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Thursday, January 29, 2009

I am officially an active member. Months of work have paid off!! pictures to come...

Labels: Ashton

3 comments

funny story. so today i went to check my mail, and i started turning to my whitney locker combo - -' that has never happened before! and i know it wasnt just a lil oopsie, because 43 is very far away from 22.

in other news, i am sick. symptoms include body ache, coughing/phlegm, fluctuating body temp, lack of energy, difficulty breathing, and scratchy throat. dont catch this one, kids.

Spring Breaks! (from what ive gathered so far)
Feb 28 - Mar 8 Pepperdine
Mar 7- Mar 15 UPitt, Hendrix
Mar 14 - Mar 22 USC
Mar 21 - Mar 29 UCLA UCR UCSD
Apr 6 - Apr 12 Cerritos College

Labels: Kristen

4 comments

Labels: Jeannie

2 comments

Labels: Timothy

2 comments

hey guyys :]
it's week three for us here, and midterms are coming up next week. :O
i'm not gonna lie, i've been pretty overwhelmed. its 9:00 pm annd i know i have stuff i have to do. but i feel like just kickin it..and going back and being around people i know wont change. friendships that will always be. andd, what better place then to the people who know me as i am..who just get me? hahaa. i know its been pretty difficult for me to juggle everything.. trying to stay in touch with old friends ( i'm not going to lie.. i'm doing a horrible job), meeting/getting to know new friends, plugging myself into academics (im doing pretty poorly there too haha), having a social life, finding a church, lion dance practice and a job.. just LIFE. hahaha xd
overall i'm glad though, it seems like everyone's doing pretty well. college.. is still interesting eyy. ahha
So just two pretty basic things going on in my life: school and church :]
this 2nd quarter of school only proves that college is gonna get tougher (well its not like i ever doubted that) but yepp i just like to state the obvious i guess xd
yeah i dont know. i know what this requires of me.. i just gotta commit more cuase my classes are getting pretty tough. music is actually pretty difficult.. aahh. writing.. i just gotta sit down and think. econ.. its econ. but midterm coming up! and math.. is pretty anoying. i hate vectors! but midterm coming up too.
CHURCH: i've been church hoppping (its a phrase we use here.. i duno if you guys use it) which is like checking out diff churches to see which one you'll settle down at. and i guess its kind of hard for me since i'm trying to choose between two i really like. my sister attends one of those churches, life, and im just trying to see if i like that church becuase my sister is there.. or if i really like that church. on the other hand, the other church, hope, i just attended a retreat with them and i like it too. HMM. hope or life? hahaha
its hard to maintain old friends and make new ones. (again with the whole stating the obvious thing xD)
cafeteria food is getting old.

overall, life's good.

I REALLY MISS YOU ALL.

are you guys going to homecoming?
check it so i was totally down to go to hc and i was talking to my mom and i reminded her like hey whitney hc friday night so i wont be home (i'm going home htis weekned) and she was liek wahtt we have a family dinner type thing .. and im liek wahtt :[ so yeahh hopefully if anyhting i'll come late to the game hopefully thats aight xd hahaha

MKAY. payce loves :]

-katherine

Labels: Katherine, UCSD

3 comments

Labels: Timothy

4 comments

Hello from the ancient capital of China: Xi'an!

I've only been in smoggy Xi'an for a day and a half now, but it's been fun. We went to see the terra-cotta soldiers today and boy are they a sight to see. It's amazing that they built ~8,000 lifelike soldiers individually for one emperor. Granted, this guy is considered one of the greatest emperors of Chinese history since he was the first to unite all of China, but still. That's a lot of work. We went to the National Factory where they make real replicas of the warriors with the real terra-cotta clay and fire it the same way and whatnot so now I know how they did it. The head is made separately from the body, so the bodies are usually made from a cast and then the heads individually carved. It's really cool to watch, plus to see how much they invested in the protection of an emperor during the afterlife.

In a couple of days we'll be going to Shanghai, which will be lots of fun!

I'm not going to lie, I feel like the party going member of the amoeba group. I don't mind hanging out with people who drink (people are hilarious when they're drunk) and I accept people who smoke although I don't approve of it myself. I've probably had more alcohol than all of you (this is an assumption, feel free to prove me wrong) and i've been exposed to so much second hand smoke since we got here in China. Darn the people who love to smoke, even in tiny rooms such as bars, cafes and elevators. Who smokes in an elevator?!? I would never smoke, but I've tried a couple of drinks. I had an apple pie shot, and sips of a couple of mixed drinks. It's not my thing, and I like being in control. Plus, I can act drunk if i want to so it's really not much of a problem.

I've been getting along very well with pretty much everybody in the group. It bothers me a little bit when people talk about others behind their backs, criticizing them and whatnot. Because I just don't see what a lot of other people see. Maybe i'm just naive and ignorant, or maybe i'm more accepting, i don't know. It does really annoy me when people don't respect their surroundings and the culture. I'm all for being loud and obnoxious, but there's a time and a place. Usually not in a historical site. We're here to learn about China, not to ogle the little babies and make fun of their relics. Thanks guy, you're really representing America here.

Oh and it's also embarrassing/funny when people really think I'm Chinese (which i guess i am) and think i can speak it and go straight to me when i'm with 3 other white guys; all who speak better Chinese than i do. >< Laaame... but that's why I need to learn. So i can live up to those expectations that people have of me. I've got the pronunciations down, it's just the flow and the vocab that I need to work on. So i'm working!

I agree with Kristen; about not knowing where your home is. I had that problem when I moved to Delaware. My heart was still in California, but my physical being was in Delaware and it was much more difficult to maintain relationships with you guys from that distance. And now that i'm at college and it's even more difficult to keep in touch, you spread yourself even thinner. But I've found that home is where the heart is, and magically that can be in a lot of places. I still consider myself a SoCal girl at heart because that's where my roots are, but I have connections and history in Delaware now and i'm proud to be from there (it doesn't hurt that i go to UD and it makes it easier being from Delaware). I have my family from SoCal (you guys) and my family from Delaware (Steven), and although you guys are all far away so i can't see you physically, I can still talk to you and maintain those bonds. And then there's the college family; friends who know what you're going through in college and who you spend most of your time with, but who don't quite know all of your history and how you were 5 years ago when you wore bandanas as your fashion statement. You can't make the same jokes or references, but at least you have that with someone else.

Having several families is a good thing; you can pick and choose who you want to be with as long as you work to maintain those relationships. Being friends isn't easy, and I'm so lucky to have great friends like you who really invest in a relationships and work hard to keep it up. I wish I could come back and visit more often, but with so many exciting things going on in college, I might not be able to visit till August! Maybe not even then; who knows?

So that's my little lecture for the night. I'm thinking i'm going to go out tonight because one of our really old but loveable professors is going to go out to a bar and that's something I don't want to miss. I'm a little sick right now (which isn't fun) so i'm going to try to come back early, take some medicine and get some good sleep. Ugh, my nose is stuffed up like a clogged drain. Disgusting.

Wish me well!

~Gealina

Labels: China, Gealina

2 comments

But, Honestly by the Foo Fighters! Last one was Muse.

Okay, so we are at Target, and we're walking around the toys. Yes we do that. I even found the Mighty Morphin' Power Rangers Megazord, the one from when we kids.

There is a section with a bunch of somewhat realistic animals, and Alex says "These things are just a little too realistic." And I hold up a sow, complete with nipples, and agree. I look up at a unicorn Pegasus, and lo and behold, it's got all the parts. All the parts.

Caleb walks up and I'm holding the unicorn and I ask, "What do you notice about his unicorn?"

"Its got junk."

Labels: captain awkward, Richard, roommates

2 comments

I've been putting off an amoeblog update for several reasons, among which are lack of time and the overwhelming prospect of recounting my life since the accident. (That sounds a bit more melodramatic than it should.)

.... It's actually still a bit too overwhelming. I lost my loquacity just now.
Here are some fun things that happened over break:
1. Got a rental car, insurance is paying for it
2. KARAOKE WITH YOU GUYS!!! sooo funnnn~
3. Calvin's birthday. Dude, he is old.
4. Rock Band. (lots of rock band.)
5. Amovieba! (Magnolia sucked, but being with you guys was awesome)
6. Christmas parties
7. Hanging out with family
8. Christmas! (new phone, camera, clothes, etc)
9. New Years Eve, calvin coming back just in time
10. Hanging out with Amoeba members randomly (tim and richard biking, ashton ucla, andrew mac)
11. Church retreat

And here are some things I've been struggling with:
1. Where is home? School isn't home. Church isn't home. Home even isn't quite home. Things keep changing while you're not there, it's not a vaccuum that stays frozen till you get back (like Toy Story). Who are my real friends? What do I need to do to keep those real friends? Which friendships should I be investing more time and energy in?
2. How will I even find the time and energy to do all that? I dropped a class this semester because all the work was overwhelming (18 units+TA job down to 14 units+TA job). But STILL, every spare second of the day I am reading for class. All my classes are small and have heavy reading assignments, and I spend all my energy trying to keep up. i do try to go out with people and have some semblance of a social life, but it makes me fall behind in reading, so i always feel guilty. Meanwhile, I have lost the ability to carry on a decent conversation on AIM. It makes me feel like a jerk when I realize I've been ignoring people while I was reading for class. And I wish I could ask all these people "How are you doing?" and be invested in them, but I am scared to doubleclick their names because I know I'm just going to end up making them feel ignored! To top it all off, Calvin has been jetlagged from HK for quite a while now, and I know he's trying to fight it, but he falls asleep on me fairly regularly. And his classes are when I don't have class. So it's hard to have a good conversation, even with my boyfriend. The whole thing is really frustrating, and I don't know what to do.
3. Smoking and drinking. Well, I know I don't want anything to do with either of them, so this isnt necesarily a struggle, per se. But I struggle with what to tell my friends who do it. They know I disapprove and I try to communicate that with love. But it's surprisingly difficult to be the party pooper. I am encouraged by the fact that each time they spent the night doing that stuff, I ended up happier than they. I admit a tiny level of curiosity - but I am 100% sure that it's not worth it to find out. I've been spoiled - I've only ever had close friends who are model children. (you guys lol) And I loved that we could have SO much fun, and not need any of that crap to help us have fun. As I told ashton the other day - All I need to have fun is good friends and bad jokes. So its been a very interesting process becoming friends with people who are slightly deviant :P

Alright I am totally not going to be able to finish my advertising reading today x.x But it was worth it. You guys, please keep posting here, so I can stalk you :) I care about how you are, and all the little details of your life.

hugs~

Labels: Kristen

3 comments

Labels: Jeannie

1 comments

Labels: Jeannie

1 comments

你们好！

It's been over a week since we arrived at Beijing Normal University and since then we have been going non-stop with classes, sight-seeing, and of course shopping. We've hit most of the big places so far, with only a few more to go. We climbed the Great Wall (and man was it great), walked through Tiananmen Square and marveled at the Forbidden City. We've shopped at 王府井 which is a major shopping district, Silk Alley, and visited the Antique Market. So far, I've discovered I am awful at bargaining and have now designated other people to do it for me. :D In addition to these trips we've had people come to teach us calligraphy, brush painting, play traditional music, and watch movies together.

Classes have been going fine, except it's a lot of work to pile on in such a short time. Talk about cramming; a whole semester of learning crammed into 15 days? I don't know if it's possible. So we had a test two days ago and we've got another one tomorrow. Not to mention quizzes inbetween. Plus all the activities we've been going to and that leave little time for anything else, although we manage to do it all anyway.

Yesterday was a friend's birthday (he turned 21!) so we celebrated by ordering a cake and going out to a club. That was a lot of fun. And luckily, women are free on weekdays. Who knew it was so good to be female?

So basically this trip is a whirlwind of fun, socializing, cramming, drinking (not on my part, but plenty to make up for it) and getting to know people better. It's difficult to keep track of things on a day by day basis because things go so quickly and i have lost all sense of date and weekdays. I'm meeting a lot of new people and getting to know this group much better. It's like having my own family, I already think of two boys as older brothers. They take care of me. So I'm in good hands, although I miss everyone out there and wish there were an easier way to communicate! I have oovoo and skype (and obviously internet) so i can keep in touch anytime. The time difference is 13hrs ahead from the east coast so 16hrs ahead from SoCal.

Have a great second semester everybody!

~gealina

Labels: China, Gealina

2 comments

to whomever (whoever?) can name the play that this is from

"Traino, I burn, I pine, I perish, Traino"

and the movie that its quoted in as well

eprops guys! i really like this line.

btw, blog para mi? si o no?

Labels: Timothy

3 comments

I have not posted on this blog in forever! Mainly because it was nearing finals and nothing happened. I'll blog about Winter Break soon, but I'm tired.

Why? Because the flight back to Little Rock was ridiculous. I woke up at $:30 to get to the airport. I get there alright, try to go up the first-class escalator, security went fine (I had to take off both my jacket and my hoodie!), then when I board the plane, the plane waits in the gate for 30 minutes.

I didn't know there was an escalator only for first class passengers.

So I get to Chicago, and have about 15 minutes to get to my terminal, and I make it in 5. The Chicago International airport is nice. It has McDonald's, unlike the Memphis one, which I don't like. Anyways, 5 minutes prior to boarding, they announce that our plane is at a different terminal. I have to walk there and wait another 30 minutes to board the plane. On the plane, the pilot announces that the plane needs to be de-iced, and it would only take 10 minutes. An hour later, we finally take off.

I'm tired and didn't eat till dinner. Oh well,I'm gonna sleep now.

Here's to a fantastic new semester! I'm not being sarcastic, and let's all do our best!

Labels: Hatred, Richard, travel

2 comments

i'm back!

at school, of course. just want to say break was super fun with yall and lets go back for homecoming! hooray!

and to those far far away, i pine for your return.

Labels: Timothy

3 comments

it's actually been a while since i posted here, hasn't it?
well i'm taking a break after my first day of classes back. it's been a long day.
mostly cause i don't think i'm used to being back to school, and there's a lot of things going on in life right now.
i'm looking for research here at pitt and also applying to internships for the summer (it's like college apps all over again--CVs and essays and letters of recs and transcripts and OMGAUGGGHHHH...hahaha jk about the last part, i'm not dying *just* yet).
trying to get some things taken are of on this side of the coast. it seems while gealina's away in china, i'm the only one left on the east coast. o_o. wow.
more apps and essays to take care of--i'm planning to visit germany this summer for two weeks with the school (and along with that, friends here at pitt). hopefully i can also arrange for stuff because a group of us also want to visit spain (barcelona?...o con el titheo! barthelona!) that's all the way in april...but apps due next week, and after that, housing apps for next year. wow does time move by quickly.

and speaking of time...happy new year! it's been a memorable year.
OH EIGHT!
jan-feb/homecoming, finishing up apps, hearing from colleges.
mar/visiting pitt, sadies, livin' la vida for senior year.
apr/robotics world championships in georgia! prom: hollywood premiere!
may/senior retreat!
june/grad night, graduation!, sunset, grad parties.
july/teaching, more memories.
aug/sports festival, funny business ;), farewells and goodbyes, 18
sept/pitt, new faces
oct/rave, fallingwater!
nov/thanksgiving, college memories
dec/finals :(, more crazy nights, coming home, FRIENDS and FAMILY.

i loved 08. it was certainly a great year.
and now for 09--all this stuff to do now is all prep for something, right?
jan/inaug
feb,mar/school! more stuff...
apr/end school, spain
may/germany
june,july/internship?
aug/ last year as teen...
sept,nov/more school
dec/hk <3

Labels: Bernard

1 comments

Dear Friends,

Happy New Year! It's been an eventful year for us all, I'm sure, what with graduating from high school and our first terms in college. I don't know about you all, but 2008 has carried some very precious memories for me.

January was the beginning of a new year and a couple of deadlines for colleges. I'm so glad that period of our lives is over and don't envy the seniors going through the process now. In February I helped put on our winter show: The Foreigner, which was a hit and I had a great time stressing out over college admittances and tech week all at the same time. In March I was able to go to Okemo, VT with Steven and some friends and we had a great time skiing and bonding in the snow. Trips with your friends are always more fun, and this couldn't be truer. April was the beginning of tennis season which was a lot of fun; I moved up to 3rd singles and had a great time getting closer to the tennis girls. May was testing and decision time, figuring out which college to go to and taking our final APs. I was debating between Wellesley and UD (since UCs would've been out-of-state tuition) and eventually decided on UD where I am very happy. And finally June, the end of our senior years. It was a happy and sad time. Time to say goodbye to all the great friends you've made in high school (although I've kept the best) and the next step on our journey through life. My graduation ceremony was bearable, our speaker (Scott Falin) wrote an amazing speech and once it was over I couldn't get out of Tatnall fast enough. I flew to California to see you guys where I shed a couple of tears watching everyone walk up and receive their diplomas. Congratulations to everyone who survived multiple years at Whitney High!

Finally the summer. After four long years of high school, a summer with practically nothing expected of us was quite welcome. I spent my days hanging out with Steven, reading, trying to stay cool, volunteering at a lab at UD... all that good stuff. August brought about another trip down to SoCal where I finally gathered the guts to cut my hair and get bangs (which I can't believe I didn't do sooner) and drive up to NorCal to visit family. We gathered for our family reunion and then flew back to begin the first term of college. Scary! I went with Steven to UMich to help him move in and say goodbye. It was a tearful departure, but I'm glad I was able to see him off.

Packing up everything was quite the chore, but by September I was all ready to move in and start classes. I met a lot of people and miss many more, but college is definitely a great time of our lives. By October, college seemed like a breeze, getting into a routine and everything. Every week I kept getting to know more people and the same people in different ways. I love my floor and hope that the atmosphere keeps up into next term next year. Then November was momentous with the Presidential election and as a time for family and friends to get together again. I was very lucky this year and was able to spend the holiday with some of the people I love most! Jefe and my floormate Lisa came with me to Steven's house where we cooked and talked and played games. Steven's family was gracious enough to accept us into their festivities like family. I only wish I could do that every year. And finally December... with finals for everyone and Christmas and presents and seeing old friends again! I got to see Jeannie and Yi and spend time with people from the past as well as say goodbye to many of the new friends i've made in college.

Now it's the New Year. 2009! Woah! We're old. Do you remember when it was 2000? Y2K? We've come a long way since cell phones and internet. Now we've got the iPhone and Skype and all that good stuff.

I'm going to be in China for the next month, from Jan 3 till Feb 3, but I'll be using Skype [username: gealinadun] (and maybe Oovoo [gealinadun]) and AIM [gealinadun]and gtalk [gealina08]. I would love to hear from you all anytime (although I guess the time difference would be a little difficult. Oh well.) I'll try to keep the blog posted on my adventrues. With pictures too!

Happy New Year to you all! And good luck with the upcoming term! I hope you've had a wonderful vacation and I miss you all. Hugs and kisses!

~Gealina

Labels: Gealina

1 comments