Christmas

So, I love Christmas. Not cause of the presents really, that hasn't been a big deal for a while, but spending time with my family is nice. And by my family I mean my mother. Because my dad and Ted aren't really a big part of my life. My dad works at night so he sleeps till 6, takes a shower, eats, watches the news and leaves at 8. We don't really cross paths much and therefore we don't really spend time together. Which is sad, but he and aren't really on good terms as far as families go. Probably because I yell at him at every opportunity for smoking. I once even told him that he wouldn't be alive to know my kids so why should he care. Yeah, probably kind of harsh, but he doesn't see how much it hurts my mom and everyone else that he won't stop. He doesn't even try. and it is really depressing.

Anyway, my mom, Cesca and I made Christmas very merry. We watched Toy Story 3, Elf, made dinner and cookies, and in general had a really good time. She also carried on my favorite (and really only) Christmas tradition: Christmas Eve pajamas! This year, my mother outdid herself; instead of the normal snowflake or winter the

med pj's, she got something better!

My mother knows what is important to me: hockey

2 pairs of Sabres pants!

Cesca and I modeling our new pajama pants

It was a good year. 2 weeks till London. Oh. My. God.

In other news, I saw both Black Swan and Tangled. Both were awesome, but I fell in love with Tangled. It was awesome. So I highly recommend it. So. Freaking. Adorable.

Finals

Well, that time of the year has nearly come and gone. Finals time. That dreaded time of the year meant for sleepless nights, sweatpants and stress. Yes. We all adore them don't we?

This year was especially tough, seeing as having 6 classes made my schedule packed. My 4 written finals all happened on Monday and Tuesday, plus a paper due at midnight Tuesday. Then a presentation Wednesday, but nobody cares about that.

Legal went well. I felt like I knew the material and despite a severe lack of sleep, I put my mind to it and did a good job.

OBM was a nightmare. I thought I completely bombed. Nothing stuck in my head at all. Turns out I did alright. I didn't fail, at least. It wasn't up to par with my normal grades, but I've done so well all semester it shouldn't affect my grade. Still disappointed in my performance, but can't change anything.

Marketing went well after a good study session with Casey. Not even getting locked out and having to borrow Casey's coat and Andrea's shoes could stop me!

Italian. Well, let's just say, io lo parlo bene. I mean, Italian is like my favorite class, so I retain it much easier than any other. That took me about 10 minutes. Probably not my best test, but it won't hurt my grade. I probably got like a 95. Which, considering I got over 100 on the rest, makes it the worst. Aaaah, I wish I always had that problem in my classes.

So now I am sitting in the computer lab with one kid who isn't in COMP110, getting paid to blog and play tetris. I have to make final edits to my research paper for my evolution class, but I think I've improved the paper a lot. I still love my paper. The Evolution of Ballet is something I can talk about all day.

Then my writing presentation. Meh. My group is suiting up and beasting it out. Because we are awesome. And all business majors. She will love it.

Then I have to pack. Ugh. I hate packing. But it is a good kind of packing cause it is LESS THAN 4 WEEKS TILL LONDON OMGOMGOMG. So pumped, can't you tell? I'm thinking of either starting or making this a london blog. Not that too many people read it outside of my friends here. Maybe I'll send it to my mom so she can read about my adventures!

In other news, we had a final, end of semester OL hang out yesterday. So fun, but so sad. I'm gonna miss everyone... That was such a good summer...

Anyway, in tribute to my favorite pics from finals week, I give you Procrastination:





I call this one Dorm Room Pas de Deux



My foot seriously looks so prime

If you like period-dramas

You should watch The Age of Innocence.

How did this come about?

Well, you see, at the Honors banquet this year, I sat down in front of Seabiscuit, since I adore horses and love horse racing. Well, next to me sat this intriguing novel called The Age of Innocence by Edith Wharton. Now I had read Ethan Frome in high school, and while I felt that it was simple and nothing really happened, the simplicity was actually enjoyable. I was also interested in this new novel because of the description, and the fact that it had been made into a movie starring Daniel Day-Lewis (who is very handsome), Michelle Pfeiffer and Winona Ryder. So I stole it from Alyssa with the promise that I would give it back once I finished. No matter, she found it somewhere else. Now I get to keep it!

Given this is an Edith Wharton novel, I wasn't expecting bliss. If you haven't read Ethan Frome but are planning on it, don't read ahead cause I'm gonna spoil it.

I mean, in that novel, the two in love try to kill themselves by running their sled into a tree, and at the last second Ethan pulls away and they hit it, though not fatally. Then he basically spends the rest of his life in misery.

Well, it seems Wharton loves love triangles; The Age of Innocence is no different.

A brief plot summary in case you are interested, courtesy of Sparknotes (Slightly edited by me):

Newland Archer couldn't be more pleased with his recent engagement to the beautiful debutante May Welland. However, his world is thrown upside down by the sensational arrival of May's cousin, Countess Ellen Olenska. Recently returned to America after separating from her husband, a philandering Polish count, Countess Olenska shocks the staid New York aristocracy with her revealing clothes, carefree manners, and rumors of adultery. As Archer comes to better know the Countess, he begins to appreciate her unconventional views on New York society. Meanwhile, Archer becomes increasingly disillusioned with his new fianceé, May. He begins to see her as the manufactured product of her class: polite, innocent, and utterly devoid of personal opinion and sense of self.

Anyway, the movie is a gorgeous period piece with great acting, beautiful costumes and remarkable faith to the book, which is quite moving. I thoroughly enjoyed it, and if you ever have 2 and a half hours with nothing to do, you might too!

Here is the trailer :

Whatevs. I thought it was fantastic.

Whoa

Holy crap. This last week has been a nightmare. So much running around to do with no chance to stop and catch my breath. I barely saw any of my friends, which was really sad.

So yeah, Peer Advisors Senior Party was last night and tons of fun! I had a good time even though I was worried it would be awkward. I'm gonna miss a lot of people, not just the seniors, when I go abroad.

I got most of my work done for this week already too! (Take that, 17 page OBM assignment!). All I really need to do is edit my final honors paper. Oh and take 4 exams and do a presentation during finals week. No big deal.

I cannot believe the semester is basically over. 1 week of classes. 1 week of exams. DONE.

Then 3 weeks till London! So prime. I'm feeling really good about the amount of things I accomplished this week and weekend, so I think I am going to reward myself with a movie after the Deans' Host Yankee swap. Sure to be a good time!

Let it be known that I cannot wrap awkwardly shaped presents in newspaper. Oh well. It's about community, friendship and fun, right?