Things I Love

Holy. Crap. What a week. I felt like down time was non-existent because I had so many school projects to work on, and I had so many errands to run. But, it's finally Thursday, and I'm heading to my parents' house at 9:30 this evening. It'll be nice to be home for the weekend.

Other things that made this week survivable:

Japanese candy. My brother and sister-in-law were stationed in Japan for four years. For Christmas and my birthday, they sent me a myriad of Japanese goodies, including boxes upon boxes of Japanese candy. I just finished my sour grape gummies. They were delicious, and I already miss them =[
The Weather. It's actually been kind of overcast, but it's been about 60 degrees every day this week. Actually, it kind of reminds me more of Autumn than Spring. Especially since yesterday it smelled like someone was burning a pile of leaves. Do they burn leaves in other places, or is that a Michigan thing? I've lived in several other states, and I can't recall the smell of burning leaves, but maybe I was too young to remember?

Pretty Little Things Technically, Bianca and I started the project months ago/started posting last week, but I still have to write about this week because I'm still excited about the project!

Signing up for Classes. Next semester, I will be taking:
Advanced Writing
Advanced Japanese II
Japanese Life and Culture
China, Japan, and Korea
I'm pumped about next semester's schedule and all it's Japanese goodness.

Japanese. I almost aced my Kanji quiz. And, I'm certain I will ace today's dialogue quiz because I can recite the speech almost fluently. Waa!

This song. I couldn't sleep last night so I was searching around on youtube and stumbled on a song, Tatta Hitori no Kimi by Asuka Hinoi. It's catchy, and I can't stop listening to it. *Facepalm*





How many more times could I mention something about Japan? Eesh.

What's made your week lovely?

I want to direct your attention to another site: Pretty Little Things

My friend Bianca asked me to create a site with her focusing on feminism, and how could I turn down that offer? If you've got the time, check it out. We're off to a somewhat slow start (or at least I am). But make sure to keep checking the space for more awesomeness!

Things I Love

I've had a stressful week. My fault. I procrastinated. But, it was still enjoyable!

Here is why my week wasn't half bad:


PinkAppleCore gave me these two awards! I feel so appreciated =D


Now, it's my turn to pass these on. And the awards go to:
Cafe Fashionista
Dolly Speaks
Inside the Cabinet of Wonder
Life as Experiment
Little Boat
Well Damn!

Imeem Lately, I've been staying up past my bedtime listening to tunes on Imeem.com.

Facebook Chat I thought I would hate having my dad on my friends list, but I really kind of enjoy it. I've been talking with him at night lately. Unfortunately, it makes me really home sick.

Chicken and Noodles It's been my dinner this week, and it's delicious! I made enough to serve at least 30 people. I'm such a glutton. Chicken and noodles over mashed potatoes!



Spring Weather!!! I think it's only messing with us. Tuesday was nearly perfect. The coming week-- not so much. Not that it will be bad, but it won't be 60F degrees. Still, it's above 40F degrees, so I haven't much to complain about.

Art Projects In my Children's Literature class we made art projects. Mine is called, "Sheep in Space!". It's pretty epic! See for yourself!


What made your week lovely?

Where I Want to Live When I Grow Up

I've been thinking of my future lately. Not the important things like what I want for a future career. Rather, I've been thinking about where I want to live.

Back in the day, I, like most of the people I've ever met, wanted to live in a big city. New York City? Chicago? Seattle? L.A.? Heck, London and Paris were up there too. I would live in some loft-style apartment, have an important job, constantly be on the go, jet set around the world, and fall asleep to the traffic rushing like waves 5 stories below.

Image by thevoyagers

And then, one day, this dream wasn't desirable anymore. I think it changed once I moved to Michigan. Back home in Jackson, my "country home", I live on a dirt road. Driving down the road to my house in Springtime, I see horses in my neighbor's yard. I see acres upon acres of soft green grass that beg to be walked on with bare feet. I hear the hum of katydids and crickets and grasshoppers in the trees.

Photo by Moi! Of my "country home".

For nine months out of the year, I live in Kalamazoo, my "city home". I don't particularly care for it. Don't get me wrong, I love my university, my friends, my apartment, and my independence. But, I'm not a fan of all the rushing or dodging people on the sidewalks. Maybe the fact that I've only lived in the "city" during winter has something to do with my not liking it. Because everything is grey. The grey sky blends with the cold cement buildings which blends with the grey sidewalks. And winter time in Kalamazoo is pretty lifeless, ugh.

And let's be honest. Kalamazoo isn't much of a city. It's relatively small, and it's pretty tame. If I have a hard time staying sane here, how could I ever stay sane in larger cities?

So, I've been thinking. In the future, I wouldn't mind living in those Great Plain states. Maybe South Dakota? Nebraska? Wyoming? Montana?

I'd love to drive along sunny, never-ending roads seeing nothing but prairie grass and wildflowers.


I could make friends with bison and elk and prairie dogs.

Image by Groove Kitten

I could lay on the trunk of my car under the biggest sky in America watching sunsets

Image by Jake Brewer

If I became bored with the Great Plains, then I could visit the Rocky Mountains

Image by Carly Mauch

Or the American Badlands.

Image by profholtz

This post has me jonesing for a road trip!

Where do you want to live when you "grow up"?

Alicante, Spain

From March 1 to March 8, I spent my Spring Break in Alicante, Spain. I went to visit my friend Stephanie who is studying abroad in Spain. We went to high school together for two years, but our friendship really developed over the past three or four years through the letters we send each other. When she's not studying Spanish in Spain, Stephanie lives in Massachusetts, and I live in Michigan, so we haven't seen each other in years.

Alicante is located in south(ish), east Spain, and it's right on the Mediterranean. From what I've heard from Stephanie, it rarely drops below 60 degrees, and it rarely rains. Of course, when I visited, it was 50 degrees and rainy except for the last day which was about 70 degrees and sunny. But hey, I'll take 50 degrees and rainy over the 20 degrees and snowy weather I'm used to in Michigan any day.

Despite the rainy weather, Spain was still absolutely beautiful!

Above is the Esplanade! The Spanish apparently love to go for walks. Especially at night. And the Esplanade is a popular walkway. Below are some beautiful buildings.

My father and I walked along the pier and admired the Mediterranean despite the looming clouds.

It was also unbelievable windy, and as evidence, here is a picture of me being blown away.

But, as I mentioned, not every day was cloudy and drizzly.

I haven't seen a sky so blue in...ages?

Nor have I seen a body of water so blue...ever

Stephanie was interested in learning my views of Spain, her culture, and her people. And, as an outsider, I made tons of observations.

++ Of course I only visited Alicante, but if the rest of Spain is anything like Alicante, I have to estimate that nearly 90% of the people who live there smoke cigarettes.
++ Also, 90% of Spanish women wear chic boots. I bought a pair to fit in!
++ Everyone is "in shape".
++ The concept of personal space is non-existent. And, as a girl from a low-touch society (aka America), this freaked me out.
++ Although, I could get used to giving dos besos upon meeting someone. (kisses on both cheeks).
++ Most Americans, from what I've witnessed, walk to the right (like how we drive cars). I've heard people on the UK walk to the left. People from Spain walk all over the place.
++ Ham flavored things are apparently all the rage. Ham flavored Cheetos? No thanks, I think I'll pass.
++ Spanish Firemen are very handsome.

Things I Love

Things that have made my week:

Visiting Spain. Spain was quite an adventure! I wandered around a land whose language I didn't completely understand. I saw cannonballs stuck in buildings and nuns wandering around then streets. I sat in on a Spanish, Catholic mass...for five minutes. And I enjoyed 60 degree weather. But, I'll leave the rest for a better post.

Me and the Mediterranean

Returning to America. I'm happy to be home. I'm happy to sleep in my warm cozy bed. And I'm happy to return to my daily, mundane routine. And, as much as I enjoyed Spanish food, I don't think I'd appreciate eating it every day; I ate a cheeseburger as soon as I got into the Newark Airport.

Lazy Weeks. I actually feel pretty guilty about this, but I skipped two of my classes this week. These are the first classes I've skipped this semester, so I shouldn't be too hard on myself. After all, I was able to get a lot of work done during that downtime.

Valour Chocolate. I bought a big chocolate bar in Spain that cost me a bit over 3 euros (that's almost 4 USD, maybe?). I was skeptical at first, but Stephanie said it was worth it. She was right.


Pasta Salad. I've been munchin' on Pasta Salad for dinner the past few nights. It's easy to make; it's a dump recipe. Cook up some bow tie pasta, then dump it into a big bowl. Then, dump in cut up cherry tomatoes, cut up green onions, black olives, and feta cheese. Dump in Italian Dressing to your likings, and enjoy.

What's made your week spectacular?

Tuesday Top Ten

I've returned from Alicante, Spain. What an adventure. I'm still getting together all my photos, but you can certainly expect a post or two about my trip soon. In the mean time, here's my Tuesday Top Ten!

While in Spain, I was bit by the travel bug. Unfortunately, I've pretty much wiped my Savings clean, so who knows when I'll be able to travel again. Below are the top ten places I'd love to visit!

10. Norway. Vikings come from Norway, which means Norway is pretty cool.

Image from...well...I forget. Sorry.

9. Scotland. I think it's a toss up between the landscapes and the accents.

Siandara

8. China. In 11th grade World History class, it seemed every other week we learned about China. Some of my friends were annoyed by this, but I found it interesting that a place could have such a rich history.

Image by Larpoon

7. The Czech Republic. I mentioned a while back, I had a teacher who lived in the Czech Republic, and he always told us stories about the place. It seems so beautiful.

Image by williamzhang

6. The American Southwest. Eventually, I'd like to make my way to all of the United States, but I hope to make my next destination to the American Southwest. Of all my dream destinations, this might be the most attainable.

Image by stevensmith1

My Grammy lives in Arizona. I want to see open roads, cactus, tumbleweeds, and painted deserts.

5. Great Britain. There really isn't some spectacular reason for my desire to travel to this place other than it was probably the first place I'd learned about outside America.

Image by Katarina 2353

4. Vietnam. The summer before my sophomore year, my father traveled to Vietnam for business. He brought back loads of goodies and stories, and I've wanted to visit ever since.

Image by jmboyer

3. Ireland. My freshman year of college, I became obsessed with Ireland. It may have spawned from watching the Boondock Saints one too many times. Regardless, my freshman year of college, I listened to loads of Celtic music and researched the crap out of Ireland.

Image by Edward Dullard

I was so certain I'd be in Ireland the summer before my sophomore year. Haven't made it there. Yet.

2. Japan. I'm not sure when I first became interested in Japan. It may have been on accident when I took my first Japanese language class two and a half years ago.

Image by SBA73

1. Germany. I'm not sure if I've ever mentioned it here at Pink Panda, but I was born in Wiesbaden, Germany. My parents were stationed in Germany when they were in the military. Unfortunately, we moved away when I was two, so I don't have any memories of the place. I hope to revisit soon so I can make memories of the place I spent my first two years in.

Where are some places you'd love to visit?

Travel day

Going to Spain! Be back in a flash!

-Jackie