Seinfeld Playing At Foxwoods

How old were you the first time you stayed up “late” enough to see the sun rise?

After a while at a house party some people got the idea to go to Foxwoods, and I decided…why not?  We were playing black jack and craps, and when I got the dice I won my table hundreds of dollars.  Of course by the time we left we were back to even.  We left the casino at around 4 thirty and saw the sun rising on the trip back to school.  I didn’t go to bed till 6 thirty, and only slept three hours.  Overall not much sleep, but an awesome random night.

What Do You Know About Omaha?

Omaha here I come.  I got into grad. school, so I’ll be moving out to Nebraska sometime at the end of the summer.  I’m so excited, but I’ll be honest and say all I really know about the area is what I read on Wikipedia.  So if you know anything please leave a comment, especially if you know good bars or restaurants.

So the best part is I’ll be living with my cousin.  A few weeks ago we walked through stores like Pottery Barn together while we compiled a mental image of our “dream” apartment.  But of course, like most people our age, we can’t afford Pottery Barn, so we’ll have to do our best imitation.  I know how to find good deals, and ikea is great for basics, but are they any other stores or online chic places to shop?

So like I’ve said I’m very excited, but there’s still that small part of me that is scared.  The part of me that is always very vulnerable to change.  The good part is if I would have done this a year ago scared would have been terrified and the move never would have happened.  Lately I’ve seen myself open to new opportunities, and this is just another chance to accept that change.  So if you have any advice on moving to a new city it would be much appreciated.

Seinfeld Experiment Full Steam Ahead

 

Lately I’ve been really busy thinking about what I’m going to do next year.  And about three weeks ago my cousin put a bug in my ear to go out to Omaha with her.  She’s going out there for med school, and with lots of schools in the area I checked out programs I would be interested in.  So I found a few and applied.  Me in Omaha…how crazy is that?  It’s definitely way outside my comfort zone and far, far away from my parents. 

Whenever I tell friends or family about it the first thing they say is “I hope you like corn.”  But let’s be real, this is a time in my life when nothing is holding me to any location.  I have the freedom to go where ever I want and experience things like crazy fields of corn and the cute farmer boys who harvest it.  And I’ll be living with someone who is my opposite.  As my brother once put it, “she likes everything you hate.”  She would expose me to things I would never experience on my own.  And thankfully, she’s very social.  So it would be very easy for me to make new friends with her.  If I were left to make new friends on my own, it would be a disaster.  Luckily I do know the number one rule for making new friends when moving to a new area: never make friends with the first people you meet.  When you move to an area where most people are well established, they most likely have all the friends they want/need.  And when they don’t, this should be a red flag….there’s probably a reason why they don’t have many friends…but this is a huge topic that I will leave for someone else to expand on (dc hero wanna take this one?).

I’m so excited for this opportunity, but it’s not definite yet.  I’ll keep you posted.

Getting Out and Getting Ahead

 

I’ve been doing some research on the comfort zone and found many lists of things you can to do to get out of it.  On these lists were some things I’ve already tried:

Try some new food

Smile at strangers

Say hello to people in the grocery store

Use public transportation

Wear an outrageous outfit

Start a blog

I’ve tried sushi and caviar recently.  I’d eat sushi again, it was pretty good, but caviar was so slimy and salty that I think I can live without it.  I smile at strangers all the time, whether I’m in the grocery store or on the RIPTA, especially little kids because they’re so cute.  I’ve even talked to some people on the bus (One lady was on her way to her daughters house and another girl was going to school downtown, both were lost and needed directions).  Just the other day I wore what I considered to be an outrageous outfit: sweatpants.  When my roommate saw me she asked if I was going to the gym because she knows that I normally dress up for class.  I was kind of insulted, but I just rolled with it and said I felt like being a scrub.  And of course, this blog is here to document it all.

Over the next few days I’ll be out of town, so I apologize in advance, but I have a few things to work on in the mean time.  On these lists were also things I want to try:

• Compliment three strangers each day for a week
• Take responsibility for something you didn’t do
• Act more feminine (this is my own add on)

It might seem that complimenting people is easy, but with strangers that’s a whole new game.  It’s only thing to say something nice to a friend, but it’s completely different to go up to someone random and not seem like a freak. 

For me, taking responsibility for something I didn’t do, will be to take the fall for someone else or to just admit to something that I don’t think is a big admission.  For example, let’s say you’re arguing with a friend because you just ate the rest of her peanut butter.  Instead of wasting time arguing about it (which in female ways is very passive aggressive little movements and mutterings under your breath), I’ll woman up and just admit it…so many things can be avoided this way. 

And lastly, being more feminine is something I always strive for, but I’ve been slacking lately.  I’ve been reading some articles about the feminine qualities in a woman’s voice; this is very important.  Sometimes it’s not what you say, but how you say it that’s more important.  Also you can’t forget the accessories.  I often don’t bother to change my earrings before going out, or I forget to spray some perfume on.  It’s not because I don’t have earrings or perfume, it’s just not on my mind.  Wearing clothes to show off your figure, and picking the right materials is also crucial.  So when I have a choice to wear jeans or a dress, I’m picking the dress.  Or if it’s a decision of a lacy top or tshirt, it’s gonna be the lacy top.  I already embrace the Betty Crocker way of life, I love to cook and share that.  And have things like purple pens and pink post-its.  So it’s not like it’s not in me, sometimes it just gets hidden in the shuffle.  I’ll be back to report in a few days, till then your suggestions are wanted.

Providence College

 

Providence is a city many people seem to forget about. When I tell people I go to Providence College, they ask me where it is.  They don’t realize it’s in the capital of Rhode Island; that’s most likely because, in my mind, Rhode Island shouldn’t even be considered a state.  But I’m not saying Massachusetts should take it over either, I don’t want to be lumped in with that.  Rhode has the worst drivers in the nation, as researched by GMAC Insurance.  Although to be fair, MA isn’t much better.  I wanted to start a series of posts about Providence, since a lot of readers know very little about the city.  Let’s start first with my school, PC.

You can look it up on Urban Dictionary, and most of what you read is true.  Our school’s student body is known to be rich white kids who dress like they just walked out of an Abercrombie or Polo ad (think prep school).  And although this is true about some, I know a lot of people who are different in terms of social class, but the white is pretty dominant and hard not to see.  Despite this shocking account,  our school is actually located in the ghetto of Providence.  In our section of the ghetto a 7/11 is run by a policeman, houses are constantly broken into, and mugging is a common occurrence (once a little woman robbed 7 people). 

One good thing about school is you’re surrounded by people just like you; the bad thing is that you’re surrounded by people just like you.  Everyone is so nice and polite that just discussion on a blog is difficult.  Many people have told me what they think of my posts, but they rarely comment because they’re afraid to offend me.  NEWS ALERT: It’s okay just post it up.  It might be “politically incorrect” to say, but if you see a black guy, he’s probably on the basketball team.  We have very little diversity in our study body; so to increase this, our school recently got rid of the requirement for SAT scores.  And just because we’re a catholic school, doesn’t mean we don’t drink.  Your fake id is used more than your student id, and there are plenty of close bars to crash (Louie’s, Brads, Olds, Clubbies, McPhails, McFaddens, Fish Co., etc.)  And unlike most schools, we have no frats or sororities.  We still have house parties, such as Ridiculous Fest, which is always held on the last day of classes and starts promptly in the morning.  Drinking is also a major contributor to our Civ Scream.  Civ Scream is meant to release the frustration for studying for Development of Western Civilization exams, which are only for freshmen and sophomores, but the event is really more for the upperclassmen.  It’s excuse to get drunk and streak, or jump on a pogo stick. 

We have some semi famous notable alumni, but the most meaningful to me is John O’Hurley, who was best known as Elaine’s boss on Seinfeld.  If you read this blog, you’ll understand.

So now you know where I’m coming from, unlike all you DC bloggers.

Seinfeld Phase 7?

 

I had to work yesterday, usually I would go to the gym in the morning before work, but because it was a holiday I was forced to switch it up.  I ended up going to the gym after dinner with some roommates.  It was a lot different, normally I see a total of no more than five other people there.   I got on an elliptical next to my roommate and of course we both tuned in to watch ET and then some dance competition show.  I looked over and laughed with her when the second show came on because she’s obsessed with dance competitions.  We all did crunches together and started laughing uncontrollably for reasons that I cannot reveal (but ones you can imagine).  And on the way out I showed them the rule of the gym that calls for no swearing, grunting or yelling.  Yeah like that’s gonna happen, every guy in there grunts when he’s lifting.  It must be they’re natural reaction, or what they think they’re natural reaction should be to show that they are tough.

Today I called an audible: doing what I want when I want.  Since I had no classes, it made it pretty easy.  I slept in, which for me was 7:30; that’s a whole hour later than normal. I also went home this morning to make hummus, and for no other reason.  Yes that’s right, I traveled roundtrip, according to mapquest 61.32 miles, google maps 61.6, just for some hummus.  And believe me, it was well worth it.  I then spent a good hour and a half at lunch with my roommate…also well spent.  We figure the panic age for most women who want to get married is 27.  We also decided that a part time job is the best answer to having a life with kids, otherwise you’re just lazy.  The conversation was very insightful and enlightening.

Seinfeld at Night

 

Well it looked to be just a typical Saturday night for me.  I could have stayed home, but it really wasn’t an option.  So I evaluated my situation: Some alumni were up for the weekend and were headed to the same bar we went to last night (this would have been the easy choice).  Some other friends were headed downtown for a birthday.  And with this going on, I started to hear George in my head:

Waitress : Tuna on toast, coleslaw, cup of coffee.

George : Yeah. No, no, no, wait a minute, I always have tuna on toast. Nothing’s ever worked out for me with tuna on toast. I want the complete opposite of on toast. Chicken salad, on rye, untoasted … and a cup of tea.

I knew I had to go downtown.  Why have a continuation like last night when I could go downtown to a place I’ve never been before?

There was a big group of us, most of which I didn’t know, so after we got drinks, I was a little outgoing.  I introduced myself, and was soon dancing with all of them.  Dancing, if you don’t know me, is one thing I love, so that part wasn’t hard.  The hard part was dancing with someone that I have no interest in.  If I don’t like you, it’s hard to dance with you.  But I got over myself, and realized he was actually a good dancer…a little forward, but still a good dancer.  I had to give it to him; most guys are too shy or self conscious to dance in public.  Too stay with him all night, would have been too easy, so I left with my friend early to get back to our alumni friends. 

We had an hour left before the bar closed, but we made the best of it.  We were dancing and yelling singing along.  At one point dancing seemed like an obstacle course.  One friend was swinging his ass so hard it made it hard not to fall over, and one friend is so tall that I crawled through his legs just to escape the maddness.  In the end, it was a good night because it was so far from normal.

Seinfeld Experiment Continuation

I am definitely going to try out the suggestion that dc hero made.  But I may switch it, and just wear the same pants every single day, because I’m not sure if I have that many shirts in just one color.  I am also trying a new phone answering idea.  When I answer my phone, I won’t look to see who’s calling.  It could be a great surprise, or a call I wish I didn’t pick up.  Either way it’s a step in the right direction.

More Seinfeld Experiment

Due to the request for more on the Seinfeld Experiment…more will be forth coming on that.  If you have any suggestions for getting out of my routine, leave em.

#1 on Google

I’m just writing to let everyone know that if you search seinfeld experiment (no “s needed), I am number 1.  What an achievement. I may have found my calling.