(no subject)

oh, god. awake! awake! I stayed up til almost 9PM yesterday (after having gotten up at 130AM), and woke up at 4:30 AM, which is about par for the amount of sleep I need to get.

An interesting twist: my mother is taking classes too, now, and she aligned her schedule to mine. So now, due to her schedule, I can't ever miss the first class and go to the second, or miss the second and go to the first, or whatever. I also might have problems leaving school between my two classes for a snack or something. and I never get away from my mom, never get to drive to school alone with the music on good and loud. On the upside, I don't have to drive myself... I hate driving, actually.

I did, however, find out that my veteran's benefits never expired and I can get reimbursed for last spring's classes... so that is something like $1400 right there, and then money for this semester. All I have to do is tell them that I changed my major to art, so it's covered.

There is a class tonight at the new local JCC on "Kabalah for Dummies"; it sounded interesting, but I don't think I will be able to handle going. Too many classes in one day; I don't want to fall asleep in the middle.

I'm also hoping that I don't spend this afternoon the way I have the last two: in considerable gastric distress. I don't even know what I ate that caused it, but my stomach has been making me miserable the past few days. I doubt it was the Cheerios, so it was probably the wheat pretzels (wheat bothers my system sometimes). Gurgle gurgle.

I have an intense craving for orange-pineapple-banana juice which will not be honored. I did, however, eat one of the magnificent tangerines that I bought yesterday. It reminds me that it's just about time for clementines to be available by the crate at Sam's Club... oh, my darling clementines.

(no subject)

I just got home and am freshly scrubbed and pajama'd; soon I will be going to sleep.

I'm really blitzed. It's been a long day. Made it to classes a little late thanks to mom. I'm not even sure why, I just know that I was ready to go on time and she wasn't, and I had even made hot drinks for both of us, and offered to iron things for her.

First classes are dreadful minute poring-over-the-syllabus. Not so bad in Art History where the instructor lets us out early but interminable in Figure Drawing (which is 2 hours 15 minutes long at best, longer if we run over and don't invent Important Reasons Why We Need To Leave). I went to Sam's Club between the classes to price scanners and stopped for a Slurpee (blue raspberry!) on the way back to school.

Yes, today was definitive "Slurpee Weather" - cold and windy, but sunny. It's now seriously unpleasant outside, somewhere in the lower 30s. Sadly enough, the lovely winter coat I bought in September and suspected might be too small (but was assured by the salesgirl was Just Right when I contemplated looking for one size larger) is indeed a bit too small. I can't cross or raise my arms. Pah. On the other hand, it has a faux-fur collar which is suitably plushy and can be turned-up against the wind, and in my winter hat I flatter myself by thinking that I look like a Russian countess.

The woman who sits next to me in my drawing class is Russian. She looks Russian. She's strangely well-maintained and well-groomed... circa ten years ago. A nice light brown suit, curled and sprayed hair pulled back with one of those large pouffy bow clips, drawn-on brows and frosty pink lipstick, etc. She's already chosen me as her translator/interpreter. I don't mind, she seems nice enough.

After school we went to Sam's Club again. I spent most of the time I was there sitting in a desk chair nursing a terrible backache stiff neck blah blah blah. My mother got herself a down comforter, new computer speakers, two journals, a ton of other stuff. I got... well, the house got, it's not mine, a "thumping" hand-held massager. I got a crate of clementines for $5! Oh, the citrusy goodness!

After that, a stop at a bookstore that lasted for three hours, followed by a guilt trip when I wanted to get a poetry book. I pointed out that all the money she spent that she was trying to make me feel bad about was spent on stuff she bought for herself, not me. I hate not having money of my own. As if living with your parents isn't depressing enough.

So I am really, really, really tired. I can't even carry on a conversation right now. When I finish writing this I'm heading straight for bed.

I got mail from my friend the med student. His Japanese girlfriend is now a Japanese fiancée. Go him! He goes to Asia to visit her absurdly often and they're going to get hitched in a year or so. It's nice to hear that he's doing so well (although med school is really overworking him - and this is the guy who took something like 4 AP classes sophomore year of high school without blinking). Sometimes these letters from old friends make me... flutter... in my stomach. Nervous. Like an audition, like an interview.

Everything hurts and I can no longer concentrate. I can sleep as late as I wish tomorrow morning, though to go too late would be an error. It's an advantage to take.