Tired now...

So it turns out that I spoke much too soon, because the financial aid situation was actually an error in the system which appeared to be in my favor but ended up meaning I owe them more money than I thought I would. As a result, I will now be taking only 2 classes instead of the three that I was hoping to take...so on the upside, I'll get fafsa money back for half the amount of the third class it would have paid for, but on the downside I don't get to take the class. Oh well. I will be taking the Contemplative Psychology 1 class, and Dynamics of Intimate Relationships (always a good thing to learn about while in relationships, and it fulfills a requirement, so I figured, why not?) starting sometime in mid January. Also, all of my finals are now over, and my last day of school was today, so other than 50-60 hour work weeks, I now have a whole month of "rest" to look forward to. Woot.

In other news, someone brought a goat to school today, which kept peeing on the carpet and disturbing class, but was quite cute anyway. It was part of a "culture presentation" of one of the people in the class, so it was admissable...I guess. That's about as interesting as it's gotten today. I went to school from 9am to noon, then work from 12:30 to 2, then the other work from 2:45 to 11:30 (yes, I am still at work, there's a computer in the break room). So yeah...long day. And my body is deciding that it's okay to get sick now that finals are over. So that's going well.

Not much else. I'm going to go eat something now. Ciao all,

-Le Mari

Woo snows :)

So it snowed a lot between today and yesterday, and is supposed to keep snowing tomorrow.  There's about eight inches right now and it's still going.  There are also gigantic icicles all over everything, and the town is absolutely beautiful.  Here are some pictures of the current situation:

We also put the cat in the snow to see how he'd react.  He ended up not wanting to move so he wouldn't get his tummy snowy, but not wanting to stay because it was cold.  in the end he compromized by taking very slow steps, and ended up getting more snow on him because he kept ducking when snowflakes hit him.  It was fairly amusing.

Also, Tim hurt his arm by managing to lay his bike over and slide 3/4 of the way through an intersection (when he had right of way) to avoid being hit by a cop who ran a red light.  The cop didn't come back, and didn't have his flashy lights or siren on or anything.  We're not sure what's going on with that, but he thinks he pulled a few muscles or sprained it or something.

Finals are next week.  So now I'm going to go study for them.  Bye all,

-Mari

Thanksgiving and the like...

So, thanksgiving was good. I got to laze around all day and watch the X-files (well, the lone gunman actually, because we're at that point in the show) and eat a delicious vegan nut loaf (courtesy of Jaime's recipe, and if you read this Jaime, thank you very much ^_^). Tim also made cornbread and I made a peanut butter, chocolate, coconut pie...and yes, it was all vegan, and yes it was yummy. So yeah.

But now, of course, it's back to work. My work day started at 10 this morning and ends at about 11:30 tonight due to both jobs. I guess it's not surprising though, since it's the day after thanksgiving and both of my jobs are a) on the mall, and b) retail.

In other news, an unexpected turn of events in regards to financial aid has led me to have be getting money back from the fafsa rather than having to pay extra this term. While this isn't enough to take another class, it is enough to pay for things that we've been needing, such as a vacuum cleaner (cat hair everywhere....ugh).

Not much else is going on. I am anticipating the healing of my ankle, because they just set up a seasonal, outdoor ice-skating rink in the Pearl St. Mall (why is there a pearl street in just about every city in existence?) and I've never been ice-skating.

And with that, I shall go, because I'm just on break at work and I want to eat something. Bye all :)

-Mari

Misc. happenings

Hi all,

Well, a couple of interesting things have happened.  First of all, I registered for next semester's classes, and am going to be taking Contemplative Psychology 1, Developmental Psychology, and Psychology of Intimate Relationships...yaaay...lots of reading is in my future -_-'

Second, it snowed about a week ago for the first time during my time here in Boulder (just a little bit, but hey, I'll take what I can get heh), then promptly melted and has been about 70 degrees outside ever since...people here are a little worried because usually it's snowing like crazy now and not only isn't it snowing, but the snow up in the mountains is melting already.  Woo...global warming...anyway, here's a picture of the snow outside my livingroom window:

Third of all, I went to a microbrewery called the Red Fish where there's live reggae every Wednesday, and managed to sprain my ankle while dancing.  So now it's all elevated and wrapped and purple-ish and the like.  I've had to miss a day of work, but I really shouldn't be on it at all.  Not that that matters as far as life is concerned.  So now I am gimpy and going to go make myself some lunch.  Ttyl all,

-Mari

Halloween and such

So, Halloween was generally successful.  I only figured out that I was able to do anything three days before the 31st, so I had to rush to make a costume.  However, a costume I did make, and it ended up looking alright.  Here are some pics:

So yeah, that was fun.  I was supposed to be a doll, but everyone thought I was little bo-peep, which I guess is not surprising in retrospect.  Oh well. 

I ended up going to the school Halloween party for a little while, then eventually ended up at someone's house and didn' t know exactly how to get back, so I had Tim come find me once he got off work...I have a terrible sense of direction.

On a different note, there is a restaurant here near the Pearl St. Mall (where I work) that has live reggae bands come in every Wednesday.  A group of friends of mine usually goes there to dance, so I might be doing that, we'll have to see how my schedule looks.  

Overall, things have been going well.  I haven't had much time for general fun things (aka, painting, reading books that aren't assigned, hiking, anything else...) but being vegan has made me learn to cook a little better, which is good because my cooking skills were dearly in need of some help.

And now, I shall go make breakfast.  Ttyl all,

-Mari

Oh, would you look at that, an update o.0

So, just out of curiosity, are any of you guys actually reading this?  You can let me know by commenting =P

If I haven't mentioned yet, midterms went well, I got As on both of them.  Of course, now that half of the semester is over, things will begin picking up the pace.  But I have gotten a new organizer, which has room for all of my homework assignments in it, so hopefully that'll help me stay caught up.  Also, I get to start picking classes on November 18th for next semester...woo.  It looks like I'll be taking either three psych classes, or two psych classes and a p.e. class (aka, yoga, aikedo, tai chi, etc.)...not sure which I want to do yet though.  It sucks only being able to take 3 classes -_-'

I have been progressively learning how to cook vegan-style (mainly out of necessity) and have learned that there are many wonderful things that most meat eaters have never experienced.  For example, how many of you (with the exception of Jaime, if he reads this, because he's a Chef and doesn't count) actually know what "Nutritional Yeast" is?  No, it's not normal yeast.  It's yellow, and flaky, and makes things taste like cheese...bizarre, non?  Also, for those of you who want your soy to taste like meat, there's this wonderful stuff called 'Soy-Rizo' which tastes much like chorizo but is much better for you and such.  In fact, I think I shall cook some of it tonight.  Bwahaha!

So anyway, both Tim and myself (as a result of getting off of our asses and actually biking/cooking food at home/eating more healthy stuff) have been shrinking horizontally.  Mainly Tim...I don't have that much further I could go anyway.

Also, the whole thing regarding coming back to Oregon for a couple of weeks over the summer is looking somewhat sketchy, as Greyhound are no longer doing their $99 anywhere in the U.S. deal anymore, and therefore a round trip bus ticket would be as much as a plane ticket right now.  So we shall see how that goes.  Hopefully it'll all work out.

That is all for now.  Byes.

-Mari

Another update

Well, obviously I spoke too soon about that whole weather getting colder thing, because it was about 75 degrees today.  Odd.

Also, having to jobs is kind of frustrating.  Especially trying to communicate to one that, no, I can't conveniently skip the other one to work for them on a particular Saturday.  Etc.

I've become a slight bit less enchanted with Boulder after being here for a few months.  The town is great, but it's also very expensive, and jobs don't pay that much because people are used to hiring college kids who don't need money but have to account to their parents where the money flow is going.  Also, because it's so expensive, there is very little diversity in this town.  Lots of white people.  There are few people of African heritage, occasionally someone from Europe, and plenty of Hispanic workers who I rarely see because they're always given the kitchen or construction jobs.  I find this somewhat depressing, personally.  It seems like a lot of people here are so busy living with their yoga-filled heads in the clouds that they forget about the homeless people they're ignoring. 

Otherwise, classes are still going well.  There is not too much difference in my life from last week.  I shall continue to update.  Bye all,

-Mari

Midterms

Well, all, midterms have officially begun.  I only have two, but they're not a typical paper and pencil ordeal.  Instead, they're 'warrior style' as they like to call them here.  Two people sit across from each other (people randomly chosen), and one draws a question out of a bowl and reads it to the other, who must spend six minutes discussing the topic, how it relates to some other thing, how this subject has appeared in his or her own life, etc.  Then the questioner asks an additional question or two to draw out more information.  It really puts you on the spot, so you have to know what you're talking about.  Luckily, I studied pretty well and didn't have too much of a problem with my first one.  The one I have next Monday will be a little more difficult though.

Otherwise, life is pretty good.  I got a raise (woo...25 cents...) at the candy store, which is a total of like $10 extra per paycheck, which is really not that much, but I guess it means they like me.  The weather here has also turned cold.  There was ice on my bike this morning, and I wore two coats to school.  The towns further into the mountains are getting snow already, and the flatirons look like they've been dusted with powdered sugar.  Here's a picture of the mountains, sans snow, but still pretty:

Also, here are some pictures of my two jobs, the candy and book stores:

Finally, here's a picture of part of the Naropa campus.  The building on the right is the library, and on the left you can see a little bit of the student affairs and admissions building.  This area is called 'the green'.  Also, the large tree in the picture is a sycamore, and is one of the oldest recorded trees in the U.S.  It's 44 inches in diameter I believe.

Also, thank you to everyone who wished me a happy birthday/sent cards and gifts/etc.  Even if it's just because myspace reminded you ^_^  I had to go to school and work all day on the 8th, but I got to go out to dinner and buy myself some sweaters over the weekend, so overall it was good.

And now I shall go watch something and eat dinner, because I am hungry and such.  Ttyl all,

-Mari

Shambhala Mountain Center

Over the weekend, I went to the Shambhala Mountain Center, which is at about 8500 feet and about 2.5 hours from Boulder up in the mountains.  I went there for a retreat for my Psychology degree.  It was supposed to be a 'community building experience' but there was so much scheduled that there wasn't much time for socializing.  There was basically a lot of meditation and a few workshops, all Shambhala related.  Overall, it was pretty fun though.  The area is beautiful, and the lodges we stayed in were basically like hotels.  Also, all of the food was delicious.  But it didn't leave much time for homework, so now there's lots of that to catch up on.  Here's a picture of the Stupa at night (Chogyam Trungpa's remains are there), and the general area as well:

Other than that, not much is going on.  There's lots of homework and school.  Tomorrow I have a 12 hour work day between the two jobs, and midterms are in two weeks.  The midterm style is kinda strange, but I'll give more information on that later.  Until then, Ciao all.

-Le Mari

Well hello everyone ^_^

Alrighty. So, I am starting up this blog (woo, blog again...) so that you guys can still know what's going on with me since I'm not able to personally contact you all as much as I'd like. So for now, I'll just outline the basics of what's going on, and I'll explain things more in detail later.

I'm in Boulder, CO. I'm here for school, going to Naropa University. It is a Buddhist inspired liberal arts school, and I'm taking three classes because the financial aid system in this country is screwed up and believes that I am still a dependent of my parents, even though I've been out of the house and financially independent for about four years, am a legal adult, and am living halfway across the country from them. Yeah. Anyway...

Life is very busy. I go to school and work two jobs. I have 7 books and at least 6 online books from which I must read every week, two papers due every monday, and approaching midterms. I earn about $800 a month because wages here are low, and over half of it goes to bills and rent because cost of living here is high. Thank god I don't have any kids. However, the town is beautiful, and the people are amazing. I love one of my jobs, and like most aspects of my other job (a book store and a candy store respectively). I am meeting awesome people, and learning very engaging things. I am developing an appreciation for good music (Tim's a musician, and going to school here for music, so it's kind of expected I guess...). I'm also Vegan. I'm learning a lot about what I do and do not need to live and be happy.

And I'll leave you guys with that. More to come later. Bye all,

-Le Mari