.
- Speaking of SNL: I have seen Brownie Husband. I have seen my pathetic future.
- I have to go to Colonial and get them to release my HS transcripts (AGAIN) to Valencia because for some reason VCC cannot get their shit together and never sent my VCC 'scripts to ETSU.
- I'm starting to feel slightly panic-y about all things grad school because apparently, deadlines aren't important in the mountains. Everything is all, "we encourage you to apply early..." but then doesn't have a deadline. Not for housing, not for GA positions, not for taking care of holds on your account, or even when to start registering for classes. Even the program director is all, "Oh, we'll take care of that when it comes around." Whaaaat? Simpler folk, I expect.
ANYWAY. That's that. Here's what I originally wanted to post: what I've been reading over the past two weeks or so, just in case anyone cares or needed a few suggestions.
+ Who is Mark Twain by Mark Twain himself. An amazing, never been published collection of what Twain considered his "literary remains." A gift from my Puffin, I've been reading this on and off since February. Hilarious. Sassy. Insightful. Get to know Samuel Clemens and you won't be disappointed.
+ Watchmen by Alan Moore. Most likely not new to any of you, but my first foray into graphic novels. I was quite pleasantly surprised by how much I loved it. Moore is typically lauded for the psychological depth of his characters in the novel, and I whole-heartedly agree with the critics there. However, what struck me most was Chapter IV, and how beautifully Moore constructs Dr. Manhattan's flashbacks. Top notch.
+ Life of Pi by Yann Martel. Something I've been wanting to read ever since I heard Esra Mirze mention it a few years ago. An odyssey that explores faith, spirituality, courage, and the reader's own willingness to believe, on the great expanse of the Pacific Ocean.
+ The Zombie Survival Guide by Max Brooks. Not going to lie, this is a bathroom book. Good for a laugh when you've got nothing else to do, but not much else--Brooks is well aware that he's cashing in on the current zombie trend and he milks it for all it's worth. Truth time: it's not worth much.
+ Still Life with Woodpecker by Tom Robbins. Relentlessly recommended by Choate, I finally sat down with this one. It took me a few days to digest--I recommend approaching Robbins' dizzying prose with time to spare. He is self-indulgent to a fault, and a bit manic at that, but his perspective is refreshing and hilarious. And, he taught me a new word for vagina, so cheers to that.
+ Coraline by Neil Gaiman. While I don't think it deserving of its comparisons to the Narnia series or Alice, I did find Coraline to be an excellent little introduction to the gothic genre for kids.
+ The Passionate Fact: Storytelling in Natural History and Cultural Interpretation by Susan Strauss. A nice introduction to what I hope to be studying at ETSU. Strauss is a storyteller for the National Parks service, and she provides some amazing insight to the power of story when used for preservation. Love.
Aaaaaand I think that's it. I've started American Psycho (Bret Easton Ellis) but I'm only a handful of pages in, so I'll reserve judgement on that.