Good-Bye To You

That's a Michelle Branch song that I guess I find totally relevant to this day. Today, I leave for Ireland. Can you believe it? It still hasn't sunk in yet, so I can't either. Matt's playing with the luggage tags, putting in the new addresses. Daisy and Buddy are confused. Mom's trying to get everything organized. Carmen's trying to stay awake. I was the last one up. Mom said I was sleeping so soundly that the others were easily able to make lots of noise without waking me up. I still can't believe it! I suppose I should get going now, since we are just about ready to load the car.

Lots of love, Christi -- the craziest girl about to be in Ireland :)

The Day After Tomorrow

I can't believe it. I'm totally not ready. I don't know the lingo, the embassy, or even where my own socks are. Ok, I do know the last one, in the black luggage. The fact that check-ins aren't weighed or even filled not to mention that my carry-on items are scattered in several bins has not escaped my attention. At least I got some new shoes!

This morning after Sarah left (we both overslept...oops) I cleaned and packed and sorted and folded and put away stuff. In fact, stuff still needs to be done, but it's mostly that I didn't vacuum (it bugs me) and some things are still in the living room waiting to be picked up. I didn't have to wait to be picked up though.

Mom, Matt, Carmen, and I went out to Half Price Books (I got a hardcover "The DaVinci Code" at half price!), Rockys for lunch (yummy Chicago pizza...sausage, tomatoes, spices, no sauce) and the mall where I got a calendar and day planner for half off. To JcPenny's where I finally found a Badger sweatshirt I liked (on sale) and some new tennis shoes (also on sale). Before Mom goes to spill the beans, yes, we now own the same pair of shoes (also on sale). Well, we each have our own pair, but whatever. I tried them on and liked them, so she tried them on and liked them and found another pair in the exact same size. If one left from one pair and one right from the other gets lost, at least we'll still have one pair of shoes (and in the same size too)!

Tomorrow's my last day at home and we really haven't much planned. Daisy vet visit is on the list, as well as calling some peoples. And finish sorting, laundry, packing....

It never ends.

Lots of love, Christi and Oscar (I've got to take him some place warmer because he's just too cold to eat) with Mom, Matt, Carmen, Buddy, and Daisy

Basketball with Sarah and Bucky!

We didn't make it to Merl and Ev's yesterday, and considering the terrible colds that Matt and I now have, it's probably a good thing that we didn't spread it. Matt was pretty out of it this morning because he has it worse. While Mom and I went to Madison for my eye and neuro appointments, Matt stayed home to get better. After the eye appointment, which dilated my eyes so that I had "the sight of a 50 year old" according to the optometrist, I went directly to the neuro appointment, where the doctor also looked at my eyes. Since he didn't get to dilate any eyes before he examined them, mine were the largest eyes he had seen in a long time. Also, his mother or his mother-in-law was born in the county above Galway in Ireland....small world, huh?

Tonight, after Mom picked up Carmen and dropped me off, I cleaned up a bit, making my own bed (which I fully expect not sleeping in for 5 months) and finally emptying the dryer. Sarah and I went to Ian's for dinner...mmmmmm...yummy pizza and close to the Kohl Center. We got GREAT SEATS. It felt like you could reach out and touch the players. The people around us were really great - made us laugh lots. They were pretty tame compared to the football student section and indeed, there were several non-students sitting there. We commented on the game and the cute players playing it. It was really fun. We came back to my house after the Badgers won to watch movies. First we watched "The Notebook". We sniffled, but not because we were crying...we both have really bad colds. Grandpa also has a bad cold -- perhaps we all caught a present we didn't want during our family Christmas? We finished off "The Stepford Wives" and are now watching "Twister". We are keeping ourselves busy and generally out of trouble. I've set up Mom's new page so please do check it out (and often soon, because it will take her a bit to learn how to use it-:D )!!

Well, I'm getting too caught up in the movie, so I'm going to go plug this back in. Lots of love, Christi

"At Least My Hair Smells Good" --Mom

That, by the way, is a direct quote from my mother. Today we went to the hair salon and got some hair cuts (or is it "styling"? I'm used to a barber, so this is a bit higher standard than I usually get). She used shampoo and a nice mousse in Mom's hair so she's been smelling her hair all night. Buddy likes it too.

I got a crash course in euros and pence/pounds today from Matt. He's so sweet, he's loaning me his spare change so that I'll have a few pounds to go on when I get there. I'm soooo way not ready for this. Heck, I'm not even sure what I've got to pack yet!

Sounds like we'll be visiting Grandpa, Merl and Ev, and Monnie tomorrow. Sounds like fun! And full of fudge (Ev makes FANTASTIC fudge!). Not that I need any more sweets, especially since Matt bought me a whole box for Christmas. I hope he eats more of it, because if I do I won't be able to fit my bum in the airplane seat. Wow, I leave on SATURDAY!!!!!!

Lots of love, Christi and Oscar (still not happy with me) and Mom (sleeping), Matt ("conquering" the world - his computer game world, that is), Buddy, and Daisy

Merry/Happy Christmas, Feliz Navidad!!!!

cDepending on where you are, Christmas can be either merry, happy, or feliz, so I thought I'd cover all three. Well, there are many more choices than that, but that's what was said around here.

Buddy, Daisy and I tried to stay up late last night to catch Santa Claus (we do it every year), but my eyes became droopy at about 1:30AM and when I awoke again at 10AM the presents were there. Santa, practical as always, gave lots of gifts like laundry detergent and tootise rolls. I really had a wonderful Christmas. We unwrapped presents, stayed in our pjs, ate breakfast at noon, played Scrabble (I won with the 42 point "weaned" which had a triple letter score and a double word score in there somewhere), and Operation. Poor Operation patient "Sam" with his three doctors. Dr. "Long John" Makos (aka Matt) who wears his long johns on the outside of his clothes, Dr. "Fuzzy slipper" Makos who was eating an orange at the Operating table, and Dr. Mom "Giggles" Makos who kept trying to make us laugh so she could win. Poor "Sam" who, according to Dr. Mom, has 12 kids, 32 grandkids, and 6 wives to think about whilest we were operating even though he isn't...umm...anatomically correct. Hahahahahahahaaa....

The rest of the day Mom and I have spent reading books and watching Christmas movies - most notably "Single Santa Seeking Mrs. Claus" and it's sequel "Meet the Santas." Both are light-hearted stories of the son of Santa finding and marrying his Mrs. Claus. Completely unrealistic, and yet so much fun to believe at the same time.

During the movies, Aunt Sharon called. She and Mom mostly talked about stuff and next Christmas which will hopefully find her family here for the holidays. Daniel hasn't had much experience with snow and never a big family-Christmas celebration like we do. I'm so excited to have them next year.

Only 6 days until I leave. I'm not packed, and today....well, I'm in no hurry to do much of anything today. I did start a bit of the family calendar though :)

Lots of love, Christi and Oscar (with Mom, Matt, Buddy, and Daisy!)

HAPPY CHRISTMAS EVE!! I almost got beat by a 5-year old!

hooray for time with the family! I admit I slept in.....a lot. We were heading down to Darlington by 10:30AM after we picked up a last-minute present. We ate and ate and opened lots of presents. Mom got baby swiss cheese for Christmas.....which we of course ate. The babies are growing so fast! Jarren and Braelyn are about the same size, even though B's almost a year older. I got Lands End shirts, CD-RWs, a gift card, and lots of hugs for Christmas.

Yesterday I had several visitors before I left, including Michelle, who gave me two beautiful pairs of earrings and a necklace that kinda looks like a globe with it's deep blue and green spots, John Anderson from work who left me a fudge recipie and some toffee which Mom quickly stole, and Taffy who opened her birthday gifts from me as it was her birthday yesterday. She had come back to town for some of Preston's things.

The Roto Ready man ended up ripping out half of the downstairs bathroom, making the semi-plugged clog into an actual plugged clog (instead of just a blockage that slowed down but didn't stop the flow of water) that caused the water in the washer to back up so that it leaked through the floor and onto the breaker box in the basement and then he left a mess everywhere. Like, dirty floor in the kitchen as well as the bathroom. Mom, Matt, Carmen, and I went to Applebees shortly after that, then we went to the mall. BIG MISTAKE! There were four lanes of traffic and sometimes it was too hard to get into the other lane not to mention turning left across two more. Matt actually had to get out of the car, cross three lanes, find out that the store didn't have what Carmen needed, cross back over three lanes, and get back into the car. We had only moved 150 feet in the 5 minutes he was gone. Crazy crazy.

Today was sooo much fun. Kelsey got this "Dora the Explorer" memory game, and we ended up tieing because a piece was missing. I shouldn't have let her get some of those matches.......I was almost beat by a 5 year old! Braelyn's just the cutest little thing ya ever did see, especially in her Santa hat. Lexus was on a sugar high for most of the time because she kept stealing my M&Ms that Erin and Michelle had personalized for me. She tried to help me during the memory game, but since she didn't quite get the rules of the game (she just wanted to take the cards) she didn't actually help much. At least there was one person there who wasn't accusing me of cheating (Ashley and Jessie were cheering for Kelsey and therefore picking on me). Jarren's just a dear, staying awake for most of the day and getting passed from person to person without much fuss. And he's got REALLY CHUBBY CHEEKS! Matt's been fired as photographer since all he tries to do is take terrible pictures of me. Alas, I'm the owner of the camera, so many of his pictures are going to be deleted. He wants bad ones of me for the calendar, but since I'm the creator of the family calendar, I've got power to say what goes in. HAHAHAHAHA!! Sarah and Kristen got digital cameras for Christmas so I expect many many more pictures for the calendars. In fact, I'm convinced I should start tonight and get December done. With so many great pictures to choose from, I want to figure out the ones I'm going to use. That really silly one of Kathy will most likely be in there too :)

Oh Alex, Sharon, George, and Daniel - I wish you could've been there! I'll put up some pictures when I get my own computer going.

Lots of love, Christi and Oscar (sitting on the desk right next to the computer)...and Mom, Matt, Buddy, and Daisy!!!!!

packing and cleaning

I'm taking a bit of a bit of a break from packing and cleaning to enjoy just sitting in our living room. Last night I didn't do much - made a couple of frames, opened a couple of gifts (a really cute stationary set from Erin which I like so much I don't want to use, personalized M&Ms - I'll take a picture to post soon so you know what I mean), watched a couple of movies, and generally vegged. Now I've got to pack for home and trip, clean up a bit, and put stuff away so no one trips on it while I'm gone. Mom will be around at 1ish. The Roto Ready man's here to fix the toliey. I need sleep. It's allllll good! Lots of love, Christi and Oscar (not so happy b/c I'm cleaning his bowl which means he is in a little cup that he doesn't like. Oh yea, the water really was pink - how??)

DONE!

I finished my exam-I think it went ok. I was going to take a nap, but the guy from Tallard came to fix the downstairs bathroom. Sink's always dripping and the toliey's plugged. Don't look at me as the culprit..I hate using that bathroom b/c it's always cold and too small. I have a feeling that it was the boys before us and with our constant use we've made it worse. Tallard guy says that the pipes aren't frozen, so that is good news.

I've got soooo much to do. I want to clean before my cousin comes so it looks nice. Also, the girls are talking about having a get-together for New Years and it'd be nice to have the place nice for guests. I am also cleaning in the hope that we won't attract any critter guests while we are gone. Then there's the packing both for my trip and for break. I've pulled some clothing items already and I haven't done laundry (I'm saving it for Moogie) so I'm starting to run out of pants......these ones are old, straight-legged jeans that I haven't worn since cleaning the grills at work this summer. Yeah, that's kinda sad. Thankfully I'll be going home tomorrow which means fresh laundry for Saturday, aka CHRISTMAS with the SMITH FAMILY!!!!!!!! I'm soooo excited for Christmas. It just simply can't come soon enough!

I was hoping to apply for aid to cut down our heating costs this winter, but you have to make an appointment and they are booked solid until March. Guess we are on our own. I should've been bad this year so then I could've gotten coal for Christmas to warm up our house. Natural gas would be even better, although a bit harder to wrap all of those jugs necessary to heat our house.

Hmmm...to be productive or to look at what's on HBO.....such a tough choice. Meh - "Win a Date with Tad Hamilton." I really like Topher Grace in it though.

Lots of love, Christi and Oscar (still freezing, about to get his bowl cleaned)


P.S. Thank you to the roommate who didn't do her chores before she left and complained about mine!

last final

you know, if you didn't know a final was a test, that could be a very confusing title.

I finished my other exam earlyish last night (well, before the buzzer anyway) and picked up my ticket so now I've got 2 b-ball tix for the 12/28 game for Sarah and me! Woo hoo. I wish I didn't have this final, but only because I want to stay at home, get packing and picking-up and general stuff done. I'm tired of studying!!!

I'll probably write more later. Right now, I'm just procrastinating. I'd take a nap but I told someone I'd study with them. Silly me.....I'd rather nap than study.

Heck, I'd rather clean toliets at Culvers than study.....well, almost.

Lots of love, Christi and Oscar

Last day :(

Today was my last day at work. I spent it separating out coffee pot lids, relabeling those that needed it and throwing away I surprisingly didn't cry, but the whole leaving-thing really hasn't hit me yet. I handed in my work key and lock....I'm officially a civilian until summer.
The heating bill was crazy high. I'm going to check out and see if we can get some help b/c we are poor college students on a budget. And loans. And even though some of us have found the money to go abroad, it allllll must be paid back :(

Moogie was in town for lunch and brought me KFC. I gave her my cold food stuff and I'll take home the rest on Friday. So much to do, but I suppose I should work on my tests first. Two down, two to go, including one in 1 1/2 hrs!

Orion was very kind and spent over a half an hour playing on my computer to find a good program for converting protected WMA music files so I can put them on my iPod -- I have no Christmas tunes until I do!

I should get back to studying. The girls around me are in the same class and they've done a whole lot more than I have.....do they know something I do not?

I'M LEAVING NEXT SATURDAY!!

I'M TAKING A FINAL IN 1 1/2 HOURS!

I should go. Lots of love, Christi (surrounded by other more studious students studying their studies..hehehe..alliteration!)

p.s. i've painted my nails already. if I'm not working, then wearing nail polish is ok. I'm not working. Nail polish is ok. Oh my, I'M NOT WORKING! First time in a long time. WOO HOO!

My life is filled with counting days

All of the following include today because the day's not over yet. Not even close :(

Days until done with finals: 2
Days until going home: 3
Days until Christmas: 5

Days until Basketball game with Sarah: 8

Days until trip: 11

One final down, three to go! I ran out of white printer paper, but thank goodness Heidi was online and let me have two pieces (that's right, TWO!) so I could finish printing. I'll hand that in today after a trip to the bank for a wire transfer to Ros Geal and some cash for the basketball tickets I bought and now must pay for. Cousin Sarah and I will be going to the men's b-ball game v. Lousiana Tech on Dec 28th and I'm sooooooo excited!

Last night I met one of the girls I'll be flying out with. She seems very nice and also is very excited about going. I'll be in a group of four and we'll be staying at a hostel in Dublin until the 4th (no worries, locked storage spaces for luggage) and then we'll head over to Galway. My goodness....it's that close to going??

So much left on my list to do. Will I ever get it all done? I'll probably end up going home on Friday so I can get more cleaning and moving stuff around here. It also means I might have a little more space to put stuff. Mom's up tomorrow but I'm unsure whether I'll have anything ready for her. Ack! It's just so crazy around here! I've got a final tonight at 5PM so I'm going to go study for that before I head out. Hope your to do list is shorter than mine and that you get it all done!

Lots of love, Christi and Oscar (just chillin)

A call from the TA may save the day

I was having the hardest time answering this question for my final essay when my TA (who I couldn't meet with due to scheduling issues) called me back. Apparently the prof (I love this prof but his tests are really really crazy hard) had been HINTING but never actually said what is a BIG part of the answer to the question, especially the way I'm trying to answer it. Thank goodness the TA gave me some great ideas on what to add. Fingers crossed on the grade of this paper -- one of the most important finals of the year in how much it could influence my overall grade.

Taffy and Preston left yesterday. It was sooo weird last night while I tried to fall asleep - no barking, no snoring puppy noises, no scratching, chewing, whining, or Josh Groban. No 11:30PM/1:30AM outside run. I'm so lonely without my baby boy :( I did get a great night's sleep though.

Today it really started to hit home that I'm gone from here NEXT SATURDAY. Joe reminded me that I'd have to hand in my work key (opens a lock box) that I've had for a year and a half. Laura reminded me to take the stuff from my locker because they'll be cleaning RHC over the next few weeks and everything (and I mean EVERYTHING, from movable tables to huge freezers) will be moved, emptied, and cleaned in the process. They'll even be painting parts of the building, which is good since the dock will be closed down and the temp increased to encourage less chattering teeth and more work. In order to make sure I get to say good-bye to people, I'm heading in tomorrow over lunch and twice on Wednesday to catch peoples. I'm dreading saying good-bye. Do I have to? And what about my key? I met two of the new people, Jessica and Jamie. They both seem really nice and excited about working. I hope they are crazy, because that's kind of an unwritten requirement of the job ... Joe my boss will be working with ALL women students, because the only male student is leaving on Thursday. Hahahaha ... poor guy.

I've got so much stuff to remember I've got lists everywhere, including a master list taped up to the window that I cross off stuff when I can. So much to do!!!

Lots of love, Christi and Oscar (sleeping, yes he's still breathing)

P.S. A TA is a teaching assistant, leads discussion sections, grades papers, and generally is the person to talk to about much of anything in the class

Last event

Today was my last time working an event for 5 months. I worked for 2 hours making and pouring coffee. My pants, shirt, and shoes all smell like coffee now. Then we had the Law School graduation lunch to serve, with preset tables and beautiful roses. Clean-up will continue tomorrow morning when I head in at 8AM and work until noon. Wednesday is my last day, working 8-11AM and saying good-bye to everyone in the afternoon before my test (because they all work later than I).

Right now Taffy's preparing to head out and it really hits me that this could be the last time I see her and Preston. He's happily chewing up a Gatorade bottle he found in the yard while she makes arrangements to be picked up within. We won't even get to go to dinner to celebrate her birthday :( Without the puppy I'll have a lot more time to study, but no one to make me feel better when I'm done with my tests. Next time I see him he'll probably be fully grown. Now I really AM sad.

"Off the couch, Preston!"

I suppose I should play with the puppy for as long as I can and then study for as long as my eyes stay open.

Lots of love, Christi and Oscar (whose Christmas present will be a clean bowl come Thursday)

New Pictures

Ok, here's the deal. The first few are from a work lunch. Zondra used to work with me at Commissary and out at the cafe when catering had a little kiosk at the Pharmacy building all the way out by the UW Hospital. Rollie is one of our catering leads a.k.a. our driver and all around awesome guy. Spongebob is "the dock guy" who I've been working with all those early mornings, helping him get food checked in. His last day is next Friday and I'm very sad. He's going to the Union.....boo on Union catering, who makes fun of Housing catering. We are sooooooo way better, and they know it. We got quality and class. Even at 6AM.

The last few pictures are from our roommate Christmas party/Sunday tv show night. Preston wasn't allowed to open his presents (he would've been too excited) but he has eaten through most of the treats and broken the squeaker on his newest fuzzy teddy bear. My ducky (as shown) sits on the shelf near my bed, ready to greet me with a smile. Believe me, some mornings I really need one too.

Ok, must study.

Spongebob! 

Zondra 

Zondra and Rollie 

Me and Zondra! 

I got a ducky for Christmas! 

Me and Spongebob! 

Here's Laura! 

Taffy and Preston 

Heather's new best friend! 

Oh my bum!

I was taking Preston out last night before bed when I slipped on the first stair on the back porch and slid down the other two. Now I have a nice big bruise on my back (acutally, right across my surgery region) and a lower pain where I actually hit wood. My shoulder's also sore because I was trying to catch myself and kinda jarred it. Preston's fine. And I had just shovelled an hour before! Stupid snow.

Yesterday was the last day of class. Today I get to go to the doc's for labwork, go buy Erin's present, and meet with the girl I'm going to be staying with in Dublin.

In Dublin, the forcast is mid 40s to lower 50s for 10 days with showers scattered throughout that time period.

9 days to Christmas, 15 days before I leave.

Oh my, 15 days??!!

Lots of love, Christi and OScar (who is staring at himself again!)

Hooray!

Hooray for Mrs. George--she's going to be a mommy! Mrs. G was our awesomest high school teacher ever. She really cared and saw teaching as an opportunity to help others who will control the future someday while many of the others saw it as a job. And she the one who really made History and Poli Sci interesting. You could say that she was the one who helped me find my majors....I do say that! Anyway, I'm soooo sad that I won't be around for her baby shower :(

Hooray for Aer Lingus flight 124, which departs Chicago/O'Hare at 6:10PM on Saturday, Dec. 31st. I'm going with a few Madisonians and will be staying at Dublin for a few days before heading to Galway, where the real fun will begin.

Oh my goodness - tomorrow is the last last day of class (today being the first last day of class). Then it's finals, Christmas, and Ireland. I really can't believe it. ACK--Finals, people to call, things to arrange, etc!

Lots of love, Christi and Oscar

You know it's early when...

...the mats at Humanities aren't completely soaked so that the prints down the hallway are wet and dirty.

Today I saw a service dog in the hallways. It was amazingly calm despite the noise of the music department. The owner took the dog out into the courtyard to play in the sonw, which the dog calmly sniffed. It's hard to believe that Preston could be anything like this dog someday - especially because he loves to jump in the snow!

Well, lots to do today including a visit to my other advisor and anxiously awaiting the mail. And studying up for a debate this afternoon. It's allllll good!

Lots of love, Christi and Oscar

The Best of Intentions

The trip planning is going well. I'm currently contacting others from Madison to see if any of them would like to fly with me because it would be nice to have someone else for when we are both super-tired. So far, the people are either leaving from the Twin Cities or on the 31st (I'd prefer the 1st, more time at home). We'll see what happens, I'll be buying those this week.

It was my intention to catch up on homework this weekend, but the family calendar took much more time that I had thought. I'm still tweaking it after spending from about 6PM to 1:30AM on it yesterday/this morning. That's in addition to all the other hours I spend on it. I figure, if I got paid my usual $9.45/hr, I'd probably have $300 by now! That's not including weekend differential (to encourage people to work on the weekends, an extra $.75 for all). Hmmmmm....I should make this a business, come one and all and let me make you a family calendar for Christmas!!

Of course, I've got enough to do anyway. I'm caught up on two classes, close on a third, and completely scrooged on the fourth. Hmmmmm.....

Week was busy, lots of work and school and stuff. Not helpful, I know. I'll be out with Mom, Matt, and Carmen today for a little bit. Really, I only need butter and milk. I'm trying to eat all of the cold food I currently have, which is a trick since I'm rarely home (at least for lunch). No worries, I'll just feed some of it to Preston....or not. Haha...he's not supposed to have any people food, but he does like broccoli. And he's starting on the garbage thing. Don't know how to get him out of that fascination.

Trip to do:
buy tickets
call landlord
call consulate and register
find the list of stuff
pack for trip
Pack for home
call and get prescriptions filled
wait patiently (haha!) for my aid
and...
all that other stuff I've got to do

Oh yeah, and do well on my finals.


Not a problem! Now, back to tweaking this calendar thing! Lots of love, Christi and Oscar

Happy Birthday Laura!

Spent dinner out with the catering crew (see below) at Pizzaria Unos on State St. Yummy yummy. Left a big ol' tip b/c our servers were all awesome (and gave us a great discount).

You'd be so proud, I haven't had one ride to anyplace all day. Walked up Bascom, down to UW Housing offices, over to UHS, and then down to State St to look at an X-mas present. Liz Waters had a hard day - not one but two water mains broke, so the entire building had no water for at least 10 hours. The freezers went down as well, so they borrowed one of the catering trucks to keep everything cold until the freezers were back up. Taffy told me that she was the lucky one who got to put all of the stuff back. Thank goodness I just had my own little catering world to deal with. No busted mains, just me not getting to everything I needed to so people got upset with me. Oh well.

Suppose I should get back to homework and then crash. Lots of love, Christi and Oscar (happy boy - bought me "the Goonies" for Christmas...he's so thoughtful!)

P.S. I did something really hard. I said good-bye to Dan, my friend for 4 years. I can't be friends with him anymore because he doesn't want to be friends with me. It's kinda obvious when he doesn't call, e-mail, im or anything. He does delete my messages on his webpage. I'll keep his page posted on here b/c I'd hate to lose it.

The Catering Crew - me, erin, laura (the birthday girl), orion, and caroline 

Procrastination, part 2

I found the REAL Santa Claus

- he works at Mayfair Mall!

Yep, I should be doing homework. I will start as soon as I get done typing. Promise.

Today I went to U.S. Cellular, expecting them to tell me it was gone and all my phone numbers lost forever. Instead, she took the battery out, put it back in, and it came back to life. It'll probably happen again and again until it does finally die because it's rather old for a cell phone. Then I'll have to use the one Mom bought a while ago (that I broke the antenna on and doesn't have reception like mine does now). Oh well...at least it works for now.

The tree's up and pretty. Well worth the trip in the snow.

Stayed up until 3AM watching movies. Since we hadn't gotten back to my place until after 9PM I had a ton to do. Then the girls came home from their shopping trip and had rented movies. I wrote Christmas cards (finished today!) to hs teachers and friends' parents. Nice to spread some holiday cheer.

Lots of love, Christi and Oscar (){

Shoes! A man after my own heart. Too bad he's wooden....and way too old for me! (Mayfair Mall)

at least my flower's pretty!

So many things went wrong. Here's a recap:

To interview - got lost (badly, had to stop and ask for directions)

From interview to mall - a little lost (not bad)

During mall - winter storm advisory issued

From mall back to interstate - got lost (went wrong way on right road)

At Johnson Creek - A "wiser, more mature" person (aka Mom) explained the sock philosophy. You see, she only buys one kind of socks. This way, when one is ruined, she can still have the good one match the others. Instead of 10 pairs, she has 9.5. Although it makes complete sense, it's weird to articulate it. It is listed under this because it was completely embarrassing.

From Johnson Creek to Madison - roads really bad - 30MPH. I fell asleep.

Locked out of the house - I couldn't find my keys. I had just switched purses and I put them into a pocket I forgot existed. Ooops.

Forgot the tree - I forgot the Christmas tree in the back seat and ran down to Matt's place just in the nick of time only to find out that Mom was coming right over to drop it off. I went there "up the hill in freezing cold temperatures, winds that knocked me over, drifts up to my knees..." or however that story goes.

My phone died. I couldn't go off in any stores (that was ok though) and I couldn't call about the tree. If I had lost my keys, I wouldn't have been able to call my roommates either. Hope to fix it tomorrow.

The good (because there's always some good):
interview went well. it was the sister residence to the place I want to stay while in Ireland. very nice place. probably completely different from Galway. one thing they'll definately will have in common is that they are both Catholic. as in, there are chapels in the house.

the mall - Two city blocks. Two stories. Yep, that's the Mayfair Mall. It is sooo cool! Just riding up and down the escalators was a treat. We got some chocolates at the candy shop (yummy!), Mom's Harvard Business Review at the B&N, and lunch (with a real live pianist playing Christmas music!), shop-looking was fun!

Found Santa - he works in Mayfair Mall. Completely awesome looking. Poor guy, lots of crying kids.

good sales - I got a nice button down shirt, a warm polar tech, a new nice purse (instead of my old beat-up jean one), and a new long-sleeved shirt (great for layering) all for the price of the purse b/c 40%.

The sock philosophy. See above.

Got to see Linda too!!! The big question, is she working hard or hardly working?

The old man - While I put gas in the car and cleaned off the windows for the millionth time of the day, Mom helped a nice little old man get to hil car and cleaned off his windows. He had gone out for his customary cup of coffee and chat when the storm hit. Mom said he reminded her of great-grandma Mattie.

Helpful - gave tips to donut girl, the piano guy at the mall, the poor Salvation Army lady ringing the bell in the storm at Wal-Mart, and the light display people

The light display - I highly recommend driving through the light display on John Nolan Dr. Really really pretty. They ask for a donation and by the end you feel so happy that its worth what you have in your pockets. I have to go back and take pictures (my camera was in the trunk), especially the one where there's a lit statue of liberty in front and the capitol lit up in the back. Looks totally cool and patriotic.

Well, I've been doing not much productive. I'll go watch Bridget Jones 2 with the girls.

Lots of love, Christi and Oscar

Procrastination

Yep, I'm procrastinating. I prefer calling it "a break from papers". I did very little homework last night - I wanted to go somewhere but it was rather cold to walk much and no one with a car wanted to go anywhere so I was stuck at home with too much energy. When I finally did sit down to read, people came over/home from work and were really talkative. I went to bed early so I could be bright and cheery today.

I was bright and cheery today (hooray!). Now I've got class, and econ experiment (which you usually get paid for!), more class, some work (stamping boxes for exam treats to be stuffed on Thursday, see below), and then out to dinner with the girls and a guy named David. He's meeting Heather...she's really nervous. Apparently picked out her outfit days ago. Me, I was told that people are dressing up..aka I can't wear a sweatshirt. Darn, I just finished my laundry too! No worries, I'll look nice. Maybe I'll bring my new camera too!

Must jet off to class!
Lots of love, Christi and Oscar

Exam Treats
Many students feel the pressure when midterm and final exam times roll around. You can help relieve the stress and make them feel a whole lot better by ordering some delicious exam treats. The variety of options range from gift certificates to cookies and healthy snack packs. You can either request a brochure, or print the order form below. If you print the order form, please ensure that you mail it to:

Attn: Catering Director (aka Erin because she actually takes all of the orders)

SEA Office - Gordon Commons

717 West Johnson Street Madison, WI 53706-1790

http://www.housing.wisc.edu/foodservice/examtreats.php

She is getting bigger everytime I see her! Now she's got long blonde hair and big blue eyes. What a sweetie! 

Hehehe....can't tell that they are related, can you? (Family Thanksgiving 11/27) 

The stockings - one of the few things I finished over Thanksgiving...they are all hand-embroidered with our names: Heather, Christi, Heidi, Taffy, Molly, and Preston! 

Preston...his eyes aren't really blue, but it's the only picture where they aren't glow-in-the-dark! 

I can't help but post this picture of Matt because it is just soooo darn good! 

Finished!

Paper 4 of 4 is finished...well, the first draft anyway. I've sent it off to my proof-reader, aka Mom, for approval. I think it turned out well, especially since I was still reading the book until 4:30PM today. The paper is due tomorrow. I'm lucky that both books were easy and interesting reading. Now I should prepare for discussion tomorrow and review my study abroad paperwork. Don't want to be missing anything important!

Pictures (above) are from the new camera!

I suppose I should get off of my duff and get stuff done before my caffine runs out.

Lots of love, Christi and Oscar

Still stressed, less depressed

I'm sorry for yesterday's post. Although I really do feel like that sometimes, I'm also really stressed. Two papers in one week plus all of this study abroad stuff is really getting to me. Although I got 7 hours of sleep last night and the first paper done (oh goodness, what if my TA doesn't like it? I'm so scrooged!), I just feel worn out. I look it oo, with very dark circles under my eyes. I must get to reading my books for the second paper. Wish me luck!

Lots of love, Christi and Oscar (I love that silly boy!)

P.S. Anyone know anything abou Swiss Air International? I can book a flight for under $500 but I don't know if they are good or not?

Me...only I have fuzzy slippers and no white beard.

How a Table with 4 sides leaves out the 4th person

The 4th side is against the wall. The 4th person eats alone in the other room, able to listen in to the entire conversation but unable to join. That would be eavesdropping.

Why does this always happen to me? Why am I not more assertive, making my own spot? Why am I so easily forgotten? Maybe I'll be remembered when I'm gone in Ireland. Or maybe I'll lose my fridge space.

When Preston goes upstairs, people notice. Me...yeah. I could leave for days and I doubt people would notice that I'm gone.

Last night I was the only person not invited to go out to dinner. I was expected to stay here and fill everyone in on what happened on the show while they all had a good time at a place I really wanted to try. Thanks. I feel so loved.

I'm depressed. I'm going to listen to Josh Groban and write my paper now. :(

Lots of love, Christi and Oscar (happy to be warmer)

Happy Birthday Alissa!

Not much time to write. I went to "Yours, Mine, and Ours" today with Mom and Sarah after our family Thanksgiving outing at Ponderosa. Before that Mom, Matt, and I left the house at 8:30AM in order to get to Madison, get stuff dropped off, and then make it to Ponderosa. We were there first :) Ok, so it was Half-Price Books (where I found the book I've got to write a paper on for Thursday--I can't believe I found it!), Ponderosa, short trip to Wal-Mart, movie, take Sarah back to her car (and we didn't get lost on the short-cut either!), another trip to Wal-Mart (I needed a camera bag and we tried to help Sue find some movies in the movie section-no luck), Woodmans, and then home. I was still the first one back tonight and I rolled in about 6:30PM. Enough time to wrap the final presents and put everything away before the others got home. Now I've watched my tv allottment for the day and must get ready for bed and tomorrow. A long day, with work at 6AM, classes until 2:30PM and then write, write, writing my big important paper, due on Tuesday (I've got parts done, just need the research better documented and stuff). So yes, bed sounds really good.

Again, happy 21st birthday Alissa!!!

Lots of love, Christi and Oscar (one tough little tropical fishy--it was 55F in here and he's still swimming!)

Oh Matt, the things you say when you are sleep-deprived!

Well, we went out this morning with all of the super-crazy people to go shopping at 5:15AM. Unlike the Wal-Mart in Orlando, FL which caused a fight, the police, and some broken laptops, Dodgeville Wal-Mart was relatively quiet. Perhaps two dozen cars were in the parking lot when we arrived. Matt said we should've gone to Best Buy in Madison, but the video we saw on TV when we got back at about 6AM made us happy that we didn't go. There must have been at least 50 people waiting at the door for them to open. I haven't heard if that turned into any fights though.

While out this morning (Matt wanted jeans on sale), I went looking at the deals. I found what I was looking for - a 6 MP digital camera for under $200. It's my Christmas present which I'm currently playing with. Mom is going to wrap up the box and now I'll be able to take a picture of myself while opening it! Hahaha. We've been watching Christmas movies and "The Mummy" most of the day. Mom made pancakes for breakfast and we played three rounds of "Uno Attack" before Matt wandered off to bed. He had been up all night and then wandered all over the store this morning. We caught him in one of his runs across the store and found out that the reason that he hadn't gotten his jeans yet was because there was a girl over there and he thought he was at the girls' jeans pile. He said he didn't want to "seem like a pervert" and left, heading back a second time to find out that yes, he had been at the right jeans pile. He got his jeans, I got my camera, and Mom crossed a few more items off of her list.

I should do homework as I've now been here for two complete days with nothing done but three embroideried Christmas stockings and some pictures transferred from my new camera to my laptop. Here's two of them!!!!

And I slept. A lot. It was great!

Lots of love, Christi (with Mom, Matt, Buddy, and Daisy)

HAPPY THANKSGIVING!!

Hello to all on this festive day! obviously I survived the two papers, and the midterm (but let's not talk about that). I survived a walk home from the library.....let's not talk about that either. Now I'm at home, and it's still a little hard to believe. I've been waiting for this moment for weeks. It's so nice, Daisy waking me up with kisses at 6AM and Buddy settling on my lap, with puffs of white hair when I pet him because he constantly sheds like crazy. Ahhh....to be home. And there's TURKEY! Hehehehe...I love turkey! I suppose I should go help in the kitchen. Ya know, taste-testing and stuff :)




'TWAS THE NIGHT OF THANKSGIVING
'Twas the night of Thanksgiving, but I just couldn't sleep,
I tried counting backward, I tried counting sheep.
The leftovers, they beckoned - the dark meat and white,
But I fought the temptation with all of my might!
Tossing and turning with anticipation,
The thought of a snack became infatuation.
So...I raced to the kitchen, flung open the door
And gazed at the "fridge", full of goodies galore.
I gobbled up turkey and buttered potatoes,
Pickles and carrots, beans and tomatoes.
I felt myself swelling so plump and so round,
'Till all of a sudden, I rose off the ground.
I crashed through the ceiling, floating into the sky,
With a mouthful of pudding and a handful of pie.
But I managed to yell as I soared past the trees...
"Happy eating to all - pass the cranberries, please."
May your stuffing be tasty...may your turkey be plump.
May your potatoes'n gravy have nary a lump.
May your yams be delicious...may your pies take the prize.
May your Thanksgiving dinner stay off of your thighs!

HAVE A WONDERFUL THANKSGIVING!

Lots of love, Christi (with Mom, Matt, Buddy, and Daisy-see her below)

The Paper of No End

I finished my one paper today. I think it's pretty good. I'm working on the second one. I think I'm never going to finish it. It's not that the subject is boring, just that there's so much. Where do you start? How do you organize? Where do you go next? It doesn't help that Preston constantly wants attention. I love him, but sometimes he really gets on my nerves. I would've gone with the girls to the library but they left before I was ready to go. Oh well.

The furnace broke down today. It was only about 10 degrees warmer inside than out. Luckily for us the Tallard emergency guy was able to drop by within an hour after the call and cleaned out the little fan so that it would start up again. It's nice to not have to wear a blanket while at the computer to keep from shivering.

Other than that, Preston's been at it for a few minutes now so I suppose I should go get him. It's so hard to tell when he needs to go outside and when he just wants to play. I wish I could write a paper about Preston instead. With a ton less to research it'd go a whole lot faster!

Come Visit My College Town!

According to an Oct. 7th article from independenttraveler.com Madison, WI is one of the top 6 favorite college towns. Although I dislike being called a "rabid sports fan" alas, it is sometimes true (especially when I'm yelling and throwing pillows at the TV).

Madison, WI - Perched on an isthmus between two lakes, Madison is a small city well known for its rabid University of Wisconsin sports fans. If you're in town during football season, soak up the energy during a game at the Badgers' 76,000-seat stadium. But even if you're not a sports fan, Madison offers plenty of sights to see, including an art museum (located inside the Civic Center), the State Capitol building, and two buildings designed by architect Frank Lloyd Wright: the Unitarian Meeting House and the Monona Terrace Community and Convention Center. Shoppers can hit pedestrian-only State Street for unique stores and sidewalk cafes, or pay a visit to the Saturday morning farmers' market on Capitol Square. Cap off your visit with a leisurely bike ride around Lake Monona or Lake Mendota.
http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/9593731

Not much happening around here. Mom's coming up today for some window-plasticking (which is really good because our gas bill for last month was $90!), lunch, and Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire. I've been told that it is kind of scary, so I must take care and warn Moogie. And make certain she doesn't get too frightened. And she'll do the same for me :)

Other than that, not much news. Two papers due Monday and a test on Tuesday. Even though I work and have some classes, Wednesday is a breeze. The only class I HAVE to go to is a movie that is going to be on the test. Depending on when Mom comes, I might go to the other one which is showing the West Wing.

I suppose I should go and shower. With lots of people in the theater, I'd hate to be known as the "stinky girl." :) Lots of love, Christi and Oscar

ANOTHER GALWAY SIGHT TO SEE:

The Bridge Mills is situated just past O'Brien's Bridge, on the banks of the river Corrib. The sight of this picturesque building, with its cut-stone facade (which has been beautifully restored) is truly remarkable. This 430 year old building, stands majestically head and shoulders above other surrounding buildings. The building houses a charming shopping centre with the tiny specialist shops blending in perfectly with the building's impressive historic features. The Bridge Mills celebrates its medieval origins during the summer months with medieval banquets, held nightly, which feature full period dress and entertainment.
Shops and businesses: Basement: Restaurant. Ground Floor: An Gairdín (Florist), Pashas Corner, An Bhrian (Swop Shop), The Source Galway, Corrib Antiques. First Floor: Galway Language Center, Bridge Mill Gallery. Second Floor: KT Business Skills, Alliance Francaise, Galway Zen Dojo, Pitman Training Centre.

Post 401 not so happy

Wanna see what I look like this morning?? This is it, except there's no hairs sticking out every-which-way.
Work is driving me crazy. Rollie hurt his knee at his other job and my boss is on vacation, so now I've got to work lots and lots more. To top it off, my favoritest (dripping sarcasm) co worker is monkeying around this morning (I say is because we couldn't find him when I left). I had to do all my work, plus Rollie's morning run, plus some of my coworker's. I ended up working an hour later than I wanted to. I got 4 1/2 hrs of sleep due to a 1:30AM puppy run that I couldn't fall back asleep after. Grrrrrrrr..... I'm going to fall asleep in class. Again. Probably all three. I can't wait until Ireland, when I finally get a break from work. And my coworker.

It snowed. Not much around here, but enough to make it slippery. I jumped off the back of the truck and slid on the frozen ground, scratching up my elbow on the truck. Luckily I was wearing my jacket which took the brunt of the metal.

I need sleep. Oscar needs breakfast. Lots of love, the both of us.

Gordon Commons - my home away from home

UPDATE @4:15PM:

Awww...look at the Coasties (from the West coast) in their super long, poofy, North Face winter jackets, multiple long-sleeved layers, matching polar tech gloves, hats, and scarves, Ugg boots, and I'm betting thermal underwear. Me, I wear a jacket, tee-shirt, and clogs. And it's only a little bit of snow...a light dusting. Hahahaha---they haven't seen anything yet! And a special thought for the girl talking on her cell in super high-heeled boots walking down Bascom... heels and ice don't mix. She almost beefed it (fell). Although I seem to remember doing the same thing down the same side of the hill.....without the heels.

Another special thought to that little black fuzzball...thanks for the block run after you when I accidentally dropped the leash and you thought it meant that we should run all the way home. With me yelling "Stop!" the whole way.