January 31st

Congratulations to me! I've made it a month! Only 11 more to go!

Actually, although I had an idea for my pic of the day much earlier on, I almost forgot to take it! Until my wonderful David reminded me, and my wonderful roommate Smeth was kind enough to help me out.

This is the view through our peephole. I thought it would be more fish-eyed, but I guess not so much. I like how Steph's eyes are all white. It's super creepy looking. The success of this experiment has led me to wonder what else would be interesting to see when I look through my peephole. This may become a thing. I might make it a thing. I'll have to think about it. These things take time. (Wheezy Waiter reference, anyone? And by "anyone" I mean the two people following this blog, of which only David knows what I'm talking about, and even then, only maybe)

Snow tomorrow! Woot woot!

No profound thoughts for today, sorry to disappoint. Actually, I'm not that sorry, because I'm doing this blog for myself, not you. So...there.

Sorry if you're offended.

But not really.

January 30th

It's easy to forget how much beauty is right outside your door. The snow outside is more than knee-deep. The lamps turn the glistening landscape to gold. If it wasn't so cold out, you might stroll along the plowed walkways and enjoy the peaceful silence of this night. Instead, I'm inside on my laptop (after running out coatless in stocking feet to take this picture) watching Desperate Housewives, checking Facebook, and instant messaging my boyfriend. OK, so maybe that last one isn't so lame (of course, I would much rather have him with me and be talking to him in person), but my point still stands--how much beauty do we miss by sitting at our computers all day?

January 29th

When people get knocked out in poker, they usually hang around and talk and watch the rest of the game. We got DP Dough (MY FAVORITE!!!) and someone made a paper crane out of a DP Dough box top. It was dubbed "Inappropriate Crane," and it attacked you whenever you say something inappropriate. Someone else made a bow tie from it. Everyone knows bow ties are the most erotic clothing accessory, so it's sort of ironic that Inappropriate Crane would be wearing one.

...I guess you had to be there.

January 28th

Remember that dress I got at Goodwill? BAM!

Tonight was classy poker night. Freshman and sophomore year, we would have poker tournaments every Friday night. It was excellent fun, but junior year, less people were interested in having poker night so often. This was the first poker night we've had all year, so of course it had to be classy. Everyone looked so nice! There were 24 of us, I believe, and the game ended at 2:30, which is pretty early considering we used to play until 7 am and then go to breakfast way back when.

January 27th

All classes were cancelled today, regardless of the fact that the snow had stopped long before the sun rose. I was quite content with the announcement, but one of my suite mates was fairly frustrated. I came into the common room and found her standing on the coffee table, arms crossed, staring out the window. Apparently, although the storm had stopped and UConn was plowed, other roads, including main highways, were treacherously unplowed. This didn't seem any consolation to my suite mate, who is dreading a potential make-up day later in the semester.

The first time we went sledding on Horsebarn Hill this semester, one of our friends left her hat behind, and it's been in my room ever since. So I decided to take a ransom photo of it. I tried to find a copy of TODAY'S paper, but it hadn't been delivered to the dining hall yet, apparently, so I settled on yesterday's. I told her she better come to poker tomorrow night, or the hat gets it. I haven't quite yet decided what "it" is, but I'm sure I'll think of something.

January 26th

Classes after 5 pm were cancelled today due to the snow...which stopped shortly after the announcement, which came around 2:30, was sent out. Who says Jay Hickey isn't in it for the students? Anyway, we're supposed to get a "wintry mix" tonight that will knock out all the power and break windows and smother kittens and DESTROY EVERYTHING. Just kidding. Considering that it's supposed to stop before I even wake up, I doubt it will actually do much here on UConn, although fingers crossed for morning cancellations. Maybe Jay will throw one to the students again, and shut down the campus for the whole day. OK, so I'd be missing one interesting course (abnormal psych) and a few hours of work work but also won't get to go to RUF and Agents of Improv tomorrow night, which is the down side. Harumph, I don't know what I want.

This picture was taken accidentally. I WANTED today's picture to be a beautiful snapshot of the snowy steeple of Storrs Congregational, but when I took my camera out, it said "Battery exhausted," and turned off. That's cute. Is that supposed to be some kind of euphemism? Usually we say that batteries die, but I guess that was a little too severe for Nikon, so my battery just gets "exhausted." Anyway, after charging the battery, I turned the camera on to check that it had gotten enough rest, and hit the shutter. I was about to delete the picture when I noticed it was kind of beautiful. OK, so maybe it's not the most aesthetically appealing shot, but it tells a story of sorts. Laptop open on the desk, notebooks lined up carefully in a crate, and then a mishmash of objects in between. Perhaps it actually raises more questions than answers. Why does she have clean empty disposable water bottles, and a cocoa-covered hot beverage cup? Why is there a postcard with the Bean in Chicago on it when she's no where near and has never been to Chicago?

Then again, maybe these queries really aren't so interesting after all. But still--it's a snapshot of someone's life. I'm not saying that mine is particularly unique or important, just that we probably don't often think of people in terms of these little details. In fact, we probably don't KNOW many of the sorts of details that can be discovered through the stories explaining what's on a person's desk. Can you ever completely know someone? If not, how close can you get? How many people in my life could point to each of these items and know the story behind them? Are these things really that important? If not, then why does it mean so much when a person can explain these details? Maybe lack of knowledge about a person doesn't so much matter, because it probably signals a lesser degree of closeness, but a greater knowledge of these seemingly insignificant details means a lot because it means that to that person, even the seemingly insignificant pieces of our life have been deemed worthy of that person's attention.

January 25th

I just got back from a 2 1/2 hour game of Carcassonne, with three expansions. Two of the guys decided to team up and build a MEGA-CASTLE. It was 26 squares huge, and included a cathedral, meaning each piece was worth three points instead of two...this would probably sound really confusing or really nerdy or both to most people, but to us it was AWESOME. Needless to say, it put them far in the lead. And it looked really cool and tentacley. There's the two followers holding hands in the midst of their creation.

Huge storm coming in tomorrow evening. Jay Hickey, don't let me down.

January 24th

Nothing spectacular happened today. McMahon totally failed me by not having it's afternoon grill at 2, though, so that's something I guess...

I found this at an Ocean State Job Lot, and want to find someone to eat it. I've seen octopus and squid, but cuttlefish?? If someone else tries it first, I will try it. Probably. Any takers?

January 23rd

Today I went out sliding again. This is the same jump as in the picture with Hobbes in midair, but today, Steph decided to try it on a tube. We were nervous that she might get hurt, especially when we saw her feet fly up over her head, due to the dramatic angle of the jump. But then the most amazing thing I have ever seen happened. I have no idea how she did this, but her feet continued around (clockwise in the photo) and she somehow managed to hit the ground on her knees with the tube (how she hung on, I do not know) cushioning the impact of her elbows, which supported most of the weight of her fall, and the toes of her boots dug in and made her skid to a stop. Of course, she was totally freaked out and doesn't plan to attempt anything like that again, but oh my goodness, it was epic.

January 22nd

Didn't take any pictures Saturday...fail, Molly, fail.

January 21st

Bros vs. Hipsters party, and my roommate and I choose the bro side, borrowing clothes from one of our friends. The funny thing, as someone pointed out, was that although half the people at the party were bros, only half of the bros were actually wearing costumes.

January 20th

Sooo busy today! Went to four classes (need to drop two of them), then work, then dinner, then off to RUF and Agents of Improv. No time to stop! But I've made time for this little blog. SO, on the first floor there is a bulletin board, and the picture caught my eye. I thought it was a princess with her knight, and I thought of me and Mouseboy. But it wasn't a knight. Whatever, it's still cute. I can pretend.

January 19th

Wednesday is Wings Wednesday in my group of friends, a night when a bunch of people gather at 9 pm for the Wings Walk to Wings over Storrs, to order pounds of boneless wings in a variety of flavors. There are many, many traditions associated with this event that has been going on since freshman year, and I'm not going to go into them all right now. What amused me tonight was that on the receipt, where the customer's name would usually go, the cashier had written "Wings Club!!!!! Woot Woot." Apparently we added a little cheer to Nicole's evening. And the new flavor, Sweet Chili, certainly added cheer to ours.

In other news, my friend John has stated his opinion that this blog will end in March. This only makes me more determined to continue through the year.

Edit: I just noticed that on the receipt, instead of "cashier," it says "order taker." That makes me giggle.

January 18th

The first day of classes for the spring semester, and snow and rain caused them all to be cancelled. I don't think this has ever happened before. No, shh, don't even try to argue with me here. I'm a senior. I've been here awhile. I know things.

When we returned to the dorm on Sunday, our friend John came in with a gift for my roommate and me from him and his huskymates. It was this gigantic, strong spotlight. With it they gave us cut-outs of a chicken drumstick, a film strip, and the bat signal. We quickly realized they meant for us to use it to get their attention. Our windows face each other; their room is two floors down across the courtyard. Even with the lamps outside shining at twilight, the flashlight is so strong that it casts a beam into their room. This thing is amazing.

I'm going to try to post every day, rather than upload a few posts every handful of days like I've been doing. We'll see if I can keep this up!

January 17th

A bunch of my friends and I headed out to Horsebarn Hill to do some sliding/sledding. Many of us donned plastic garbage bags with holes cut out for our arms, head, and feet, and went down the hill like penguins. At one point, we decided to make a train of people, and managed to go super far, super fast with a line of eleven people! It was amazing. On one side of the hill was a massive jump, with a well-packed trail leading down to it. My friends Hobbes and Steph decided to go down it in their bags. Here is a close-up shot of Hobbes in mid-air (close-up because this is actually zoomed in as far as my camera could go, considering the hill is so large). Soooo awesome.

It's days like these when it just hits me how lucky I am to have these amazing people for friends. How many people will put on garbage bags and go flying down a snow-covered hill, despite the inevitable result of soaked clothing and numb extremities? How many people will immediately get on board with the idea of a huge person-tobagan (11 was the answer today), not once, not twice, but three times, trying to fix what went wrong the first two times? My friends are silly and adventurous and awesome, and I am so blessed to know them.

January 16th

So...today is my first lapse in this project. I forgot to take a picture this Sunday. I packed up for school and headed back to UConn, where I saw a bunch of friends and got to spend some time with my wonderful boyfriend. This picture of the two of us is from the aforementioned murder mystery dinner the night before. Aren't we adorable?

January 15th

For Christmas 2009 I gave my mom a murder mystery kit, which she's just now actually using. We decorated the house with Old West stuff. We even managed to hang saloon doors made of cardboard, which were obnoxious to set up. We had four red candles on the table. Two had already been burned down, so my mom wanted the two new ones we had to be burned down as well to match. But we had trouble standing them up to burn them, so we used a makeshift candle holder as we prepared for our fancy feast. We called it a redneck candle holder. I was far too amused.

January 14th

I've never been really interested in puzzles, but my mom loves them. This is a 1000 piece puzzle that she started on the kitchen table. I started idly placing pieces here and there, and then became addicted. Furthermore, we had an event coming up Saturday, and my mom said that we wouldn't have the puzzle finished by then, and would have to just put it away (we don't have a puzzle mat or anything). This sounded to me like a challenge, which I promptly accepted. Throughout the week I worked on the puzzle, for a couple hours each day, until it was finally finished Friday. I think I could do the same puzzle twice, if I liked the puzzle. Sort of like how I love climbing Mt. Monadnock, over and over again. I guess I like the familiar, although maybe that's unusual when it comes to puzzles.

January 13th

Endless mirrors always amused me. However, I wasn't very good at getting a picture of this... oh well.

January 12th

This is a sign I saw on the train ride back. My interpretation:

WARNING! Do not kick train. If you pick a fight with the train YOU WILL LOSE.

Re-interpreting signs: a new hobby? I'd certainly like it to be.

January 11th

I went with the Agents of Improv to New York City to hang out and then go to Harold Night at the Upright Citizens Brigade theater. This sign was on the train we took from New Haven. I know it technically says improooving and not improv-ing, but it made me ridiculously happy all the same. I figured it boded very well for our day. We went to a little park and played musical chairs, using a game of Hot Spot, played by those who were out of the game, for music. A random homeless guy named Neil came up and asked us trivia questions. I went to the museum of natural history in the afternoon. I got to sit cross-legged on the floor front and center at UCB. It snowed and snowed and when we got back to New Haven, we drove in blizzard conditions to Hamden, where we spent the night and the majority of the next day snowed in at a friend's house. All in all, it was a most excellent trip.

January 10th

Today my mom and I went out shopping for the murder mystery event. I found a cowgirl hat. It's green! It was so cute I had to buy it. The theme for the dinner is the Old West, so this will be useful!

January 9th

The now-in-college youth group got together to go sledding at the high school. We joined another group of people who had created a small jump at the base of the hill. This is David going off the jump. The jump was kind of a fail...but we still had lots of fun!

January 8th

My mom, my aunt, and I went cross country skiing on the nearby Rails to Trails. Our destination was a little store where we hoped to get hot drinks and sit for a few minutes, but when we got there we found that the store was closed, from January 3rd to January 17th! Ah well, it was still fun. On the way there, I went ahead, and when I reached a spot near the entrance to the trails, I sat down on a big rock to rest and wait for them to catch up. This just struck me as a pretty picture.

January 7th

My mom and I went to Good Will to look for costumes for an upcoming murder mystery dinner. Along with a dress for the event, I also found this dress. For $5, you can't go wrong, right? I think it's lovely.

January 6th

I went with David to the bank, where he traded a bunch of quarters for dollar bills. The teller had a sucky transport tube thing which I found extremely fascinating and amusing...maybe that's redundant, but it was THAT interesting to me.

January 5th

This is the front panel of an exit sign that I pilfered from a pile of exit signs that were going to be thrown away. I always thought that signs were kind of neat to have on your bedroom walls.

January 4th

I have no idea what this is, but it turned up on my computer table one day. Any ideas? I think my brother found it out back and brought it inside. There's tons of stuff buried back there from the people who lived here before us, from little bolts to a washing machine to a whole car! It's quite the junk yard. A sort of burial ground of scrap metal. When I was little, I used to go "treasure hunting" for the little odds and ends that I found scattered about. One man's trash...

January 3rd

This is a model ship that David has. His mom brought it to him years and years ago from a trip. I never noticed it before, but it's quite intricate and beautiful.

January 2nd

Close-up of a keyboard, although I'm sure that's pretty obvious. Are pianos and keyboards always black and white? It'd be cool to have a keyboard that had neon colored keys.

January 1st

My year began with a funeral for my cousin, Scott. I traveled up to Vermont on New Year's Day and got to see many uncles and cousins I don't see often. This is my cousin, Beatriz, Scott's wife of three years. I admire her strength through this time, and her joy, knowing that she will one day see Scott again.

The idea

My plan is to take one picture of something beautiful or interesting to me every day for a year.