February 28, 2007

Make it dance! Make it prance!

“Seems like just yesterday we were lighting fire to Strong Sad’s underwears”

-“That was yesterday…”

Well everybody, its that wonderful, magical time of year again…. That’s right, Roll Up The Rim to Win! I was called a hopeless consumer today because of my love of this annual coffee related contest, but that was by a European who has no solid concept of Timmy Ho Ho’s and its institutional status in Canada. Its not just a coffee shop, it’s a way of life. The thing is I NEVER win ANYTHING. I get angry at the people who complain about winning coffee and cookies and stuff. I would love if I won those things because I can buy 18 coffees (and we’re talking large here, I'm not coping out with the mediums) and get a “Please Play Again” every single freaking time. The odds of winning something are 1 in 9, so I’m caught in some sort of anti-double or nothing realm of rim rolling.

It doesn’t seem to matter that I haven’t won anything in the approximately 7 years I’ve been a faithful participant in roll up the rim, I still play again when they ask me to do so. Its some sort of optimistic obsession that keeps me coming back for more. I probably drink 75% of my annual intake of coffee during roll up the rim, I don’t drink that much otherwise. Two coffees in a day is very rare for me, unless its between March and May.

Right, so I should be studying for my midterm which I have in 3 hours, but I feel semi-confident and I don’t really feel like it. I hope it will be ok. I’m torn about how much effort I should be putting into my French class since I just get a pass fail grade for it. I need to work hard enough at it that the fail option is far from sight… that would be a depressing and unnecessary taint on my transcripts which only recently have been looking stellar.

Tonight after my midterm I have a whole bunch of reading and note taking that needs to get done before tomorrow at 10 am when I meet with my supervisor. I haven’t been slacking, I just have problems doing several projects at once and I like to get things out of the way before I start focusing on the next thing. My mind gets confused and garbled easily enough – two exams in one day is like the worst thing ever.

Places I hope to eat when I get to the T dot: Spring Rolls (mmmm, addictive Shanghai noodles), Sushi Club (no comment needed) and Friendly Thai.

February 27, 2007

“Syntax Reigns Supreme”

That’s something my prof said, but who could argue with it? However he did also mention that such a powerful syntax puts pressure on the pragmatics, which boils down to how smart you are and how much information you have about the world. So maybe we should make syntax reign supreme in some other context, I know you could care less.

Super excited about getting to Toronto on Friday, I don’t think I have too much due next week so if I can get some reading done on the train it should be ok. If you’re reading this and you’re my friend from Toronto, I want to see YOU! That’s right, the internet knows about you, where you live, you favourite pudding flavour.

I have another presentation tomorrow, but I actually feel fine about it since there’s only 6 people in the class and I should be able to sit and rattle through my already finished handout. Aussi, demain j’ai un an examen de mi-semestre en français. I think it will be ok.

My friend brought me back candy from Paris (where she went for reading week) and I got these awesome gummies which are shaped like Smurfs, but in French they’re called “Les Schtroumpfs”. No lie. I can barely say it, she doesn’t understand why I have problems with the word.

I've got 3 letters for the one on the left.

February 18, 2007

I see you caught in between

I hate clothes shopping. Whenever I go with something in mind I can never find it, like it doesn’t exists. But it does exists because I’ve thought of it and I’m not the kind of person who can construct imaginary clothes in her mind. I hate the crappy mall downtown, and I feel like a tool taking a bus to a better mall, but my wardrobe is very small and I’m starting to get holes in my jeans again. I don’t want to have to go back into patch mania again, I’ve been out of that for like 8 months.




I bought the light blue Shins album, and Sufjan Stevens' ‘The Avalanche’. The Shins is to deliberately expand my music catalogue and Sufjan is because I’ve listened to ‘Illinois’ like 5 billion times (well, actually, the play count on Casimir Pulaski Day is at 64 or something right now) so I needed new Sufjan so I don’t wear on that piece of my iPod’s hard drive.

I’m actually reading for probably all of this reading week. That and getting my hair cut. Last time that happened was at graduation in June, and the salon people yell at you when you answer a length of time over 3 months to “When did you last get your hair cut?” I’m creeping up on 9 months here, but who cares, its my head.

I was social on Friday, I’ll have you know, I went out with people and everything. Even had an amaretto sour… just one…. I think certain of the people I know here think I’m a total hermit. I claim that its because I don’t know that many people here, I did many more social activities in Toronto where I had 3 years to build up a friend base. My girl roommate gets back tonight, so we’ll hand out and possibly get nachos at Ahora.

I should also go to MEC to use my wonderful gift card. I also need to use the lifetime guarantee (for a second time) on my backpack because there’s holes in the bottom and my pens are falling out.

I’m going through stages of thinking my thesis will be really good and really crappy. Sometimes I think I have valid things to say and other times I’m just revealing my own mass inexperience and lack of expertise in the field, but that’s what I have a supervisor for. Actually I have 2, for some reason, even though I’m just an MA student.

Toronto friends: I hope to see you March 2-4 when I come visit. If you could clear at least a 2 hour slot (or 1 if that’s not possible) where we could rendez-vous, that would be fantastic.

February 14, 2007

Let us go then, you and I, When the evening is spread out against the sky

To His Coy Mistress
--Andrew Marvell

Had we but world enough and time,
This coyness, lady, were no crime.
We would sit down, and think which way
To walk, and pass our long love's day.
Thou by the Indian Ganges' side
Shouldst rubies find; I by the tide
Of Humber would complain. I would
Love you ten years before the flood,
And you should, if you please, refuse
Till the conversion of the Jews.
My vegetable love should grow
Vaster than empires and more slow;
An hundred years should go to praise
Thine eyes, and on thy forehead gaze;
Two hundred to adore each breast,
But thirty thousand to the rest;
An age at least to every part,
And the last age should show your heart.
For lady, you deserve this state,
Nor would I love at lower rate.

But at my back I always hear
Time's winged chariot hurrying near;

And yonder all before us lie
Deserts of vast eternity.
Thy beauty shall no more be found;
Nor, in thy marble vault, shall sound
My echoing song; then worms shall try
That long-preserved virginity,
And your quaint nonr turn to dush,
And into ashes all my lust:
The grave's a fine and private place,
But none, I think, do there embrace.

Now therefore, while the youthful hue
Sits on thy skin like morning glow,
And while thy willing soul transpires
At every pore with instant fires,
Now let us sport us while we may,
And now, like amorous birds of prey,
Rather at once our time devour
Than languish in his slow-chapped power.
Let us roll all our strength and all
Our sweetness up into one ball,
And tear our pleasures with rough strife
Thorough the iron gates of life:
Thus, though we cannot make our sun
Stand still, yet we will make him run.

February 12, 2007

February 07, 2007

On FIRE!

Uuuuh! I am totally on fire this week. Talking in class and getting questions right and everything. It hasn’t been a week where I’ve gotten a lot of evaluation (i.e. homework back) but I’ll just pretend/hope that that has all gone well.

Monday: Went to Carleton for a phonology talk, totally understood like everything. I was stuttering in French class (which is weird because I don’t stutter), but I’ll let that go. French tonight should be better because its half lab on Wednesdays which I find less stressful. The bright fluorescent lights in our normal classroom bother me and I can sometime barely open my eyes. I also got all my marking done for the week within the span of 2 hours (which is pretty good considering I get about 65 homeworks at a time).

Tuesday: Did a presentation in Syntax. Not a formal one, but the prof has been asking people to present the topics for classes and yesterday was my turn. Get this, I didn't even turn red! Not even a little! I did, however, talk really fast and he had to stop me b/c I left no natural discourse space for his interjections. I made a really nice handout, though, with pretty little Corel draw trees. Also on Tuesday I decided to periodically speak up in Semantics class. I usually follow what’s going on but don’t always like to talk in class, I’d rather let someone else do it. But no one was saying much yesterday and the prof was getting worried about it, so I thought I’d end some of the painful silences by responding to her questions.

Wednesday: Ok, so the day isn’t over, but Phonology class was pretty much me tearing it up. I had answers and insight and I think I even did my assignment correctly. I feel like people have been asking me for help a lot lately, which means I must have something under control and can actually reflect back out some things that I know. And I’m apparently very approachable (since randos on the street ask me for directions/the time all the time) so I guess it works out.

Ok, so on fire right now also means hyper active and I’m not getting anything done. I was also planning on going to a talk at 4 (to which several grad students and ALL linguistics profs go to) so I might want to do some jumping jacks so that I’m not all over the place for the duration of the talk. You should see my type right now, I could be a professional secretary at this speed, and if typing was the only skill you needed to have for that job.

Right-o… don’t you think it would be more fun to be British or Australian and have a funky accent? Do you think it sounds funky to the people who have it? Because let me tell you, the Canadian accent is not super sexy, it does not go both ways. I mean we don’t sound as bad as the drawling southerners with their indecipherable speech but it’s not like hot or anything.

My lips are dry. For some reason my medicated lip balm is not fixing that. When I was flying over Christmas break they made me put it in a little ziplock bag to go through security. This is screening technology at its best, the blocking powers of the ziplock plastic is internationally known for its terrorism stopping super powers.

February 04, 2007

Blame it on The Man

Frickin Google take over, it makes me ill. So you can't view the hilarious videos below since apparently its "copyright infringement". They took all Angry Kid clips off youtube. Ever since youtube and blogger were bought out by the google billionaire they've become more socially and legally responsible. Its total bull, if you ask me. I prefer the independent, seedy underbelly of the family friendly internet, which you have to hear about by word of mouth to use. Its like the first time you see Homestarrunner, or sift through emotioneric.com. But now everything has been merged into actual corporations and has lost the sweet spring scent of the burgeoning information free-market. Its because old people got involved. People with cars and houses and a green tint in their eyes which makes them constantly ponder how something could become a profitable endeavour. Back when we were the first generation of "inter-web" and could use a computer better than all our forefathers were the days when it was good and only got better. Apparently seniors can surf online now (supposedly mostly for dating opportunities, I saw it on TV) and have breached the age barrier.

I'm just upset that I can't use free entertainment and share it with my friends and anonymous viewers. So blame it on The Man. I'm just a poor student trying to liven up the day.

February 03, 2007

Put your toque on.

For those of you unfamiliar with Angry Kid, I think you'll like this.





February 02, 2007

Myxomatosis

Happy Ground Hog Day. I don’t know whether we’re having 6 more weeks of winter or if we’re going to get an early spring. Oh wait a second… they’re the same thing! Stupid fake holiday. Just like Valentine’s Day.

I’ve been busy busy busy. All PhD applications are now complete, abstract is submitted to conference, except I have to rewrite it to apply for another conference. Homework is still coming in at an extraordinary rate. I have no life outside Linguistics right now, its all I do. I haven’t even finished Catch-22 yet because I don’t have time to read non-Linguistics things. Oh well, I do love it, it’s just how school goes sometimes.

That’s all.