Cold Rants
Mood:  cheeky
So did you ever notice that when it's really cold outside you start thinking about all sorts of strange things just to keep your mind occupied so that your not thinking about how ridiculously cold it is and how far you still have to walk and how many of your body parts are going to freeze off by the time you get there?

For example, let's say you're walking home, hypothetically of course, and it's ridiculously cold; kinda like being ridiculously good looking, but not quite, and a Ryder truck goes by and you think, man it would be nice to hop on the back of that thing and ride it for a couple blocks. So you picture this in your head, including the inevitable part in which you have to jump off the back, and you picture yourself landing horribly and scraping your face all up and then having to hobble the rest of the way all banged up and bleeding and walking in the door and being asked what the heck happened, and, feeling embarassed, refusing to divulge the details, and so everyone wonders from that day forward where that big scar on your face came from, and your silence on the issue only leads them to imagine that it was something fantastical and dangeresque, and so they call you Scar Face behind your back, but secretly admire your mysterious deeds, but really it was just a lame-o landing off of the back of a Ryder truck, and they'd be oh-so disappointed to know that your life-long secret was mere stupidity like that guy in the Onion. So musing about that theorectically gets you half of a block then you look down and see strange tracks in the snow that look like:
./.\../.\.../.
/...\/...\./.
\.../\.../.\.
.\./..\./...\. (if that doesn't look right on your computer than you're mising out man.)

And you're like, whoa, what sort of thing makes those sorts of tracks. So you keep looking down for these tracks, and finally you see one that has roughly the shape of a boot around it, so then you realize it isn't some mystical robot at all, just a weird sole pattern.

So that took another half a block, but you still have two to go, and you can't even run home like you normally do because your stomach hurts, b/c all you had time to grab before heading out the door to your awaiting ride was a chunk of cookie dough. That's right, you're just that sad. But it's so cold you decide to run anyway, and your eyes start watering, but you can't even feel the tear roll down your cheek, it's too cold. And then your eyes start freezing shut, and you feel them trying to stick together with each blink of your eye. And then to boot it all, and city plowman comes rolling by and give you a look like you're the stupidest human in the world cuz your outside in whether like this. So you give him a dirty look and keep running. And then your legs get that weird tingly feeling cuz they're cold and all of a sudden there's blood flowing through them and you start thinking about horses and thermoregulation. And how your feet, just like a horses, are getting cold by conduction from the ground and the seemingly like of radiant heat hitting you and the overabundance of convective forces as you're running along. Then you have to shake your head as you realize how often you use equine anatomy and physiology on yourself, and that you should really cease doing that. And then you think that no one recognizes artistic writing anymore, and can't tell when you're using a sentence fragment creatively and purposefully. But it's so cold there's nothing else to think about, and you think it would have been a good idea to hop on the Ryder after all.

So the moral of the story is.. don't go outside unless you absolutely have to. It creates crazy people like that bum in Starbucks yesterday who thought that everyone was a hound dog, and that this place is a dump. I didn't mean to say dump, I meant. . . dump. I mean..... place.

And then there was the most entrancing person I've ever met Monday night at T.J Maxx. I'm just taking a peek darling, just a peek.

Love Gretel

100
Mood:  celebratory
Seeing as this is entry #100, I should make it extra-special and full of witticisms. However I believe that is beyond my mental capacity as I started watching the extended version of The Return of the King around midnight last night with my sisters and my boyfriend. Definitely worth it. Especially when inevitably every five to ten minutes someone asks, Is this a new scene?, and arguement ensues as to whether or not it is. Then there was the necessary, frame by frame, viewing of the death of Peter Jackson YAY LEGOLAS, with maniacal laughing on the part of my sister at his pained expression. Then again she did a lot of maniacal laughter throughout the movie.

The weather has turned quite cold and I take shelter from the wind in the bus shelters. One lovely cold Friday afternoon I decided to wait for the bus in said shelter. I walked in and was startled to see Devil Kid sitting there waiting for his bus. I nearly dropped my coffee and my heart started beating faster for a few quick seconds. I had to decide. Would I sit near him, or join the rest of the crowd, who were huddling together on the far side of the shelter?!?

Later that week I was waiting for Colin to finish programming, and bored, I decided to finally read Devil Kid's stories on his website. I was delighted to see that he had posted his methods for curing his nearsightedness by use of pure unadulterated logic. He's quite the genius. Critically though, his first story I felt was lacking in many areas. The second was intriguing, although I think he wrote himself into many of the characters, which I may or may not approve of.

Rayrul is home!!

Ummmm, last night at Jewelry was uneventful. I sold at $800 dollar watch. The best part was my breaks. Although I managed to be in a good enough mood to sing along to the Christmas songs.

Other than that there is not much to report. I had some really good burbon chicken at the Mall of America. I mean it was so good it's worth reporting. And that doesn't happen very often.

Love Gretel

Mood:  suave
Well, my week of hell is finally over.

I had two ten page papers due. And other minor assignments, and 25 of of work or so. But anyway it's over with a decent amount of sleep and not much left to do. I even persuaded Colin to go to Starbucks with me one night.

The jewelry counter has been pretty slow. There hasn't been any new stuff in. My big excitement was doing markdown. Scan scan scan scan scan scan scan, one markdown scan scan scan scan scan scan scan scan scan scan scan scan scan scan scan scan scan scan scan. You get the idea.

I discovered mint hershey kisses which are the best things since those mint hershey bars that hershey no longer sees fit to make.

Hopefully my schedule will slow down enough to get some Christmas shopping down. Otherwise, four tests, one presentation, other one/two hour assignments and I'm done baby!

Love Gretel

So today was uneventful.

Lou did cool Halloween experiments today.
I caught the bus. Devil Kid was there.

I ran into ALf though, which was a big surprise for me so I had a little time to talk to her before she had to catch the bus and I had to catch mine.

Other than that it's uncharacteristically balmy today. It's a little weirding me out. But instead of enjoying it I have to go to works.

Phooey

Love, Gretel

I own Chemistry
Mood:  celebratory
Now Playing: Keane - Somewhere only we know
Soooo; I thought I got like an F- on my chem test. But it turns out I got 19/20. So that means I schooled David and Nick. I own them in Chemistry and that's all I really wanted anyway right.

Anyway so the week in review. OR revue. Or something:

Sunday: I got to learn everything there is to know about dairy farming. I got to hear about calves: what to feed them based on their nutritional needs at different ages and what to look for to see if they're healthy or not. I inspected all the different medicines used for calves and cows.

Um then I got to see what a milking barn is like. I got to clean some udders, diagnose mastitis, check a cow's temp, breathings, rumen sounds, and heart rate, and feel for a calf, i.e. stick my hand up a cow's rear and feel down for a calf.

I also was inundated with information of all sorts of other things. I didn't get home from Princeton til one and then had to finish my chem pre-test.

Monday: Lab was uneventful. We got to look at pretty lights and make things luminese under a black light. I met Mike at Caribou and ran into Christina. I studied more for chem as I got another chance to improve my score on my pre-test.

Tuesday: More studying for Chem. Such an eventful life. I went to Colin's and listened Colin and Tuan jam. The only thing I got out of it was SNL's Christmas Song stuck in my head with the keyboard, and they play the guitars and whatever, you either no it or you don't.

Wendesday: My morning class was canceled. I met with my advisor. Basically. If I had known that it was canceled and I hadn't had to meet with my advisor I wouldn't have had to go to school til 4:30. Sigh. So I had a lot of time to sit around and chillax for chem. But that helped cuz I wasn't stressed at all for the test. Afterward it was Smallville til all the way. It was a particularily "racy" episode in which Lionel messes everything up for Clark "as per usual." I went to Colin's to study for my Lit test.

Thursday: It was raining and I got totally soaked running to my horse class. This morning was a particularily enlightening lecture on the distal limb of the horse. I think my Lit test went well, and afterwards I think I got asked out on a date. Which goes to show you that pleather will get you anywhere. Or something. Ummmmmm, other than that I learned all about hay, and had a relaxing bus ride.

Love Gretel Von

Mood:  caffeinated
Now Playing: Zoot Suit Riot
So, it's like way early and I'm awake because the coffee is keeping me up, although I did sleep for a while. I've been messing around on my precious for an hour or two.

This weekend has been unmomentous, to borrow a word. I've worked on Chem, and mostly procrastinated working on Chem. I had my orientation yesterday. I start on Wendesday,

I'll have to miss Smallville tear rolls down cheek . So I have to do chem, and go learn how to milk cows. Now I'm rambling. So off to do chem, or make my website more presentable.

Love, Gretel

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Soooooooooo,

With the onset of the cold Guitar man has been strangely absent. But since he has continued in his Antichrist ways I choose not to care.

Yesterday was pretty slow. We have a guest speaker in AniNut. He has a very thick accent which made it difficult to take notes and do the crossword puzzle at the same time.

Tuan skipped Chem again to talk to me. I personally cross-stiched during Chem. I don't need to take notes so it just makes it easier, but I do get a lot of weird looks.

I got a 90 on my Ani. Nut test. Looks like that's my score of choice. I assume I beat David again b/c he wouldn't show me his test. Lol; it'd almost make me feel better if he did better than me.

Agh; I just must not be in a writing mood cuz I can't write anything in a sensical manner.

Man I haven't written anything for a week.

Ummmmmmmmmm, k. So Saturday I went walking with Tuan, Colin and Ashley. It was uber cold and I'm sure parts of me fell of and are frozen somewhere in Maple Grove. I got a job. And I got sushi with Lizzy-pi. My fortune told me to go back and buy the one with sequins. My car died several times. The 20th was apparently a good day.

Idk; that's all I can puke out right now.

Love Miss Gretel Vaughn

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Soooo, to borrow a word, church today was unmomentous. But I did get a thought or two out of it. And I actually knew all the worship songs today.

---

It's a beautiful day in the neighberhood so I'll try to get outside.

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Other than that, nothing much to report. I slept most of yesterday and then woke to do some Chemistry, set-up, talk on the phone... and get out of the house for a while and go back to sleep. Real exciting stuff.

---

More chem to do to day, and maybe a more heartfelt entry later.

---

Love Gretel

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By the Light of a Blood Red Sun
Mood:  happy
Now Playing: Joesph and the Technicolor Dreamcoat
I should have known I was in for something when the sun shone dull and red in the sky. I had a brief moment of dissonance looking at it, until I figured it was the sun and not the moon. It was eerie.

Not long after I discovered that Guitar Man was the Antichrist. And that worshipping him for five seconds would get you a free CD. I chose that time to move and lie in the grass and soak up some sunlight. Daily dose of Vitamin D you know.

The day was otherwise uneventful, other than sitting next to a smart alec in Chem and learning how to make molten iron. Then I got to sit with all the boys in the back of the bus.

That's about all, a rather slow Friday.

Oh, and according to Guitarman, the Kingdom of Heaven is like a banana, peel that sucker man. Tastes pretty good.

Siiigh

Gretel

The Weirdness Attraction Factor
Mood:  flirty
Now Playing: Sheryl Crow -Anything But Down
Wow. I am a bad dancer. Time to stop dancing in front of the mirror.

Other than that, let's see. Relevant pieces of news. Brother Jed is gone. I almost got beat up at the bus stop. No seriously. I went on rounds in the Large Animal Hospital. If you could call it that.

Ummmmmmmm. I had a Chemistry Test. I got 90.5 on Ani . Nut. It seems to be my curse, cuz that's what I got on my first lab. I don't know how chem went. I could find out I guess. *mills online*

*finds random words of wisdom* Life goes on after a test.

Eighty Percent. Awwww Maaaan. I had hoped to do better than that. :'( Oh well. Life goes on I guess.

I met a staple of U of MN folklore today. The Jazz Man was my bus driver today. I'm not sure what he was playing though. I was a little disturbed at his break in composure and personified over-all coolness, when he started freaking out about having to stop at this one light, because apparently he hates stopping there.

I also ran into the Man With The Robot Voice again.

Anyway; I've decided that weirdness trails me. It folllowing in make wake like a hound dog on a scent.

Today while walking home from the bus, I was absorbed in my music and even singing along, as the streets appeared deserted. Suddenly I hear a crunch of leaves behind me and whirl around to look down into the wide-eyed face of a little girl who had been following me. I said hi, and asked if I could help her with something. She thought I was part of some family she knew and asked if I knew Summer or Rachel. Anyway I wasn't THE ONE and I continued on my way.

I was highly distraught that I couldn't leave after my test in "Horse in Your Backyard" which only took me TEN minutes and I had to wait for AN HOUR for everyone else to finish so we could go on to another part of the class. But we went down to the Large Animal hospital and measured horses and predicted their weight. I got to help measure. And I met Hercules, and that horse just makes you smile.

Plus I think he made the bus gods smile on me too. :) Which is always a good good good thing. :)

Love Gretel