Treasure

Yesterday's garage sales were a success I think. I spent about $4 total.

I got a set of wine glasses. It was 20 cents for all four of them.


I got drafting lead. All 5 little cases for a dollar. Those things are super expensive in the stores so I was so excited that I found some at a garage sale.



I found a paper towel spool thingy that I wanted for the kitchen in the new apartment (btw I got it and the lease is being mailed to me so I can read and sign it.)


And finally, and probably my most favorite find of the ENTIRE morning. Was this set of vintage mixing bowls. They were $1.50 for the set. They are like from the 50s or 60s or something like that and I think they're awesome. Christina can tell you how giddy I was after finding those.





After that was Sarah's graduation party. Lots of food. When it started winding down was when Kyle came over. He had borrowed his dad's Jeep Wrangler and took the top and doors off of it. So naturally we drove around in it.

Friday....couldn't come fast enough

Tomorrow Christina and I are going to garage sales in search of treasure.
The exciting prospects of tomorrow made today incredibly long.

I spent all day today staring at mortgage files...mortgages are boring.
Because I was so bored with mortgages made work today last forever...because work requires me to audit mortgage files.

After a face-meltingly boring day at work I came home to help prepare for my sister's graduation party tomorrow. The graduation ceremony is Sunday....it's going to be a busy weekend.

I have been having a hard time sleeping lately. I think I need some white noise. At the apartment in Chicago it was the Orange and Green lines that went by every 5 minutes, but here it's so weirdly quiet at night...and dark.

Mortgage starts to look like a weird word once you've written it a bunch of times.

Pictures tomorrow.
They're not of mortgages.

Random Thoughts

"Today the 700 Club is brought to you by Everett's Liquor Store"- my hysterical laughter ensues.

I miss having my own bathroom. I'm sure Sarah does too.

Work starts tomorrow, I need to find a way to get into the building because Mom and I no longer work at the same branch.

There are two pigeons/doves/birds of some sort that hang out on the back porch. I think they're dating.

It feels so good to read for enjoyment again rather than because I have a quiz on whatever it is I'm reading tomorrow.

Current Reading: I Am a Cat by Soseki Natsume

I went to a bonfire with Kyle last night and didn't really know anybody and consequently felt very awkward. Then we left to go play with the cats.

I'm gonna go make a sandwich.

Home?

So I'm back in Belvidere after a move yesterday and spent all day today (save for an hour for lunch with my mom) unpacking, cleaning and running an errand at Wal-Mart. It was weird going to Wal-Mart. There isn't one in Chicago.
Now I'm just getting paperwork things and other financial stuff together for next year and the new apartment.
I start work at the bank next week. It should make me a little extra money.
I'm saving up for a Wii, although I'm not sure that's such a good idea with school and such. Another procrastination enabler.

Apartment Search 2.0....over?

So I think I've decided to end my apartment search and go with the one I looked at yesterday. It was small and just barely in my price range, but I'm already just tired of looking. I've been looking since March and all the places I found online were out of my price range or really crappy. I finally let a friend talk me into looking at the place she lives and at least seeing how much it would cost.

The answer is just barely too much. But I'm taking it anyway because it's beautiful and has everything I need. A bathroom, a kitchen (the kitchen is gorgeous) and most importantly a washer and dryer in the unit. It's small, but I don't need anything big. And when the lease is up for that place I am definitely going to move somewhere cheaper, I just need someplace nice with a washer and dryer and it needs to be close to school for one more year. There are, however, perks to moving to this place. One of them is that it is a "green" building meaning that it's partially constructed from recycled materials as well as the furniture in the lounges and on the sky deck, it has a "green roof" which basically means they've planted things on the roof to reduce the temperature of the city and effects of the urban heat island and also to reduce the heating and cooling loads on the building. There is a recycling room separate from the garbage chute and there is free Starbucks in the internet lounge on the 1st floor. The keychain discount program, the huge TV on the 24th floor in the resident lounge, guest parking, various soda machines in the building, package receiving, 24 hour doorman, the fact that I have a friend living there already and proximity to everything I could ever need (Target is next door, Jewel, Whole Foods and Dominick's are all in the area as well as the Red, Orange and Green Line stops) kind of pushed my decision forward.

The Living/Bedroom/Everything Room- the door doesn't open, the HVAC system for the unit is in it. The window opens into a Romeo and Juliet Balcony

The Kitchen-the washer and dryer are in the closet to the left.

I guess this is what I get for going to a school in an expensive neighborhood. But when I look back, I just don't think I'd be happy at Loyola even though rent in Roger's Park is cheaper.

So I have a place to live next year. Now the only thing left is to try and figure out how I'm going to pay off all these loans when I graduate.

Scary.

Apartment Search 2.0

I have an appointment to look at a nice apartment on Clark St. today....it is however raining and gross outside and I just hope that my hair decides to behave and stay in place rather than making giant frizz afro like it sometimes does when there is a considerable amount of moisture in the air.

If I decide to go with this apartment today (I'm leaning towards it) I will post some pictures after I email them to my mom. Living will be considerably more expensive without roommates and because I've been spoiled and want a washer and dryer in my unit. I figure not running the risk of having my clothes stolen from the laundry room pays for itself in the long run in not having to go buy new clothes because yours keep getting stolen. (I've "lost" a few items at Millikin...and by lost I mean they were stolen out of the dryer.)

I was reminded yesterday of just how much debt I'm going to be in by the time I graduate and I just hope to God I can find a good paying job so I can whittle away at my giant loan. On the bright side, after I graduate I can either move up to the North Side where living is cheaper or move to Minneapolis...also cheaper living.

School is just so damn expensive, I really hope it's worth it in the end.

Summer Projects

So because I am moving yet again to a new apartment, but this time by myself, I have discovered that I need some furniture. Namely a couch and a coffee table. One of my good friends just kind of gave me her futon that she no longer wanted so I guess that could count as a couch. But I also wanted a desk and a coffee table. My Dad solved the desk problem this morning by saying I could borrow my Grandmother's old roll top desk that has been in our family for years and years. My dad proposed that we build the rest of the furniture that I wanted. I agreed, because he has so much experience and knowledge with furniture building and I could learn a lot with him. He said that I would have to design and then draft the plans for the furniture and he would help with the actual building part of the project. This way I can practice my drafting over the summer and in the process create something that I will have and use for quite a while.

I'm very excited about these projects.

Along with the coffee table I am going to be building a matching TV stand.

So yesterday I went to Target because my printer ran out of color ink, and it is finals week and I need to make my art history flashcards to study from. While I was there I naturally looked at the furniture section to get ideas for what I kind of wanted to design, when I came across a wicker trunk that I really liked. I checked the price and it was $80. It looked something like this:
So I called my Dad again asking him to keep his eyes open on Craigslist or whatever for one that was similar. He just said that we could build a Hope Chest instead along with my proposed coffee table and TV stand. I liked the idea.
A Hope Chest is supposed to be a wooden chest or trunk that unmarried women collects household items in like bed linens and kitchen things in anticipation to marriage. Now this is a good idea, albeit a little old fashioned. I think it would be good to modify such a great idea to cater to college students and young women and men who are getting ready to move out of their parent's house and get out on their own. Marriage not necessary.
Thinking back to it,the three plus months between my last day at Millikin and my move in date in Chicago I had made a sort of hope chest out of a plastic storage tub in my basement. I slowly accumulated the things that I needed to move to Chicago and kept them in that plastic storage tub. And that is the basic theory behind the hope chest, is to collect items to prepare for life on your own. Since I'm pretty much moved out of my parents house and pretty much on my own already, I don't really feel the need for a hope chest in it's traditional sense. Also traditionally it held the wedding dress and things for the wedding day as well....I don't plan on folding my wedding dress into a trunk....I also don't plan on buying my wedding dress before I'm engaged or anything.
I just want a nice trunk to hold my extra sheets and blankets.

So I'm building myself a trunk, while the idea of the hope chest is fantastic and I love it, I don't really need one.

If I ever have kids, they will most definitely get one when they start high school to collect things to prepare themselves for moving out to college or out of the house in general.

I love furniture.

What I've Learned This Year

As the school year nears its end I've been looking back at all of the things I've learned since moving to Chicago and switching schools. And I've compiled a short list of not only things learned in class but also practical things pertaining to city life and life in general.

1. You never know how much you want an umbrella until it rains in the windy city, and even if you have an umbrella, it's so windy you usually want waterproofed clothes.

2. Star Wars came out in 1977.

3. I need space.

4. Never underestimate the number of people you can fit in an elevator.

5. A good pair of snow boots is essential.

6. Stylish coats never keep you warm when the wind blows off the lake...or during Chicago winters at all.

7. Cable TV can be your best friend or your worst enemy.

8. "The train/bus was slow/broken/had construction" is a valid excuse for being late.

9. Being late is forgiven if you bring donuts.

10. It is generally not a good idea to order pizza during class.

11. When bad/stupid/weird things happen, think of what a great story it will make later.

12. Never host parties.

13. Things always take longer than you plan.

14. The gel frame slides into the barn door....unless the barn door/gel frame is bent, which is about 50% of the time.

15. Wine glasses with water and food coloring make interesting filters.

16. I don't like risotto.

17. After the fun part of the design is over, you still have the light plot to do.

18. Papers are less stressful if you get them done well ahead the due date.

19. The library is your friend.

20. While the toaster oven makes things crispier, the microwave is faster.

21. If the Red Line runs elevated, leave a lot of extra time to get somewhere.

22. Hard work actually does pay off.

23. I have a hard time determining if Portillo's or Beef-A-Roo is better.

24. Christmas shopping CAN happen in one day.

25. If taking a Metra train over a holiday weekend, ALWAYS arrive early to ensure a seat on the train. There is nothing worse than standing for an hour or so waiting for an empty seat, especially if you're riding to the end of the line. (Harvard)

26. Leave early to make sure you catch the train.

27. Cars are not always necessary.

28. No matter how cliche or annoying your mother's nagging can get, she's probably right.

29. I reserve the right to change my mind.

30. When your boss says you can take something, don't.

31. Always carry a book or headphones with you on public transit if you are alone to deter people from talking to you and by people, I mean hobos.

32. If you are having a stressful, busy, hectic day, taking 10-15 minutes to just do absolutely nothing is refreshing and helpful.




That's all I can really think of so far, I'll add to it if something else comes to mind.

School N' Things

So today I went to Artropolis at the Merchandise Mart. There were a lot of really great things going on there, some really beautiful and expressive works. I'm very glad that I got the free tickets from my professor because I know that I wouldn't have gone if he hadn't given them to me and I would have missed out on seeing a lot of new things. If you've never gone to this before I highly recommend it if you're into art. Go with an open mind.

After the art show I read a Cosmopolitan magazine and drank a pink lemonade and snacked on pecans. Played a little Nintendo, talked to Maggie on Facebook and then cracked down on my light plot.
The light plot's due date kept getting pushed back, so I'm still not feeling the stress about it. I finished my Styles and Crafts (theatre history) paper yesterday (almost 5 days early) which is awesome so I no longer have to worry about that AND I can return the books to the library. I'm just glad that the light plot will be done when I have to study for finals. I'm not too worried about them. The only thing that will really stress me will probably be the light plot project. OH and the random final 3 page paper for Middle Eastern History.
I hope I can swing that one, I hate when people ask a question that can be answered in two sentences and demand an essay. Those are ALWAYS my worst-written papers, because I shove so much filler in between.

Artropolis

Here is a heartwarming (?) story about how hard work can pay off in the end.
So at the beginning of this semester I decided that for this semester of Art History II, I would work harder on things than I did with Art History I. My professor for Art History I wasn't all that great and I had a hard time learning from her, but this semester my Art History II professor is awesome. So I decided to work hard for this class.

Today after class a small group of us got called up to talk to him after class was over. I was informed that I have the highest score out of a class of like 30-some people.

This weekend here in Chicago is Artropolis.....which is basically three art shows held at the Merchandise Mart. Emerging artists, established artists and an antique show are all there and you can see all of them with your ticket.

I got a free ticket to this for having the highest score.

Woot!