#73: Read 30 books, Part II.

The second five books:

6.

Amazing Grace by Johnathon Kozol. This is the second book of Kozol's I've read. It is a look at the lives of children living in the South Bronx, exploring issues like education, drugs, crime, living conditions, religion, etc. It was very good, but also pretty disheartening. It's hard to read about all of these problems, and not know any of the solutions. I developed a lot of white guilt whilst reading this book, realizing that just by existing, I contribute to these situations.

7.

Secret Lives of U.S. Presidents by Cormac O'Brien. I read this book over the summer, mostly while on a cross-country road trip with my mom. My mom and brother also read some of it during the vacation. (It also prompted my mother and I to try to name all 44 presidents. We missed 9. "You forgot Jimmy Carter--you were alive then!" "Yeah, I was, I think I even voted for him!") As a history dork, I totally loved it. I am a suck for silly, random factoids about historical figures.

8.


Bad Sex: We Had It So You Don't Have To by the writers of Nerve.com. This book is pretty much what it sounds like. It was enjoyable. A good summer read.

9.


The Man Without a Country by Kurt Vonnegut. This was a re-read. A very quick re-read. I read it in a day and a half. Vonnegut is one of my favorite writers, and this is sort of an autobiography of his, with his usual random reflections on life.

10.


When You and Your Mother Can't Be Friends: Resolving the Most Complicated Relationship of Your Life by Victoria Secunda. This was passed on to me by my mother, who found it very helpful to reflect on issues in her relationship with her mother. I read it, but didn't relate to really anything, since my mom and I have a pretty good/totally awesome relationship. But, I guess, it was interesting from a sociological point of view, learning about the different types of mother/daughter relationships, and what kind of people those relationships create.

#7, #43, & #71.

#43: Go on 5 vacations. Vacation #4, 12.26.10-12.30.10, Robert, Chance and I went to Marquette (where we used to live until a year ago) to visit his Mom and friends, and I made a day trip down to Escanaba to see my friend Barbi. We stayed at the hotel I worked at for 2 1/2 years, and it was great getting to see my old co-workers, because they really were my friends and family when I lived there. We had a great time seeing Robert's mom and her boyfriend, and a few of Robert's friends. The dog really loved all the extra snow, and jumping around/climbing snow mountains, and he was such a good travel dog, very well behaved.

#71: Walk on the beach 20x: One morning I took Chance down to the shore of Lake Superior. He had a lot of fun exploring the lake, beach and rocks. We also jogged down the beach, thus knocking off another one from item #7: jog 20x.

Chance really loved playing on the beach, and I felt so happy to be there. Being back at Lake Superior, I just had this feeling that I was "home". I spent so much time on that beach the almost four years I lived in Marquette, and it was always where I was happiest, most at peace. It's where I went to reflect, write, called loved ones that lived far away, gain perspective. I miss it so much. Like Deb from the hotel said, "Lake Superior gets in your blood."

Ice along the shore. Lake Superior doesn't really start to freeze over until February or March. It's so large that it doesn't start to warm up in the summer until about August, and conversely, takes a long time to cool down, so it takes a long time to start freezing.

Frozen rocks and a view of the lighthouse at McCarty's Cove.

My cute little guy in his winter sweater. Love those big ears.

Pure beauty.

Rock island at McCarty's Cove (not the same ones pictured above). In summer of 2009 my mom and I waded out to these rocks, the water so cold our bones hurt. But the water line receded and a little land bridge allowed Chance and I to walk out to them.

#23: Table at a zine fest.

This item is officially in progress! This week I registered as an exhibitor at the Chicago Zine Fest. I went to it at the last minute by myself last year, and dragged a girl I had know for five minutes at my hostel with me to the zine reading. The zine fest itself was great, I bought a bunch of great zines, and traded for even more, saw an old friend from my days living in Grand Rapids, went to workshops and got delicious cheap Indian food. Yums.

So, I'm really excited to be tabling this year! The zine fest is March 25th & 26th and I can't wait. I even put my name in to read at the zine reading on the 25th (they choose randomly from the people who volunteer). This will be my second time tabling at a zine fest, I did Wolverzine at U of M a number of years ago, but there were very few actual zinesters themselves there, it was mostly crafts with a few distros. I'm stoked. And excited to have something push me back into the zine community, which I've been pretty absent from the last few years. Even when I have made zines, I haven't really put them out there. The last two issues of Checkered Past I never even officially "released" or promoted anywhere, mostly just giving them out to friends and family. I have two zines I want to finish before the fest, so I gotta get my butt in gear!

For more info: chicagozinefest.org

#78: Get rid of at least 10 more items of clothing.

Completed 9.17.10

Okay, so, for my whole life I've basically been a pack rat. I think this runs in the family. My grandma on my mother's side was pretty much a hoarder, but a really neat hoarder. Her basement was always full of shelves full of neatly organized, useless things. Piles of paper, boxes of baby food jars, things like that. She was creative and found interesting ways to use otherwise useless things, so she thought there was a use for everything. And would often give people things that she thought they could use. Like when she gave me a couple hundred envelopes which were all sealed shut.

My mom and I both have a bit of that trait, but not to such an extreme. I also attach emotions and memories to objects, so it's hard for me to get rid of things for that reason. Add to this, I've always been a messy person, and it wasn't until I was in my 20s that I actually kept my rooms clean enough to be able to walk around them. Growing up, the floors in my bedrooms were always covered, with only a walkway from the door to the bed.

So, getting rid of anything, especially clothes, has never been a strength of mine. I always think that I will wear it, some day. Things really turned around for me when I started watching A&E's show, Hoarders. Watching that show made me so scared of turning out like those people, with junk and garbage piled throughout their entire house. That's basically what my room looked like growing up, so I fear that I'm capable of it. Once I started watching that show, I was motivated to go through my belongings with a much more critical eye. Plus, during the commercial breaks, I would often get up and clean. I donated a couple bags of stuff, mostly clothes, when I moved to Escanaba. And then when we moved from Esky to Ypsi, packing was a chance to donate of bunch of stuff I didn't want to take with me. I donated 15 items of clothing, plus a couple boxes of random odds'n'ends. Hurray! And in the process of unpacking, I've filled up another box of things to donate. Now I just gotta get around to getting it out of the house. :]

#47: Adopt a shelter animal.

Completed 10.16.10

Robert and I adopted a 2-year-old miniature schnauzer/terrier mix named Chance from the Huron Valley Humane Society last weekend. Chance was actually brought up from a shelter in Little Rock, Arkansas, due to shelter overflow. One piece of paper said he was a stray, and another said he was a surrender, so we don't know his exact story. When we got to the shelter, a bunch of dogs which had been brought up from the South were housed in an overflow room, which we looked through first. I liked him as soon as I saw him, but I went around to meet the rest of the dogs in the room before I went to officially meet him. While I was meeting the other dogs, Robert pointed to Chance and said, "I think I like this one." I said, "Me too!" We went up to his cage and let him lick our fingers. He was so friendly and happy. We decided to look at the dogs in the regular dog area in the humane society, to see what dogs were there, but we were pretty sure we'd be back to see Chance. And indeed, none of the other dogs really made us fall in love with them, so we went back, and got to take Chance into a room to play with him. He was running around like crazy and we were like, "He's just excited to be out of his cage, we're sure he'll be more chill." We were looking for a bit lower-energy dog, but we just liked him so much that we made an exception. We did all the paper work and the adoption counseling, and brought him to his forever home!



Ah! Just look at that face!!

Although I've loved dogs since I was little, Chance is the first dog I've ever owned. I'm actually allergic to dogs, but I know that if I'm around a specific dog enough, my body gets used to them so I'm not as allergic. And I decided I was willing to put up with the initial misery I had to deal with until that happened--plus I stocked up on allergy pills. Robert and I have been interested in getting a dog for a long time, but have always had apartments that didn't allow pets. So when we moved to Ypsi, we specifically looked for apartments that were pet-friendly.

Having a dog has been a big adjustment, I think especially for me. The last couple years I've gotten used to being home alone all day (especially this summer when school was out), so it's hard for me to get used to never being home alone. I kind of miss it sometimes, getting up in the morning and just being able to make a cup of tea and relax on the couch for a bit. Instead I have to take him for a walk, and have him follow me around constantly, and jump in my lap the second I sit down. I'll get used to it, I'm sure. And then in a decade and some change when he passes on, I'll probably find the loneliness depressing.

Chance loves to play fetch with us in the house, and one of his favorite toys is a pop bottle he started chewing on one day. Today I gave him a rope toy, which he likes to fling up in the air behind him and then chase after. He also loves running after the ducks and geese that live in the lake outside our apartment. He also likes to try to eat the goose poop. I think he spits it out, but I can't always tell. My favorite thing he does is cuddle with me--almost all the time I'm sitting on the couch he comes and cuddles with me, usually takes a nap. It melts my heart every time.

5 Most Difficult Tasks to Complete

#26: Complete the 5,000 question survey. My gosh, I didn't realize just how long a 5,000 question survey really is. I've completed under 200 so far. That means I have more than 4,800 to go!

#40: Get a permanent teaching job. Job searching sucks, it's hard to keep myself from getting down on myself when I apply for every job I can find that I'm certified for, and not get a single interview. Leading up to my student teaching, I was the last person of all the people I knew in the school of ed to get a placement, it was kind of disheartening, I didn't understand why no one wanted to work with me. So, it took a while, but I ended up in the classroom that was perfect for me. I keep telling myself that the same thing goes for my permanent job. My perfect classroom just hasn't opened up yet.

#72: Compliment a stranger, 10x. I've done this twice, so far. It's just not in my nature really to compliment people. I don't know why. But I get compliments from strangers on a semi-regular basis, mostly about my clothes or purses, so I put this item on my list to pay it forward. The first time, I had gotten multiple compliments on my dress and my shoes at a sub job, and so the next day I set out with the goal in mind that at some point, I was going to compliment a student on something. And I did. But generally, if I'm not specifically looking for something to compliment someone on, I don't think to. The second one, however, was more spontaneous. A girl at the food co-op with a cool hula hoop. We had a nice conversation about hula hoops, where she got hers, etc. I told her about the one my friend made me, which apartment neighbors threw out a few years ago. She told me that just means I get to get a new one, with new colors to vibe on. The whole interaction made me very happy!

#77: Get all the dishes washed at once, 10x. This has been difficult for me because I have dyshidrotic eczema on patches of my right hand, caused by an allergic reaction to dish and laundry detergent. Contact with detergents gives me hundreds of tiny little itchy water blisters on my hand. It's painful and uncomfortable, so I have to wear a rubber glove when I wash dishes. But then my hand gets sweaty, and the sweat and rubber irritate my skin too, so I can't wash dishes for too long at a time. I mean, I tried, I really tried, and I would do the dishes at least once, if not twice a day, and never be able to catch up. Also, when I wasn't working this summer (and even when I was before, I wasn't working as much as Robert , and I wasn't paying any rent), I wanted to do all the dishes myself, so I didn't ask or expect Robert to help with them. The only two times I got them all done was when he was out of town for a week or more, and there were less dishes to do. Now we have a dishwasher in our new place, but I still can't seem to get them all done at the same time!

#89: Read 100 news articles in Spanish. I put this on here so that I wouldn't loose my language skills. But I've lost them some, and while I used to regularly read articles in Spanish, I now find it a bit more cumbersome. I just need to get motivated.

#83: Move out of Escanaba

Completed 09.18.10

I haven't updated in ahwhile, but I have a semi-good reason for this...I've been accomplishing #83 , I moved out of Escanaba!! In addition to the actual packing and moving, I was also spending a lot of time doing lots of stuff with my friend Barbi before I moved away. And also avoiding packing. That took up a lot of time.

Here's how I ended up in Escanba: I went to school at Northern Michigan University, in Marquette, Michigan, in Michigan's Upper Peninsula (most people outside of Michigan have no idea what this is...there are two pieces to Michigan, if you look at a map, there's the one part that looks like a mitten, and above that is a part that looks like a rabbit, attached to Wisconsin. That's the U.P.), on Lake Superior. I loved living in Marquette, I can't imagine a more beautiful city. It was a great mix of nature, historic buildings, local businesses, small-town charm and friendliness, and everything within walking distance. I would never have wanted to leave Marquette if it wasn't 8 hours away from all of my friends and family. And I never managed to really make any friends there, so it was a pretty lonely place. So I always knew I'd move away. Robert graduated a year before me, and immediately got a job in Escanaba, an hour south of Marquette, on the shore of Lake Michigan. When I graduated, I moved back in with him.

Here's why I wanted out: Escanaba always seemed like a consolation prize compared to Marquette. It was on a Great Lake, of course, one that occasionally got warm enough to swim in. But Lake Superior is my favorite Great Lake, even if it's freezing cold most of the year. There's just a spooky strength to Superior, and I felt much more of an admiration for Superior than Lake Michigan. And yes, Escanaba has some small-town charm, being in the U.P. and all. But we also found it mostly boring. Especially in the cold parts of the year. Also, people in Esky always seemed like they were in a bad mood! Cashiers, waiters, no one said hello when you walked past them on the street. Dont' even get me started on the workers at Subway. It just wasn't a fun place to live.

Here's how it turned out: I spent the winter/spring rarely leaving the house except for work/substitute teaching, and grocery shopping/Taco Bell with Robert. Once the weather got nice and I could venture outside more often, things looked up. I fell in love with the city's park--all the open space, small islands and sandy beach. It was just a 5-minute bike ride from my house so I started going there on sunny weekday mornings before the heat became unbearable. I also started spending more and more time with my friend Barbi, a woman from Escanaba who I met in the School of Ed at college. At first I was just glad to have someone to spend time with outside the house, but we became pretty close, and I really valued the time we spent together.

Here's how I got out: Robert and I had been looking for jobs in the lower peninsula since before I graduated from college. In addition to disliking living in Esky, Robert also did not like his job since most of the time he had nothing to do at work. But, it's Michigan, we have one of the worst economies in the country, and I'm a teacher on top of that...schools are downsizing, no one has any money for education or hiring new teachers. But after a lot of trying, and a couple other phone interviews, Robert got a job in Ann Arbor! He's an actual engineer now, and he got a pay raise to boot. We got an apartment in Ypsilanti, actually just on the border between Ypsilanti and Ann Arbor. As sad as I am about leaving the U.P., the area is just 45 minutes from the Detroit area/most of my best friends and family, and a couple of old friends live in Ypsi. The only things that I didn't like about living in the U.P. was being so far away from everyone (except R) that I loved, and a lack of cultural opportunities (shows, museums, general happenings). Ypsi and Ann Arbor are both college towns, so there's plenty to do, and lots of good restaurants of all types to explore! And as overwhelming and culture shock-y as it is to move from the U.P. back to the city, our apartment has a balcony that looks onto a little lake with a small island, and lots of geese and ducks and a couple cranes (we even saw a woodchuck once), so I still have some calming green space to look at.

Yay!