fuck yeah college

on hot tubs, whiplash, and my inability to understand moderation

by ameena on July 11, 2012 · 3 comments

in a day in the life, plight of the twenty-something, random musings

Having unlimited access to a hot tub is simultaneously the best and worst thing that has ever happened to me. I think Olivia said it best when she pointed out that basically we are far too immature for a hot tub.

I realized this was true when I found myself sitting in said hot tub surrounded by empty wine bottles at 4 o’ clock in the morning this past Saturday – or I guess normal people would call it “Sunday” at that point – following a ridiculous game of Truth or Dare: Hot Tub Edition. Which for the record is basically the only way truth or dare should ever be played. And yet, miraculously, this still doesn’t beat the weekend prior when Olivia and I somehow convinced a group of our friends to play Spin the Bottle: Hot Tub Edition.

Yeah, immature might be a bit of an understatement. In other news, we fucking rule at getting our friends in touch with their eighteen-year-old selves. So ya know, high fives for that.

Here’s the thing, my entire life “moderation” is a concept that has been totally and completely lost on me. For the most part I am all, “Look at me! I am sooooo healthy! Boo alcohol! Yay Brussels sprouts! More running please! Eff yeah adulthood!” And then other times – like the majority of this past month – I am all, “Let’s get drunk and make bad choices! What alcohol allergy? I am young! There is time for healthy later! Cake for dinner! Wahoo waking up at noon!”

My inability to find that happy place somewhere in the middle has started to give me severe whiplash. Usually what happens is I get so freaked out by how adult I can be that I start questioning everything and decide that the only answer is to swing to the complete opposite side of the spectrum which then results in me feeling guilty and being a total asshole to myself about how immature I am behaving so then I panic and scurry back in to the patiently waiting arms of adulthood.

And now I am exhausted just having typed that.

If someone could please explain this “moderation” thing to me I would be eternally grateful, until then you can find me in the hot tub trying to convince everyone we should play Seven Minutes in Heaven: Hot Tub Edition while stuffing my face full of carrots. That’s getting close, right??

a story for tomorrow.

by ameena on April 5, 2012

in internet finds, lust list, Pop Culture

can you please tell me, have you seen my motivation?

i seem to have misplaced it somewhere. you know, it is just so typical of that motivation of mine to vacate the premises in time for the ending of this final semester.

but alas, this lacking of the motivation has made it far too difficult for me to construct a coherent post. so instead i will leave you with this video that just might have changed my life today. thank you ever so much to drea for sharing it!

a story for tomorrow. from gnarly bay productions, Inc. on Vimeo.

isn’t that just the most beautiful thing you ever did see? it right brought me to tears, it did.

riddikulus

by ameena on February 17, 2012 · 2 comments

in plight of the twenty-something, real talk

There always comes a point in the midst of the sads in which I finally stop and look at myself. I mean really look at myself. And I laugh. I laugh because at that point what else is there to do but accept how utterly and entirely ridiculous it all is. More specifically, I laugh at how completely ridiculous I have been behaving. Naturally this week was no exception for the laughter because boy was I being ri-dic-u-lous this week, you guys.

Now I am in no way saying that I shouldn’t have been sad, or that my sadness wasn’t in some ways justified, but there was definitely a point in which my sadness evolved in to wallowing. And because I have always had a tendency toward exaggeration, when I wallow – I really wallow. My love of the theatrics has taught me to embrace whatever emotion I am feeling with all of my heart and as a result I can sometimes lose perspective. I forget that things are maybe not as bad as they seem and that perhaps I shouldn’t be taking it all so darn seriously. So I laugh as a reminder. Because if Dumbledore ever taught me anything it is that, “Happiness can be found even in the darkest of times, if one only remembers to turn on the light.”

So I finally turned on the light and saw the ladder that was waiting to carry me out of the hole and now I just want to say thank you. Thank you for your kind words and support because they were my first glimmers of light. And also thank you for indulging me while I unabashedly displayed my tendency toward theatrics. To be honest, I have actually been really embarrassed by my last post and I even thought about deleting it because I felt like such a baby, but this is my blog and what kind of space would it be if it weren’t an honest reflection of what I felt in the moment? So I decided to keep it. But I also want you to know I understand just how ridiculous it is.

And now because it has been far too long since I last did this. Here are my Reasons to Smile:

:: I survived my first round of midterms! And I think I did pretty amazing on them. Looks like I will be graduating this semester after all (still crossing my fingers and toes because even though I am a mostly good student, I have this weird feeling this will be the first semester I actually fail a class).
:: Completely rearranging my room. It’s the little things, really.
:: The fact that I will be in Austin, TX in less than 36 hours. I’m so excited to be spending the weekend with some of my favorite bloggers. And also running my SECOND half-marathon. Eeeep!
:: Complaining about The Walking Dead. I really really love to hate this show, you guys.
:: Happy Endings, Up All Night, and Modern Family. If you aren’t watching these shows, you’re doing it wrong. “It” being life. Also, someone please explain to me how I have time for all of the tv I watch.

just in case you were planning on getting me something for christmas

by ameena on December 20, 2011 · 1 comment

in lust list

First of all, thank you so much, really you shouldn’t have.

But if you insist, these are some of things I have my eye on this year:

For my inner sports geek: 30 for 30 Box Set

For my print-obsessed side. I am going to live this print so hard.
see also this, this, and this.

Because no list is complete without Harry Potter. Also, when
the mug gets warm it changes to “Mischief Managed.” WHATTTT.

For my Hanging with Friends addiction. These gloves are
iPhone compatible! Also, let’s play Hanging with Friends? Please??

For my love of film. Perhaps any book on the movies would do, really.

Finally:

and

Cause, OH YA KNOW. Girl can dream, amIright?

What is on your wish list this year???

my last post regarding finals because heyo, I’M DONE.

by ameena on December 14, 2011 · 4 comments

in random musings

Oh hey you guys, GUESS WHAT! I survived finals week! HAPPY DANCE.

This is really awesome for several reasons:

[one] there was a time in the library where things started to look real bleak and I was worried this would be the finals to finally break me (I maybe sort of say this every finals season (one of the many plights of an exaggerator) (but also – it really really felt true!)).

[two] I have all the free time to do all of the things I have been dying to do since the beginning of time. I am real real excited to finally start writing more real posts (although I rather enjoyed the small ones, too) and to get in to the holiday spirit and start preparing for our epic cocktail party this weekend and to watch a ton of movies and bring back the crafternoons and even do some reading for funsies and see all the pretty lights and maybe even go snowboarding for the first time in my whole entire life and and and it’s gonna be a fantastic winter break, y’all.

[three] you no longer have to put up with me tweeting, talking, and writing about finals. Er, well, starting right……..NOW.

It feels so good to be back. Adios, Fall Semester 2011.

because this is the kind of thing that happens when I should be studying for finals

by ameena on December 5, 2011 · 3 comments

in sorry for party rocking

Olivia and I figured our time would better be spent planning a fancy cocktail party, this is the invite we came up with:

‘Twas the weekend after finals, and all through the land
Not a student was studying, and a party was planned;
Dresses were selected with tender love and care,
In hopes that cute boys would surely be there;The students were nestled all snug in their beds,
As visions of cocktails danced in their heads;
And Olivia in her antlers and Ameena in her thinking cap ,
Had just settled down to write this sweet rap,When out on the lawn there arose such a clatter,
We sprang from the couch to see what was the matter.
Away to the window we flew like a flash,
To see all our friends ready to get trashed.

The moon on the breasts of so many did glow
As they all stood there waiting outside in the snow,
When, what to our glazed over eyes should appear,
But a party in The Cottage, with plenty of beer,

So bring a designated driver, lively and quick,
Who can take you home should you get sick.
With more liquor than Vegas, it’s time for a drinking game,
These partiers whistled, shouted, and to this party they came;

“Down, 1300 South! and, Main Street!
Now, Fancy Drive and 3!
Past the Subway! and goodwill! and then you will see,
The Cottage on 27th Street is the place you should be!
To the top of the porch! Just say you’re a guest!
Of house 8973! With hor d’ouerves you’ll be blessed!”

Unlike heaves that before wild stomaches do fly,
You’ll meet with no obstacle, if you simply reply,
Up the stairs to the housetop you’ll find,
A cute house with vodka for you to unwind.

And then, in a twinkling, you’ll hear that night
Songs by Mariah, and Britney, you’ll be able to recite.
As you pour a shot, and take a look around,
So many friends in fancy outfits will abound.

Girls in cute dresses and the men dressed up too,
There will be greens and golds and reds and blues,
Quick to escape the cold frosty air,
Everyone was ready for a fancy holiday affair

Your eyes — how they’ll twinkle!
After some stoli with berry!
Your belly will be full, with peppermint schnapps and cherry!
We’ll provide plenty of food both savory and sweet,
It will be hard to resist so many good eats;

Ugly sweaters are so two thousand and late,
But feel free to bring with you a date;
Even ones with broad faces or round bellies,
As long as you promise to shake your jellies.

There will be peppermint patty shots, atop a shelf,
And you’ll laugh when you take one, in spite of yourself;
If things get too rowdy we’ll provide you a bed,
Alas, we like you better alive than dead;

Now don’t fret too much, for once you finish finals and work,
You can come join us on a snowy night in December; now don’t be a jerk,
Laying aside this invite after you’ve read,
Hopefully a “yes” will be all that you’ve said;

So spring to your sleigh, and head up the hill,
For a night full of fun, it will be quite a thrill.
You’ll hear us all exclaim, after this one epic night,
“Happy Christmas to all, we did this thing right.”

We’re pretty damn proud of ourselves, yes we are. Although we can’t take quite all of the credit as we did run in to some writers block (studying will do that to one’s brain) so we did take some amazing pieces from this genius piece of work. Because hello! that girl is a amazing.

Oh and don’t worry that’s not my real address, creep.

because it would be cool (aka the one where i kind of lose my shit and kindly request that you tell me what to do)

by ameena on October 19, 2011 · 11 comments

in a day in the life, disney adventures, plight of the twenty-something

This morning was pretty spectacular. Not only did I wake up early enough to actually make and enjoy breakfast like a real adult, I also found out that I no longer have to take summer classes in order to complete my degree. This means I officially graduate this spring. Eeeep! I mean, it only took me five years, but as of May 2012 I will finally have a Bachelor of Arts (don’t ask) in Biology.

That’s right, I am the ultimate badass.

!!!

I was so overly ecstatic that I immediately texted, called, and tweeted pretty much everyone I know. I greedily commandeered my conversations in to I HAVE THE BEST NEWS territory. I happy danced. I smiled from ear to ear. I wanted to open mouth kiss everyone. Phampants suggested I instead kiss a squirrel, I think to avoid lawsuits. I worried about rabies. I decided dancing was enough.

Oh what a glorious morning!

But then,

slowly

gradually

morning turned in to afternoon and with it my ecstasy turned in to sheer panic. Because, you see, I have spent the past four and a half years refusing to give legitimate thought to what happens next.

YOU GUYS I HAVE NO IDEA WHAT IS SUPPOSED TO HAPPEN NEXT.

Whenever I am in doubt there is always one place and one place alone I turn to for answers – Disney.

The next thing I knew I was tumbling down the Disney Careers rabbit hole and positively drooling over the sheer amazingness of their science internships. It was around the time that I was researching local zoo internships that I realized that “It would be cool.” is probably not a sufficient enough essay response or reason to be pursuing a career I hadn’t given much thought to prior to today.

I spent so much of my college career insisting that there was “no rush” when it came to determining what I wanted to do with the rest of my life. It is how I ended up on this here five year plan because I couldn’t decide on a major. I didn’t want to rush in to such a big decision!  There was even a time when I was convinced I would be an English/History/Business/Biology/PoliticalScience/Music major. I wanted it all.

Perhaps it isn’t that I lack a clear vision for my future, okay okay, the reason I lack a clear vision of my future is that it is clouded by the fact that I want to do All of the Things.

The truth is I have absolutely no idea where my biology degree will take me. I always just hoped that my overwhelming love and admiration for my field would cause everything else to fall in to place. But instead it has had quite the opposite effect. I am so in love with every aspect, I just want to do it all.

I want to use my biology degree to continue to fight the evils of cancer and learn more about the fascinating world of disease. I want to spread the joy and wonderment that is zoology and marine biology. I want to save lives as an EMT and eventually as a physician’s assistant. I want to celebrate evolutionary genetics and the mechanisms of the cell. I want to solve criminal mysteries and neurological mysteries. I want to work for the CDC and DisneyWorld and Boston University and and all. of. it.

I was talking to a friend today about my uncertainty concerning the future and he mentioned a paper he recently read in which a researcher unveiled that most of the jobs students obtained directly after college ended up being completely different from their eventual careers. Clearly I interpreted this to mean I can do whatever the fuck I want.

Maybe I will just leap in to DisneyWorld’s Animal Kingdom or a research lab somewhere in Boston or even an EMT course. After all, I still have one more semester to figure it out, right?

…

Right?!

the same ol’ song and dance remixed

by ameena on September 30, 2011 · 7 comments

in half-baked ideas

With the starting of a new school year also comes the falling in to a familiar routine. This year it looks something like: press snooze eleventymillion times, realize I’m going to miss my bus, barely make said bus, sit through class, stop by the lab, listen to all the podcasts, study, check Twitter, run, study some more, squeeze in one of the trillion shows I am obsessed with, panic, cram, sleep, repeat. I mean, sure it sounds super lame on paper but don’t let that fool you! I am living the dream, you guys.

Except, I’ve never been one to like routine. Whenever I feel it settling around me I start to get rebellious, antsy feelings in my gut. I always worry that routine means I am boring. It makes me feel uninspired. I become a quiet passenger in the passings of my time. One day blends in to the next. None of them with any real significance. Lemme tell you, it’s an absolute drag.

But this year I have decided to try something different. You see, it is around this time each year that I begin to talk all about how much this is my favorite time of the year*. All day long I daydream of fall feasts and haunted houses. Of my favorite scary movies and roasted pumpkin seeds. I am constantly on the prowl for the perfect crunchy leaf and I anxiously begin counting down the days until Pumpkin Pie Cheesecake from the Cheesecake Factory. My scarves radiate excited energy as they prepare to make their fall debut and my eyes are constantly on the lookout for that perfect pair of boots.

But then November 1 rolls around and I find that I hardly celebrated October at all. It’s the saddest. The only way I know how to make myself feel better with this most disheartening of discoveries is to blame school and then vow to do better next year.

That is why this year I have come up with a surefire way to guarantee myself a guilt-free beginning to my November. Every single day during the month of October I vow to do at least one Autumn/Halloween related activity. That’s right y’all, I am going to celebrate the fuck out of October 2011.  I don’t know that I can promise you full bloggy reports on each of my fall adventures but I can promise that I will try my absolute hardest to document all 31 things! But I need your help to do it! Tell me please, what are some of your favorite fall activities?

*Er, well, it is my favorite time of year until
Christmas rolls around. I’d like to think
they hold two special and completely
different places in my heart.

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