It seems like I always find things to complain about, even when I should be enjoying the good things happening around me - how I didn't die yesterday when that car tried to hit me, how the weather is lovely and makes the campus look so happy, how there was actually an interesting Assembly Series speaker, even if I had to watch it from a different building.

But instead, during this semester free of hard classes and large quantities of work, I find that this free time only gives me more time to be frustrated with the work that I do have to do. This is probably because this work consists entirely of very annoying marketing assignments for two classes, one that is excrutiatingly boring and arbitrary and one that requires me to be in constant contact with infuriating, maddening, lazy idiots. I see people walking around with fall course listings, and it makes me sad and makes me wish I could pick out courses just one more time - for one semester take absolutely nothing but fun courses, with no hard classes and no boring graduation requirements. If I had more important things to worry about, I would not spend so much time being annoyed at these stupid classes. But, in the absence of truly worrisome things, I seem to prefer being annoyed at something to being happy about other, better things. This is a very silly way to be, and I think I should stop. Someone should remind me to do that.
- posted by Darcey @ 5:50 PM

 
Breaking News: Bookstore slacks off, allows class of students to escape with several dollars still in pockets

The bookstore allowed my entire marketing strategy class to purchase a used version of a book that did not come with the new online license number we need for the rest of the semester. They had a practically legitimate reason to force us to pay for a more expensive, new book, and they didn't do it! What's next? Paying a reasonable price to buy back books that might not even be used next semester?
- posted by Darcey @ 2:44 PM

 
I just had my German oral midterm. This midterm is why it's a good idea that I'm taking the class pass-fail. I lack oral communication skills in English. How could I possibly respond to questions on the spot in German?

And, back to everyone's favorite subject, I got my lease in the mail for my apartment. This means that my future income and my credit (whatever credit I may have) has been verified and that those wonderful folks at Quadrangle, formerly known as Parkview, have given me a good reference. I was looking forward to not having to sign a paper agreeing not to chew on painted woodwork, since none of the paint in the apartment is older than I am, and thus it is not lead based. But it turns out that while I am free to eat as much paint as I choose, I instead have to sign a paper agreeing to prevent and remove mold. It seems this newfangled apartment comes equipped with contraptions known as "fans" in the bathroom and kitchen, and I'm supposed to use them whenever I shower or cook to prevent "moisture." This will take much more work than avoiding those tempting flakes of paint that cover every possible surface in my current apartment.

Also, more about the weather: For the past few days, the temperature has been in the 50s here. In Madison, it's been in the 30s. This is not pleasant. Now, it's in the 30s here, and there, it's, well, still in the 30s. It does have that consistency going for it. But I think I prefer warmth.
- posted by Darcey @ 12:44 PM

 

In my last post, I said that anyone who didn't care about me moving to Madison had no reason to be here. However, it has come to my attention that several people may be here as the result of some sort of homework assignment. These poor people have even less reason to care about my moving plans than people who actually know me. So let's see if I can manage to write something unrelated to Madison, something with a broader appeal.

So, how 'bout that basketball? As a good little Hoosier, I am deeply embarrassed by my state's failure to get even a single team into the tournament. It's disgraceful. Truly disgusting. If we can't play basketball, what can we do? Anyone would think Indiana was the same as, say, Missouri. (Does Missouri have any teams in the tournament? I can't think of any, but I don't really know. My apologies to any talented Missouri athletes I'm overlooking.) It's hard to keep track of these things as Wash U. I don't think Wash U generally attracts the most sports-minded of students, or maybe that's just the case with the people I know, a group which doesn't include as many boys as it should. But I bet I'll find some sports enthusiasts when I move to - Curses! I've failed. How did that happen? I was talking about basketball!

So I guess I really can't help talking about myself. So anyway, I can't make up my mind whether I'm getting a cold or not. I keep getting mild symptoms and expecting them to get worse, but they just go away. I really was convinced I was going to get sick at the start of spring break, because every single person I came in contact with seemed to be suffering from some sort of terrible illness. And I was sad, because it was going to spoil my lovely trip to... an undisclosed location. But then it went away, and I was fine. Then the other night I woke up with a terrible sore throat, but when I went back to sleep and woke up in the morning, it was gone. And then yesterday there was a headache, but that's gone too. I'm still convinced it's going to catch up with me sooner or later, though, and I think I'd just rather get it over with.

- posted by Darcey @ 3:35 PM

 
Testing. Testing. Blogger, don't you love me anymore?
- posted by Darcey @ 2:46 PM

 
Note: If you are not interested in things related to me moving to Madison, I really don't know why you're here. It's really the only thing of interest I've had to say for the past few months and the only thing I foresee having to say for some time.

That said, I've been to Madison, and I have looked at many, many apartments, and I have applied for one of them. If you would like to get an idea of what this apartment is like, follow these steps: First, picture the apartment I am currently living in. Next, imagine an apartment that is the exact opposite in every possible way. An apartment that is pretty and new. An apartment that has modern appliances, including a dishwasher and a personal washer and dryer! An apartment with a clubhouse, fitness center, and pool. And to be fair to the current apartment, an apartment that does not have central air or heat like the current apartment. There is some form of air conditioning in the new apartment, which seems common to most every apartment I looked at, but I don't entirely understand how it works and have been led to believe that it is not as good.

The apartment is called Stone Creek. It is in a nice, new, very residential area. There is a grocery store almost across the street. It is located very conveniently to my future employer Epic, as well as to the major shopping area. (By the way, every apartment in the area is filled with Epic employees, who apparently are much loved by the community and are given a discount at Stone Creek.) Also, every apartment gives you a month free, making this pretty, new apartment quite affordable, even with $20 a month for underground parking. This a picture of the buildings. I wanted to show more interesting pictures of the interior, but I can't find any.



Also, for my trip to Madison, I flew on an airplane, which I have been scared of doing since my last trip on an airplane. I took some drugs that were supposed to help with this. I was curious to see the impact of these drugs, having never consumed any such thing before, but they were pretty worthless once I got in the air. When I set my mind to panicking, a few little pills aren't going to stop me. On the way back, I supplemented the drugs with alcohol. The label on the bottle said this would increase effects such as drowsiness. I got the impression that this was not meant as a recommendation, but nonetheless, it was a pretty good one. I was a little better on the way back. My mother the pharmacist seemed surprised that I could walk, so maybe these pills affect other people differently.

Also, I've been looking at cars again. Only this time, I was looking at actual cars, not ones on the computer. My new favorite is now the Nissan Sentra:


- posted by Darcey @ 2:40 PM