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Heart_of_Stone_10
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Name: Brianna
Birthday: 1/21/1988
Gender: Female
Interests: Nothin' odd really...readin', writin' a poem or two, watchin' tv, watchin' movies, typical everyday stuff.
Expertise: Once again i have decided to change this....eatin', sleepin', and being lazy are probably my true expertises. :)
Occupation: Student
Message: message me
Member Since:
12/22/2003
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| So time for an update...
Since last I wrote, I have come back to my second home. My mom, bro, and I drove back to SMC on Aug 24th. Before I left Hana, Eric, and Ben took me out to dinner at Chili's at The Pike. Hana made us dress up so I wore a dress, Hana wore a new "clubbin" shirt, Eric had a vest-button down shirt combo, and Ben...well he looked kinda like a bum because he didnt dress up. We had a fun night and took a ba-zillion pictures. Then the night before I left, Matt, Sam, Britt, Nikki, and Juan took me out to eat at the Hard Rock Cafe at Universal City Walk. The food/atmosphere/waitress were cool and to add just a pinch of goodness there were a ton of hot waiters. I counted at least 5 and I didnt even see them all. We saw The House Bunny afterwards. It was cute, but could have been funnier.
Well I came here, moved in with my two friends Mandy and Celine. They are harboring me until I get to fly away. The next day we started our Ambassador retreat. We did a ropes course on Monday. I climbed a ladder to a burmese bridge, crossed it, and then zip-lined down. Then I climbed a ladder to a log in the trees and crossed it. Then I climbed a ladder to a wire that I had to cross passing from one rope to another rope. Then I did this obstacle where I had to cross a wire holding on to a rope and then switch with another person going the opposite direction. The last task I did was climbing a pole, standing on the top, and jumping towards a target. I was really proud of myself because I tried everything at least once. It was kinda scary, but it was fun.
The next day was just a series of workshops and meetings. I got about an hour to hang out with my friends and then I had to go back to work to do "Life Boxes". That is always interesting because you listen to what people put in their box and what each object means to them. Then we played a hand-game and I played poker with two Admissions Counselors Omar and Linde. We didnt use money though, we used mini-chocolates.
Then next day was a few more workshops and meetings and then we were free. Yesterday I worked and trained the new folk and went to dinner with Celine and Mandy for Celine's birthday. We ate at a Greek place. I had awesome pomegranate chicken. Then Celine and I hung out with our friend Mike and his friends while he was doing his RA stuff. It was a nice day.
As for today...well we will see. I still need to explain England a bit, but I guess next time. Until then, ttfn!! | | |
| It's time to wrap up summer so ill begin where I left off.
June - I slept for a while. I had to catch up on all the hours I had missed. It was nice to be home. I saw my friends and spent time with my family. I dont remember doing much besides going to the movies and doing other relaxing stuff.
July - More of the same, except without my Hana. She flew away to spend time with her family in Japan. I was happy because she hasn't gotten to go in 2 years but I still missed her tons. I watched a lot of movies and found a website where I could watch old tv shows. It was a pretty quiet month. I also read the first two books of the Eragon series. I have been meaning to do that, but never got the chance. I'm glad I did though. Paolini's language skills are really good. He must have studied ancient languages especially some type of Norse.
August (so far) - Hana came back, I started seriously thinking about all I had to do before I have to leave, and I started getting kinda nervous. It is already the middle of August. I cant believe time is moving so fast. Thus far I got my backpack and a new raincoat for my trip. However, my biggest obsession right now is the Twilight series. I saw the preview for the movie and then I got curious and did some searching. I was going to read the books and then Hana told me I had to. It was a happy coincidence. She loaned me the first book and within a few chapters I was hooked. Edward Cullen is am awesome character and Bella Swan is really cool too. I read all four books within a week. It was so addicting. Im glad I got through them all before I left. Now I cant wait until the movie comes out.
I only have about 9 days and then I head back to SMC and then only another 10 days later and I will be on a plane to England. This is so bizarre...but more on that later. I guess that is all for now. So until next time...ttfn!
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| So first off, it's really f-ing hot. I say blah and bah humbug to the heat. Well now to finish writing about my school year...
May - It went by in a blur of class, papers, work, and random gatherings with friends. We had Mayfest which was alright. We had the best class skit which rocked. The same day i found a hidden talent i have. I was the stage manager for the Luau the HAPA (Hawaiian) Club threw. My friend was in charge and asked for help. It was actually really fun. I loved doing it. I had fun telling performers when to come and go and it came so naturally for me. Its cool to know that I have a random ability to fall back on if all of my other plans dont pan out.
There was one incident that should be mentioned. Well throughout the year people have left my job mysteriously some due to quitting and some due to being fired. So finally one of my co-workers gets fired and the returners (those being ambassadors next year) go into our boss's boss's boss office and ask what is going on and why our friend was fired. After about an hour of conversation everyone was slightly unsettled. So we next had a conversation with our boss. That night we gathered and discussed whether or not we should go to our last big event the next day. It was a back and forth arguing. Finally two people decided to abstain from going in protest for the way we were being treated. I convinced two of my co-workers to go. Here is my logic:
If we were arguing that we have done everything required and done it well, then we must complete our last task and show everything we have accomplished.
In the end our mini revolt lit a fire under our bosses. The ambassadors had one more conversation with our boss's boss. Then all our bosses and the returners got together and had a big meeting and everyone laid their cards on the table.
It was awesome to see how much a group of student workers accomplished in such a short time. The actual day of the mini-revolt/last event was hot and boring, but at night the Ambassadors had a blast. My friend Alex and I planned the first annual Burn Party. We all gathered memos, folders, and random office hand-outs from the year and burned them. We also made smores over the fire. It was so cathartic. It re-bonded us. Then at night we went over to my friend's place and hung out. It was a great night.
The year ended and I had to deal with a ton of problems with housing. I stayed two extra weeks for yearbook stuff, but i had to move from my dorm room, to my friend's dorm room, to my office. I literally lived out of my office for a few days. But finally i came home and now that is where i am. So i guess thats it. Until next time, ttfn. | | |
| So i should finish out my school year so here goes...
April - Good gravy. April was busy. More school of course and a ton of papers. But it was mostly work that occupied my time. I had to help organize and run the massive events we had on campus for the prospective students and their families. Between the overnights (where they came to spend the night with a current student on campus), the Gael-for-a-Days (where they spent the day on campus), the nights of calling and asking them if they need help or had any questions, and the regular tours/office work the ambassador workload was huge. I spent so much time with prospective students, whenever someone asked me a question every answer I gave came out in the robotic, cheery ambassador voice. My friends had to keep reminding me to talk like a normal person. It was an interesting couple of weeks.
I also went on a two-day hunting for lime green shoes. The waltz was coming up and i bought a cute black dress so I wanted bright shoes. Unfortunately, on my first trip out my friends and I walked around the Powell Street mall in San Francisco for 3 hours and could not find any. Apparently no one in the world makes lime green shoes. The next weekend I went with my pal Olano to Berkeley. I was super excited because even though I have lived in the Bay for quite some time now I still hadn't gotten to visit yet. We walked around and found Telegraph. Unfortunately, I still couldn't find shoes but I did find some amazing new/used bookstores and vintage shops and even a Hot Topic. haha It felt like home, kind of like Melrose. I also got to try Crepes-a-Go-Go. I had a crepe with strawberries, lemon, and powdered sugar. It was amazing!! Then we strolled over to Rasputin, which is an amazing cds/dvds/etc. store. I got my bro's bday present there. It was a cool day even if I couldn't find my shoes.
I ended up finding some cute ones online and luckily they fit. The actual waltz was a blast. I danced with my friends and took a ton of pictures of course. It's really funny because most of my guy friends at school can dance and considering that the mass majority of guys hate dancing, it is a refreshing change. I did some swing with Alex, some random waltzing with Sean and Daniel, salsa with Tim, and slow dancing with Joe. They were all so fun to dance with because they all lead differently. I also just danced with my gals. That was awesome too. We did the electric slide and some awkward swing. It was a really awesome night and I only got one blister from my new shoes. haha
With the end of April came the oh-crap-I-have-to-catch-up-on-my-studies-and-the-year-is-almost-over thoughts. Since the April entry has run long I guess I shall finish later. Until next time...ttfn!! | | |
| Well it's been a while since I have gotten to write here so I think its time to do so.
January - Well this Jan term I took a class called "Brazilian Capoeira". It was intense. Half the class was devoted to learning about Brazilian society and politics and the other half was devoted to training five hours a week learning capoeira. For those out there who have never heard of capoeira, it is a dance/fighting style that is played as a game in Brazil. It involves music, dance, martial arts, etc. It was amazing and definitely lost a bit of weight doing it. I also got to take some samba lessons which rocked. I love samba, even though Im not that great at it. In contrast, I began baking again. I made some pretty good chocolate chip cookies. Man, I forgot how much joy I get out of creating things and sharing them with my friends. It's such an amazing feeling to be able to give something so small that can mean so much.
January also contained my 20th birthday. It was alrite. It's kind of weird to think I am no longer a teen. I went home for the weekend because my birthday fell on Martin Luther King Jr. Day so it was a 3-day weekend. I didn't do much the first night. On the Saturday before my birthday, my aunt took my brother and I to the observatory. It was fun to walk around. Then on the Sunday before my birthday, Matt and I went dancing at Club Beat It. It was cool to dance and just chill. Then I flew back to school on my actual birthday. The next day my friends and I went to eat pizza and hung out in celebration. My friend even bought me some champagne. Overall my birthday was pretty calm, but it was nice.
February - I got back into the rhythm of working and school. I also went to all the basketball games and cheered for the Gaels. It was a lot of fun being able to watch them and have fun with my friends. I also got to be part of something life changing. I was in the Vagina Monologues. It seems odd by the title, but it truly has changed me. I got to hear stories of women all around the world. Stories about rape, abuse, problems within family/couples. Stories about women overcoming tremendous odds, about refusing to fit stereotypes. I got to know some amazing girls that welcomed me and let me be a cast member, even though I had never acted before. It was so amazing. I still can't believe the bonds we made in a month. If you have never seen the play, I highly recommend it. Or better yet, if you ever get the chance, become a cast member. It will change your life, if you let it.
March - More basketball games. (The Gaels went all the way to NCAA.) More work, more school. I went home for Easter and stuff. I was happy to see my family. But when I was home, I barely saw anyone, but my family. It was ok though because summer's just around the bend. I also got closer with my ambassador family (work family). I went to a few parties. It is hard to think that I am now slightly in the know about social gatherings. I have never been "in the know" and now with my ambassador friends I get invited to things all the time. I also got to meet Eve Ensler. She is the writer of The Vagina Monologues. It made my experience as a cast member complete. She was very warm and understanding and I got to take pictures with her. She gave me a hug and signed a piece of paper for me. It was like the icing on an amazing lemon creme cupcake.
Well this is getting long and I still have a paper to write so I should sign off. Until next time, ttfn!! | | |
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