Gifts

Who's surprised? Haha.

     

"Godard on Godard", a book I've been wanting since last Spring quarter but have not been so keen on shelling out the cash for (thanks mom). Now I get to spend time sifting through a collection of his earlier essays on film, and interviews about his actual films so I know exactly what he is thinking; and that's all I've ever really wanted...to be able to pick his brain and understand his thought process. In the photo on the top I wanted to pretend I was Jean Serberg on the cover but then laughed; I'm not sure why the iphoto flash is so out of control, or why the glare on the book is so out of control. Christmas was certainly different this year, not so much like Christmas..but at least my mom and sister and her boyfriend were here. Back to Columbus tomorrow. I'm not sure if I'm happy or sad but it's time to go back and try to create something in Columbus because no one's gonna do it for me.

Madeleine

I've been making my way through "Swann's Way" by Proust over break. His descriptions of childhood and memories are lovely but no matter how carefully I read through his passages I can't help but feel I'm always oblivious to something else he's trying to say. I'm about 100 pages into the 600 page book and my favorite part so far has been his recollection of something that is now termed "Proust's Madeleine", in literature.

Basically, his mother gives him tea with some madeleine (a kind of cookie I think may be common in France) and once he drinks it he is overwhelmed with involuntary memories of his childhood in Combray with his grandmother who once gave him the same tea and madeleine combination. It got me thinking, "has this ever happened to me?"

Of course it must have at some point but it obviously passed by unexamined. It's generally associated with tastes but I can't see why the concept couldn't apply to any or all of the sense's. This part of the book particularly got me because I am home for the holiday and I always feel distinctly different and overwhelmed by the changes I go through when going back and forth between Ohio and Tennessee. The difference in the air, the trees, the sounds, the smells; it all creates two entirely different feelings within me. On an elementary level it's like how the taste of black coffee reminds me of the engineering building on campus. I can't recall any tastes from my childhood that evoke strong memories, but I suppose now that I am aware of the effect that once it happens it won't pass by unnoticed. Can't wait :)

Photo by: Spoon and Chair

Kisses

During school, any music that I start to like is generally met with a brick wall of Chemistry, but since it's Christmas break I'm playing catch-up. I fell in love with Kisses this fall and finally took the time to get the music :)  I love their 80's sound, and everyone else's 80's sound since that seems to be the new trend, haha. <3

If you're bored...

Free Time

This is what happens when I have too much free time. I couldn't help myself after the last post..

Poor Tessa

She was really not meant to have the "pupcakes" I bought her. This time they made it 2 hours closer, but I left them in my dad's freezer in Cincinnati. I even went to the trouble of putting them in my glovebox with an ice pack to keep them cold when I left Saturday afternoon. I didn't even mind when I spilled hot tea all over myself in the act of doing so (cursing loudly as it went everywhere and knowing that the boy packing his car up across the street probably thought I was insane). It doesn't matter though; He already knows that I am insane because I run into and out of my house at night so no one "gets" me. Despite my mistake, she gave me an enthusiastic greeting when I came home :)

Yes she is under the blanket. Yes she does this by herself. Yes it is amazing and magical and I don't believe it's real. She actually does this at the bottom of the stairs quite frequently. 

And by the way, I love that 1 out of the 3 times it will actually snow in Knoxville this winter is the day that I drive home--not that it really matters because they are harmless little flurries, but still. I must have brought it with me :(

Advice Column II

Avoiding the situation isn't going to make it any better.

I get to see my pup in 7 days, and this time I won't forget the Three Dog Bakery treats I bought her.

It Happened

I left my house for French today and it was snowing.
I feel like I'm entering a war, and it's called winter.

Untitled

"But that is the way of the world, isn't it, the outer world, that is--a matter of sleep-walking. That is the kind of weather it is, I wouldn't put a dog out in weather like this..."     "Nadja" by Andre Breton

"The Lover's Flower"

Advice Column

Turn on. Close eyes. Calm down.

Utopia In Four Movements

Ariel and I went to see "Utopia In Four Movements" tonight; a live documentary about Utopia that came to the Wexner Center. It was amazing and I forgot about the weirdness of Sam Green's live narration 5 minutes into it. I was afraid it might be cheesy but it was so so lovely! :) Utopia is "no place", but it serves to keep us on a journey towards happiness, or togetherness...how nice to think about.

Lights

So you know I'm grasping at straws when I'm taking pictures of empty used car lots. Anything can be pretty right? Ohio is pretty..right?

Bunny Love

Meet our new bunnyy. We are in love. He hops around our living room for hours and we giggle and stare (literally). It is my roommate's, and it doesn't have a name yet because we don't know if it's a boy or a girl. Regardless of sex, we can't decide on one. I want to name it Kashi, but I really don't have much say in the matter. I have defaulted to calling it buns when I walk in the door.

We've settled into a nightly ritual of running around like idiots trying to catch it after we let it out. Last night we clocked in at 10 minutes and then I collapsed exhausted into my bed at 2:30 am. Cassie doesn't understand that it is a bunny, meaning that it poops and pees without warning, and tries to treat it more like a dog. She is always so astonished when it, in fact, acts more like a bunny.

You're a Lady, Grandpa

So I finally got my camera :) It's a Canon t2i and I love it more than anyone should love an inanimate object. I haven't had much time to play with it, and I'm quickly realizing that I probably need months of practice to take good video and probably a tripod, oh and another lens. Guess what I'm asking for for Christmas this year? Haha. The title of this post came out of a little girls mouth at the park. Her grandpa was pushing her on a swing and she was saying this to him. These pictures are by no means perfect, but I'm okay with the imperfection of them because it means I get to practice with it more. I took a few videos of practically nothing so I won't make you suffer through those.

Arena District lights

This photo is straight out of "2 or 3 things I know about her". I couldn't even take how similar it was; I had such a Godard nerd moment when I saw it.

Succession

Things I apparently can't handle in succession:

1. Chemistry midterm

2. Staying up all night writing a really bad paper that I still have to work on today.

3. Watching young roma girls being sexually assualted via film in my slavic class.

4. Turning to my right after watching said traumatizing acts and realizing that the boy next to me is chewing tobacco during it and spitting it into his coke bottle.

5. Trying to open the doors to Smith Lab and realizing they are locked due to construction and wandering around the building for 10 minutes to find my scholarship room.

6. Going on a "visit" in my scholarship to teach children about science projects that I haven't gone over yet.

I have been awake 28 hours.

That's about all.

Gentle Face

This conversation really happened while I was buying a falafel last night

Random drunk male:

"I like your face.."

"You have a gentle face"

"I like your red stockings, too."

"Tell me when this is getting weird."

Me-

"It's getting weird."

It's time to carve pumpkins soon :) I'm going to just get a little baby one at the grocery store. There's no sense in carving a large one only to watch it be beaten to pieces. If it was large I just might become too attached to see it go like that. I think I'm one of the few people in this world that could actually be remorseful over a pumpkin. Next post I'll have a picture of the little guy.

All Delighted People

I just adore this song. I can't stop. I sit here and pretend that someone is singing this to me and it makes me feel better. I know, I know...

And while I held you at best you nearly died

Forget about the past

And I'll try to make things right

I am so overwhelmed with school, it never ends. I feel like every quarter I say this but I really mean it this time. I don't fall asleep until 5 every night mostly because of the coffee I've been drinking but also because of how cold my house is, the fact that Little Bar produces millions of empty beer bottles every night and throws them in the dumpster next to my window at 4am, and the fact that my neighbor starts his janky car at 5am to go to work at UPS. Sigh? I would love very much to post something worthy of your time to read but I'd really rather just rant right now.

My landscape architecture class requires me to pay a weekly visit to the ghetto to take pictures and form some hypothesis for why it sucks...I could tell them why it sucks just driving by in my car but I think I would get a D. Here's a photo from a very stressed out small girl, enjoy:

Oh, heyy Hilltop, don't mind me or anything...

Pet Peeve

The new Sun Chip bags are 100% compostable and environmentally friendly and lovely, etc.; however, they are obscenely loud. I've seen commercials for them but I hadn't actually purchased them with the new packaging until yesterday. Seriously, you couldn't take this bag anywhere. I'm going to carry it out with me on the weekends as a self-defense alarm while I'm walking back home at night.

I don't mean to rag on a company that is doing good things for the environment but anyone who actually knows me will tell you that the sound of a rustling chip bag is a huge pet peeve of mine. Yikes, Sun Chips.

Orchard Wedding

I want one someday, you know.

Cred: Steep Street

Day Dreaming

Today was frustrating, tomorrow will be better. I spent an hour online chatting with an indian man (one of many other time consuming and entirely wasteful necessary activities I partook in today) to get our wireless set up (because I have heaps and bushels of time for it).

I have been listening to this song for a good portion of my day..

Also, I reject the new look of I-tunes, as well as the video I'm forced to watch with this song.

"Castles In The Snow"

You're my favorite day dream,

I'm your famous nightmare.

Everything I see looks like gold, everything I touch goes cold. Castles In The Snow.

Here's all I know, Your checkered room and your velvet bow.

Your eldest song in my ear, that wounded voice that I hear.

Tofu and Coffee

It was rainy and cold here today--hello autumn and a new jacket. I have homework coming out of my ears on day 4 of classes. I think 20 hours was a really poor choice but I'll figure it out. I fell asleep this evening with rice on the stove and my roommate walked in the house screaming, "It smells like tofu and coffee!!" waking me up of course, which was a good thing.

Roommate love from this weekend.

Pears and Pooches

I went to the Farmer's Market yesterday after class and got an eggplant, two pears, and a tomato--I know, not very much. I am terrified of the eggplant. What do you do with eggplants? Exactly. I told the man that it pricked my finger and he laughed and said, "watch out, they bite!" I'll say. Moving on, the pears looked delicious so I decided to freeze and preserve them so that I will have local yummy pears in the winter. You could (and should) do this with any fruits you pick up at farmer's markets right now. It's a great way to have good fruit in the winter and it helps to reduce transportation emissions during colder months.

If you google "how to freeze fruit" it gives you a whole lot of nonsense and sweeteners and steps so that they will taste alright later. However, I read somewhere (in a magazine I can no longer find) that you can simply wash, dry, cut, place on cookie sheets and then freeze for 24 hours (I believe). When this is done then you can place them in a freezer safe container and thaw later. Perfect no?

Now to diverge completely, here are some adorable pictures of my doggy.

My boo.

Nonsense

An ice cream truck just went singing past my window at 1:30 in the morning. Oh Columbus...how does this make sense? My roomate and I were just dying of laughter, which seems to be a nightly ritual like last night when we were trying to fix my printer...

--End of nonsense blogpost--

Old Soul

So..this past week has been very scary and eye opening, to say the least. I'm not going to mention specifically, but I had a little crime mishap that's left me shaken. It really makes me understand what is really important though, and that safety and calm should always take precedence over fun and convenience. Anywho, because of the on-going bug situation combined with the aforementioned additional problems, I have been a very busy little person. School starts tomorrow and despite getting here a week and a half early, I might as well have moved in this morning. My room is still in disarray from the constant shuffling of items, blah blah blah.

I was reading a "Whole Living" magazine that my aunt brought me a few days ago, and I tore out a page with a few "Thoughts On Whole Living." I'll list my favorites and maybe others that read them can relate to them as well:

1. Your body already knows how to heal itself, you just have to get out of its way.

2. Go ahead--vent a little, think of it as detox for the soul.

3. When you can appreciate being alone, you're rarely lonely.

4. Clutter is the by-product of indecision. Make sure everything in your space is there because you chose to keep it.

5. True sufficiency doesn't mean having plenty; it means having enough.

6. Pay attention to how you walk. Ask yourself what you're rushing toward or away from.

7. Transform anxiety into excitement; focus not on the fear of what lies ahead but the possibilities you might create.

And most importantly:

8. Lead with your heart, not your ego.

The electricity was out all evening, so my roomate and I finally visited the coffee shop around the corner and promptly fell in love. With all of the chaos lately, it was nice to sit there among the used books and old sofas and feel safe.

My dad was right the other day when we were on the phone and he said that I am just "an old soul." It's true, all I want is a little apartment with a great dog and a full bookshelf. Someone else can take the parties and the noise and the running around on weekends for themselves.

Falling Apart

I've been getting bitten at night in my bed and it's either bed bugs or fleas..I have bites all over my ankles and back. I can't understand why things like this seem to happen to me when I try so hard to be optimistic. It's so upsetting. Guys are coming to spray tomorrow, and I have to get all of my stuff out after I've just moved in.

Also, I sliced my finger wide open last night while cutting potatos and half of my nail is gone as well as half the tip of my finger. It's really unfortunate looking...

Good Times.

Bamboo Banga

Every time I think of bamboo the M.I.A. song "Bamboo Banga" pops into my head...

The Bamboo Bottle company is coming out with a new water bottle for us all in October. You can pre-order it on their website for only 25$ which is pretty standard, if not cheap, for a reusable water bottle. It has an outer bamboo layer and an inner glass layer as well as a BPA-free plastic lid. The fact that these components were all contained in one bottle and that the website was not, in fact, offering a bamboo bottle as well as a glass bottle, seemed to really confuse me initially:

Pretty.

In The Dirt

This song on repeat, repeat, repeat.

I'd love to see this guy live.

Taking my last bike ride tomorrow.

Thankful for nice weather.

Don't leave...

cause I believe,

we were meant to see,

in the dirt.

High Hopes

I am packing for Columbus and while I am excited I can't help but think of all the things I wanted for this summer...and how all of those things disappeared and will never come back. Tomorrow is my last day.

Bye, Knoxville.

I always miss you,

I just wish you were kinder

and that you find what you're looking for.

Tea Pops

Tea popsicles happened last night while I was watching La Pointe Courte by Agnes Varda (yes, I know it was a Friday night, and it is currently a Saturday night..this is what has happened to me the past few weeks). "Parties make us feel good but they don't change anything" This line from the movie pretty much sums it all up for me right now, except parties really don't make me feel all that great anymore either.

Process:

2 teaspoons sugar

2 cups loose-leaf steeped blueberry black tea

1/2 cup blueberry puree

My thought process for this concoction lasted roughly 1 minute; needless to say, I experienced a few glitches-mainly the concept of gravity and how I overwhelmingly ignored it. All of the blueberry puree went to the top of the popsicles since they are created upside down and the tea floated to the bottom of the pop. They weren't entirely terrible and are definitely a healthy snack..they could be worked on some more though, or perhaps next time I can just find a recipe online. Yummy!

The other night I stumbled upon a song by The National that someone on Youtube put to an edited version of "Masculin, Feminin" by Godard. Thank you anonymous person for combining two of my greatest loves to make me exceptionally joyed :)

I wanna hurry home to you, put on a slow dumb show for you, and crack you up.

Identity Crisis

Today I ordered an herb/gardening catalogue online...I am worried that this may mean I am slipping more into my future "Ag-campus self" and that it will eventually pop my suburban wanna-be city girl outer bubble. I move back to Columbus in 10 days and I can honestly say that on the list of top five things I am most excited about, the Farmer's Market on Thursday's at the Wexner Center makes it on there.

List:

1. Friends
2. Exploring Columbus via the joys of having my car
3. Apartment (once I find a bed which I am currently not having any luck with. I'll be on an air mattress spilling my tea everywhere before bed as I slosh around on it trying to find an acceptable position).
4. School, classes, learning, etc.
5. Sunday morning meditations at Yoga on High
6. Wexner Center films
7. Seeing my daddy more :)
8. Farmer's Market

Okay that was eight, and in no particular order.

Anyway, like I was saying, I want to grow herbs in the spring for herbal tea which gives me plenty of time to read up on that stuff..that stuff that you do with dirt? And water? Oh god, I always kill plants. Side note, did you know you can grow potatos in buckets on your porch?

My roomate is going to kill me this Spring...

Flea Market Madness

My friend and I drove 40 minutes today to explore the joys of a flea market. It was...an experience; one that I would encourage everyone to have, but you must enter with an open mind.

We weren't there 1o minutes without one vendor mentioning that, "we weren't from around there were we", a monkey on a leash (this made me upset), as well as various stands advertising "boiled peanuts" (whatever those are) and funnel cakes. 50% of the vendors were creepy, and 50% were lovely.

I cautiously ventured into a booth with a women selling all of her mother's antique jewelry for only 3$ a piece! Naturally, I lost it, and fell victim to the low prices. I came away with 3 rings and a pair of earrings; now if that isn't recycling I don't know what is, and it's much cuter than hauling all my bottles to the recycling center :) My friend came away with 2 rings, and oodles of local produce and peach cider that we deemed acceptable.

Success.

Un

Deux

Trois

Oh the joys of what a full night at Godiva does to my face and mental health.

The pictures do no justice to the rings...the little turquoise one is a dove, the middle a silver diamond shaped cheese grater of sorts, and the first has all of these decorative speckles of golds and primary colors!

In other news..I hear an owl hooting...very cool. Now I will stop rambling.

Asleep On a Train

I know this isn't particularly "green-related" but that is clearly posing difficult for me, at least while I am still in Knoxville. Recently, I've been riding my bike a lot to Mum, an Icelandic band that I love because it has a certain quality that makes me feel like I'm floating. Here is a video of a song made by some talented girl on Youtube. I'm posting it solely because I did this in my kitchen this morning before transitioning into the ever popular dance sequence from Bande a parte by Jean-Luc Godard while making my tea. Might I also mention that this was before viewing said video which I'm pretty sure just makes me a lonely weirdo...enjoy.

ALSO:

August 29th at 9pm, Animal Planet is playing "The Cove", an academy award winning documentary. Watch, watch! Here is the description I've taken from Netflix:

Daring animal activists arrive with surveillance equipment at a scenic cove in Taijii, Japan, to capture footage of a secretive and heavily guarded operation run by the world's largest supplier of dolphins. As the group sets out to expose the horrifying truths behind the capture of dolphins for the lucrative tourist industry, they also uncover an environmental catastrophe. Louie Psihoyos directs this riveting, Oscar-winning documentary.

Long Time, No Post

I've taken a considerable hiatus from my first blog attempt (6 months to be exact...yikes! ). From now on I will be posting any and all "green" related topics floating around my brain--be it clothing, activities, food, products I'm buying (or lusting after), and tips for a successful low-impact and healthy life! Hopefully this blog will serve as a tool/information source for readers as well as a self-motivator for me!

Ciao for now,

Do you know where your food comes from?

Most food producers don't want you to know where your food is coming from. During the month of February, the Wexner Center for the Arts in Columbus, OH, is dedicated to providing its viewers with a series of films about the American food industry titled, "Films about our Food". Films are only 5 dollars for students, and a full listing can be found on their film and video page. It's not too late to get in on the action!

Recently, I saw "The Gleaner's and I", a film about people who "gather" or "collect" food that is otherwise rejected by society. For some people it has cultural meaning, for others it is a means of survival, and still there are others who glean purely to make a political statement. What ever the reason may be, gleaning is a great way to ensure that food does not go to waste.

The best way to collect clean and nutritious food for free is to visit a local farm in your surrounding area. When farmers harvest their food with machinery, a portion of the food closest to the ground gets left behind. This is where you come in! (provided you are the legally required distance away from the harvester :) If this seems a little too scary for you, farmers will also pile unwanted grains and vegetables for people to take at their leisure. There is a limit on how much you can take, but what would the average person do with 100 lbs of funny-looking potatoes?

(Valentine's Day gift?)

America has become so obsessed with how food looks that farmers will discard gems such as this one purely because a consumer would pass it by. Personally, it'd be my first choice, but I guess I'm not making the decision for everyone. In addition to gleaning on a farm setting there has also emerged "urban gleaning". This includes everything from grubbing through trash cans on the street to methodically searching through grocery and convenient store dumpsters at the end of the day.

These people gather food that stores discard once it has surpassed the "best if sold by" date. In the film, people find whole loaves of bread, bags of apples, cucumbers, herbs, and even fish that is only just expired and still entirely edible. I'm sure any college student such as myself finds the possibility of this very appealing. People can even "glean" on shorelines where fisherman are catching oysters and clams as long as they stay at an appropriate distance away from their nets.

To wrap it up, you have the "right" to glean, and I may even stretch it and say you and I have the moral obligation to. If more people demanded that food was used in a responsible way, then maybe small improvements in global food distribution could be made. If nothing else, it's a new experience. You can find a farm in any state, just search for a farm near you that you may like (there are several online directories available) and find out when harvesting occurs. Once you've accomplished this, bring a couple friends and some bags for an afternoon of gleaning :)

Also in attendance at the screening was Local Foods. They promote the consumption of locally grown fruits, vegetables, dairy, you name it. A great way to learn more about how to start finding locally grown food is to go to their website; it contains a link to restaurants in the Columbus area that have committed to serving local food, listings of nearby farmer's markets, and suggestions on how to become more involved. By supporting local farms, you're supporting your community and the consumption of healthier food :) For those of you not in the Columbus area, farmer's markets and restaurants serving local produce can be found in every state.