I just posted my new year's resolutions for next year; let's see how I did last year!

1. Keep in touch with people better.  Um, I think so?  Maybe not.  I still chat with people on twitter and I got to see lots of folks at Lissy's wedding.

2. Work out regularly.  Yes and no.  Recently I've been really good, but I had bad weeks.

3. Get out of the house more.  Little bit.  But I also haven't been unhappy with my social scene, so I'll call it square.

4. Stop biting my nails.  Nope.  I'm still working on this one.

5. Be more assertive.  I actually feel like I have been better about this! 

6. Paint more.  I have!  I mean, I'm still not getting A LOT done, but I have been doing more than last year.

7. Game more.  Some.  Not as much as I want to.  But I have an army I'm excited about, and a couple of matches lined up.

8. Learn to cook one really complicated dish.  I roasted a chicken for the first time, does that count?  It also turned out REALLY well.

9. Go easier on myself at work.  Definitely have.  I was not as stressed this year as last year, and it has helped my mental health.

New Year's Resolution!

1.  Get back into counting points for Weight Watchers.  I haven't gained any weight in the last year, but I haven't lost any, either, and it's because I've really fallen off with tracking points.  When I count points, I lose weight.  So I'm going to get back on the wagon with this.

2.  Keep running, and get my speed up to a 10-minute mile.  I've recently gotten into running, and even though I really hate it, it's already making a difference in how I look and feel.  In the past, I've given it up in frustration when I didn't make progress as quickly as I wanted to, but my resolution this year is to keep with it and my short-term goal is that 10-minute mile.  Right now I run a 12 minute mile.

3.  Read 25 books I've never read before.  This is to discourage me from re-reading things (though I do enjoy that) and because I really enjoyed all the new stuff I read for my YA lit class.  Watch me track my goal on shelfari!

4.  Post on my movie blog at least twice a month.  I've been inconsistently good about this recently, and I enjoy that I get more hits when I post regularly (imagine that!). 

5.  Hobby more.  This was one of my resolutions last year, painting and playing more, and I'm rolling it up into one.  I painted and played more last year than I did the year before, and I'd like to keep up with my upward trend.

Stuff in my life is pretty much awesome, so I thought it'd be a good time to update my LJ.

I'm almost done with my first summer school class, after which I will be done with my core classes and can start taking the good stuff.  I'm on track to graduate a year from this winter, which is both thrilling and terrifying - but mostly AWESOME.  I'm still volunteering at the OPPL, and they love me.  The entire children's department staff was super disappointed when I said I couldn't apply for one of the summer reading program internships, which means I'll have an even better chance of getting the position next summer when I can reduce my hours at the law firm to part time more easily.

I got a new phone on Friday!  The screen on my old one totally died - it had been flickering on and off for a while, going red and/or pixelated, and then it just...went white.  I could get calls, and presumably text messages, but since I couldn't see anything on the screen I couldn't send or make calls which really sucked, I felt horribly disconnected.  But now I have a shiny new smartphone, and a new contract with T-Mobile, and it's pretty much the best thing.  I can finally play Words with Friends!  (My name is magicalmartha, hit me up.)

My blog is doing pretty well, too, I actually get comments from people I don't know IRL and I've got almost 3k page hits.  I imagine it helps now that I'm posting more often than once every other month.  (Shameless plug time, click here to read!)

My parents are leaving to visit and then retrieve my sister from Australia on Thursday, so I'm house-sitting for them for two weeks.  I kinda wish I could go, but a.) I can't afford it and b.) I don't want to take off that many vacation days, so I'm not too disappointed.  Plus I appreciate that I won't have to pay for my own food or fight another tenant for the laundry machines for two whole weeks. 

I have some things to tell you!

First, I spent last weekend in New Orleans with Billy and my parents.  We went down for the first weekend of Jazz Fest, and it was SO AWESOME.  Seriously, I can't really articulate how much fun I had, or how good the music was, or how delicious the food was.  Even the food at the fairgrounds, which I would normally expect to be only ok, was good enough that I would not have been disappointed to eat it at a cafe.
( TL; DR I loved New Orleans )

Any way.  Other things! 

I'm done with my first semester at Dominican and I think it went pretty well!  I'm looking forward to my summer classes, although I wish I got a bit of time in between (my first one starts next Monday).  There were lots of summer internships that I really would have loved to apply for, but at the moment I just can't spend that much time not at my full time job.  Next summer, though - next summer it will be much more feasible!  

And you should all go join my and daffodelias ' comm thosebooks , because we're reading Artemis Fowl this month and it is the Best Thing.

Sunday is also my birthday.  And mother's day!  I will be 24, which my mom is apparently having difficulties with.  I'm saving mine for when I turn 25.

We will see how long I am able to do this since I don't actually own a digital camera.  But, clemsblueruins requested more photos of me, and so I shall oblige!

Day 1: A picture of yourself with ten facts



1. If I am taking a photo from my sofa, the bird will probably be in it.  She likes to climb around on me, and I find this adorable!
2. My perfect job would be planning literacy/library events for teenagers.  Like book clubs or workshops or summer programs.
3. The last thing I cooked for dinner was tuna noodle casserole, which is also my favorite.
4. I'm going to New Orleans in two weeks, for the first time EVER.
5. My favorite Pokemon from the new games are Whimsicott and Axew.
6. It breaks my heart a little to know that my parents don't see the beauty in my tattoos (or any tattoos).
7. I would kind of like to own doves, they sound like delightful pets.
8. The saddest thing about being on Weight Watchers is how fewer sandwiches I eat now.  I miss sandwiches. :(
9. I have always (still do) wanted to sing professionally.
10. Supernatural is my favorite show currently on television, although I am almost a full season behind since I only watch it on DVD.

I've been feeling a little lost lately, like I'm in a bit of a rut.  I'm stuck in a plateau on Weight Watchers, the newness of school has worn off and now it just feels like forever until I can start looking for jobs I actually want to have, and it feels like every time I start a project I either lose interest or it just falls by the wayside.  So.  I've implemented some new procedures, because I'm SUCH a Taurean that I need stability in my life, not this wavering earth shit.

- I'm making myself track points again, and I promised myself that I'm not skipping any more WW meetings or weigh-ins just because I'm sure I won't like the number on the scale.  At some point I stopped participating in the program, which means it hasn't been working - so I have to make myself participate again.  My mom and I rededicated ourselves on Monday, and so far I feel good about this week.

- I am putting something on my blog at least once a week, because seeing how many hits I get after a post makes me feel good about it.  I feel like people actually care about what I'm saying, even if they're only going to laugh at how terrible my writing is.

- I'm entering a writing contest that Columbia is holding.  I'm working on a short story, and actually plugging along - I feel good about this one in a way I haven't felt about my writing in a while.  I think my problem has been scope; I envision these novel-length works, when the reality is that I have too much going on in my life right now to dedicate myself to a novel.  Finishing a short story will be good for sparking my enthusiasm for writing again, I think.  Plus if I win, I get $1,000, and that would be AWESOME.

- I haven't been doing so good on my hobbying, so I entered a painting/display contest at the Games Workshop.  The contest is on June 25th, so I have a deadline to get my models together.  I'm still not seeing the kind of progress I would prefer, but it's moving faster than my previously glacially-paced work.  I'm still feeling good about it.

- Maybe you haven't heard, but daffodelias and I are starting a book club.  The first read-along starts tomorrow, in fact!  Check it out at thosebooks .  This is tremendously exciting for me, not just because I'll get to read more, but because it keeps me talking to people I don't get to see every day.  I miss you guys, it's true, and  I'm trying to be better about keeping in touch with y'all.

- As far as school goes, I really need to just suck it up and get over it.  My program is not that long.  I'm combating ennui by getting through homework and planning my summer school schedule, and also by sticking with the volunteering.  As inconvenient as it is to keep in my schedule, it keeps me in the heads of the library staff at the OPPL and keeps me involved in the library comings-and-goings.  And it is only a two year program.

Otherwise, I'm enjoying my every day life.  I really, really wish the weather would get warmer, but the sunshine is nice regardless.

ABC Meme, stolen from my other LJ pals.  Also I haven't updated in a LONG time.

Age: 23

Bed size: Queen!  I schemed and plotted to be able to take this mattress with me when I moved out of my parents' house, and then my mom was just like, "Do you want this?"  I love my bed.

Chore you hate: Laundry.  The woman downstairs ALWAYS has stuff in the machines, and I hate going up and down the stairs, and the dryer never dries on one cycle.  It ends up taking forever.

Dogs: Luther and Sophie, my parents' rescue dogs.

Esssential start to your day: A shower, especially now that I have shorter hair.

Favorite color: Blues and greens and purples; cooler colors.

Gold or silver: Silver

Height: 5'3"

Instruments I play: I used to play trumpet, piano, and French horn, but I haven't played much of anything for about 4 years.

Job title: Legal assistant

Kids: Can be pretty cute, but I'm happy not to have any right now.

Live: Oak Park

Mom's name: Sara

Nicknames: I don't actually have any at the moment.

Overnight hospital stays: Never

Pet peeve: People who cross the street when I have a left turn arrow, tags sticking out the back of peoples' shirts, people walking in front of me who are going too slow when I can't pass them

Quote from a movie: "Why would God make us all so different if He wanted us to be the same?"

Right or left handed: Right

Siblings: Lizzie, who's off soaking up sun and beer in Australia

Time you wake up: 6:45, unless I'm going to the gym.  Then it's 6:00.

Underwear: Right now, black with pink piping

Vegetables you dislike: Raw broccoli, lettuce, peppers

What makes you run late: Finding socks

X-rays you've had: Just dental

Yummy food you make: Macaroni and cheese, broccoli risotto, lots of stuff. I'm making corned beef and cabbage for St. Patrick's Day next week.

Zoo: I haven't been in TOO long.  I like looking at the big cats, and the birds.

I wrote a thing about Christopher Nolan and the Academy Awards, just like every other movie blogger out there.  You should read it.

In other, less derivative news, I'm two weeks into my GSLIS classes and still totally excited about them.  Well, totally excited about my Intro class - my professor is a really, really smart woman who specializes in youth and children literature.  I think she and I will get along just fine.  My other class is about being a reference librarian, which is less exciting but extremely useful.  We're learning all about search tools and organizing information and things like that.

The one thing that's not so fun is that I have much, much less free time now - duh, I know, because suddenly I have two 3-hour classes a week, but I didn't imagine it would impact how I schedule things this much.  Case in point: I haven't had time to go to the gym this week after work ever, even though I get to leave an hour earlier than I did before.  So, this morning I woke up stupid early and went before work.  (Although I feel pretty great now)  And scheduling my volunteer stuff is becoming a pain, but that's really not something I can stop doing at this point, since I think I would love to work at the Oak Park Public Library once I'm done with school.  So.  I'll manage, but I'll be pretty tired for a while.

Not much else going on.  I hope everyone is having a good January - mostly I'm excited to start getting to warmer weather.  I'm tired of wind and gray days and being cold all the time.

Fridays are the best days because I know the weekend comes next.

But really, stuff's been pretty great.

My orientation at Dominican was last week, and it was good - I got to meet some of the faculty, they gave us the run down on things like the technology center and medical services and outlined the progression of the MLIS program.  I thought my classes started this week, but only Monday classes (that won't be held next week because of Martin Luther King Day) were held - so next Tuesday I have my first official day of class.

I'm feeling pretty awesome in the "I'm an adult" department right now - I got this whole grad school thing squared away, and just recently I finished a several week-long odyssey with health care wherein I decided to change my plan, became thoroughly frustrated with Blue Cross Blue Shield's customer service, found a different provider, applied and was accepted for a plan that costs half of what I'm paying now but still covers everything I need it to.  Every time I do something like that, something so typically "adult," I feel like I've earned a merit badge. 

Last Saturday (I couldn't think of a good segue here, so I just skipped it) I got my fourth tattoo - a sizable piece on the top outside of my left thigh.  It's a pair of goldfinches, a male and female, the male sitting in a tree branch that the female is flying in for a landing on.  It's BEAUTIFUL.  The whole thing took three hours and hurt a shitton (especially the bits toward my hip bone), and it was slightly more expensive than I'd anticipated, but it was completely worth it. 

( Pic under the cut! )

I'm "tattooed out" for the time being, I think.  I know in the wide world of tattoos this particular piece isn't so big and didn't take so much time, but it's the biggest one I have and I was so completely exhausted by the end that I just don't want to do that again for a while.  Not my last tattoo (probably), but I've definitely scratched the itch for a while.

I really want to do my top ten films of 2010, but I feel like there are too many I haven't seen yet for it to be an informed list (The Kids Are Alright, The King's Speech, The Fighter, The Town, Winter's Bone...yeah.).  Also it was a pretty weak year for movies...although I did see some TRULY excellent ones.  We'll see if I can get that list wrapped up inside of January.

I saw Tron last night, and it was...ok.  Visually and auditorily it was stunning - Daft Punk DELIVERS, you guys.  And the depth of the world building deeply impressed and surprised me, but maybe that's because I haven't seen the first one. 

I had two complaints, and one of them seems sillier the further from the movie I get, but it's really hard to shake: I wish things had moved faster.  *spoiler* There's a light cycle race, and when things crash and explode it looks REALLY AWESOME, but when the camera is just following the racers on straight lines, they look like they're going in slow motion.  I found myself nearly leaning forward in my seat, not because I was excited about the race, but because I was urging them to GO FASTER.  When I watch a race, I want it to feel like a race.

My other issue was the end, which I won't spoil here.  Suffice to say, it felt like some Matrix sequel shit, and didn't make a whole lot of sense to me.  But Jeff Bridges was pretty cool and Olivia Wilde was adorable, and it was fun, so I'm glad I went to see it.

Student orientation at Dominican is tomorrow, and I'm EXCITE.  Classes start next Thursday, and mine start the week after (I only have class Tuesday and Wednesday), and I'm ready to get this ball rolling.  I hope it will be good.  I'm pretty sure it will be good.

In other news, I'm getting tattooed on Saturday, which I'm super excited and also kinda nervous about.  It's been about a year and a half since my last one, and the memories of the pain are making me anxious.  But it'll be fine.  It's only a one session piece, so at least I'll only have to do it once.