Happy May

Wow, how are we already 6 days into May?? 4 months of 2008, already gone! Such a crazy, crazy world. I'm doing well. Going a bit insane from work, but really, it's not that bad, I just like my down time, and there's not much of it right now. A normal person might just cut out fun activities for a while, but not me--I just cut out sleep. Somehow I went to bed at 4am on friday night, then got up at 7 on saturday, because I had to grade all the cases for my TA class. Just like me to leave things til the last minute. After class got out at 4, I came home and ate a huge piece of lasagna since I hadn't eaten anything all day. Must remember in the future that accidentally missing two meals in a row is not a good idea. I really was famished by the time I got back here, was feeling a little lightheaded. Anyway, things were much better after I'd eaten. I also watched a few episodes of LOST, and enjoyed a quiet evening at home, with the apartment all to myself!!! I went to bed early, and got up early on Sunday, which was good. In the afternoon I went downtown again because I realized I left my power cord in class the day before, which I kind of need! So I got that from Gleacher, got lunch from Potbelly's, and went to the Art Institute to FINALLY visit the Hopper exhibit. My ticket for the special exhibits wasn't until 2:30, so I wandered around the second floor for a while, where the impressionist paintings and the rest of the "modern" wing are located. Finally saw the famous Seurat, which was even more impressive than I thought it'd be. And I got to see my old friends Van Gogh, Renoir, and Monet, so that was lovely. At 2:30 I headed downstairs to the special exhibits section. I first went to see Winslow Homer, a self-taught American painter who excelled in watercolor. Wow! All I can say is that it was amazing. I've never seen watercolors like that, and I was really moved. He did a lot of people on the sea, or sunsets over the water, since he traveled around Maine, Massachusetts, and Florida. Eventually I will post some of my favorites, because they really were great.

The Hopper exhibit was also good. I liked his houses more than I thought I would--I liked the attention to shadows, and in general I like the look of victorian homes (from the outside...I would love to have an old Victorian home that was completely mod on the inside). I found the paintings of lonely couples really disturbing. Makes me wonder how many people are wandering around in relationships that they feel estranged to, which is one of my worst, getting caught in a marriage that leaves you feeling more alone. I know in my head that if you approach marriage prayerfully and in a Christ-centered way, you can trust that God will be faithful in providing both people with love and fulfillment, even when it takes extra effort to remain together. You've still already been made over into one body. And there are examples of good marriages in my life, so it's not like it's impossible to find someone like that. Anyway, the pieces of just one person I liked better, because they weren't overtly lonely, they were just solitary. I value quality alone time, so I probably just ascribed similar feelings to the subjects. Anyway, I enjoyed the exhibit, although I was probably more blown away by Homer. Maybe it's a thing of expectations (because I didn't even know I was going to be able to see Homer), but it really was spectacular.

Anyway yesterday was so good. With work piling up lately, I've really neglected cleaning and laundry and all that stuff that keeps me sane and enjoying a happy home. So yesterday I did six loads of laundry (wow! I have entirely too many clothes--though to be fair I did all my towels, sheets, and quilt as well), dusted and vacuumed the apartment, cleaned my room, washed the shower, the bathroom walls, the toilet, and rearranged stuff in the living room. I also changed the sheets on my bed and removed a lot of the clutter that had built up on my dresser. For some reason it's become a habit to collect these little figurines of animals and put them on my dresser. I realized yesterday that I kind of hate it, so I removed them all and put them in a drawer in the bathroom (haven't quite gotten to the point where I can get rid of them yet). And I finally got together a big bag of clothes to donate to Goodwill. Now if only I could find where to drop those off! It's strange the new challenges that arise when you don't have a car... I also needed to rehang one of my pictures over my bed because it had fallen off the wall and the glass shattered everywhere. Sooooo it's kind of been sitting behind my bed for...months, I'd say. So that's finally taken care of. Though, on a different note, I think i need to revamp my art collection. I'd really like to get something cool for over the couch in the living room, and I think I'm ready to move on from my Barcelona prints and purple flower I've had for way too long to something more grown up, and that I like more. So, we'll see. Maybe I'll search out something on art.com one of these days. A nice Monet or Renoir would be cool...or maybe Homer...hmmm...we'll see. Would also like to do an art project. I realized the other day that I haven't picked up a paintbrush in more than 5 years, maybe 10, and this is just unacceptable. Art is a way of expressing, and this helps in knowing, and becoming. So once midterm week dies down, I'd like to get a small canvas and paint something. Hmmm, am excited! Oh, and I also bought a plant!!! Yay, finally!!!! It is a bromeliad aechmea, which is very similar to the bromeliad guzmania I originally wanted. I found it at the new grocery store yesterday, and it came in a really cute blue pot, so I got it and it now looks great on our kitchen table that we rarely use except for breakfast. But it does make my life happy, so i'm pleased. this is what it looks like:













Well, I really need to get to work since in an hour I need to start packing for today and tomorrow. I have an interview with Whirlpool tomorrow for a summer internship, that I'm really hoping goes well since it is soo late already!!! Their headquarters are in Benton Harbor, Michigan, so I'm actually staying the night with my grandparents at the lakehouse, and then taking the train back tomorrow afternoon. It should be fun, and good to see them--I'm just really hoping that the interview goes well so the whole job thing can cease to be an anxiety!!! Please keep it in your prayers if you remember :) Anyway, off to be productive!