Tuesday, June 29, 2010

Yes, Stephanie Still Lives Here!

New look, new name, same address, same writer. In light of how my life has shifted and evolved since I first started this blog, I felt that a new name was in order, as well as a bit of a makeover for this ole blog.

What's a history gypsy?
Why, I'm so delighted that you asked (and if you didn't, just roll along with me)! As my regular readers are well aware, I am neck-deep in a history M.A. program and I'm about as big a history nut as one can physically be while still functioning. I plan to make my living out of history -- whether by researching it, writing it, teaching it, etc. is yet to be determined. Hence, the history part. And as for the gypsy bit, well, I certainly do move around enough to qualify for gypsy status! In 2009 alone, I moved four times. For someone who's not in the military, that's quite a feat! And I get to do it again in a year (yuck)!

A Note of Explanation . . .

For those who may have been confused, no I did not blacken both eyes. I am an awkward, unlucky klutz, but I do not quite have the "skills" necessary to get both eyes at once. I just have one exceedingly ugly black eye, on the right side (sorta balances out the broken hand on the left). The pictures turned out misleading owing to the fact that I took one shot with my webcam (on my Macbook) and the other shot with my digital camera.

Saturday, June 26, 2010

Shiner!



In light of the recent news that my hand has a stress fracture, I was pretty certain that I had had enough injuries to last me for a while. Nope. Today, while cleaning my room (it got a little "tornado-ish" in the stress of finishing a summer class and packing to visit MI), I had the bright idea of also rearranging my closet and organizing it a bit better. Naturally, in the process, a box fell off a shelf and hit me in the eye.

Close-up of the result:


Yes, it hurts. It really, really hurts.

Jasper's Hair Cut Photos

I meant to post these much earlier, but here (finally) are some shots of Jasper's haircut. He honestly wanted to wear the outfit. Honest! He's a quirky little dog!

Thursday, June 3, 2010

Last Night, Part II

It just was not my night last night. After recovering from the shocking shellfish allergic reaction, I was a bit dizzy and lightheaded. So, naturally, it occurred to me that this would be the perfect time to do the dishes. A short while later, my unfortunate roommate walked in to find me on the kitchen floor, surrounded by broken glass, with both the floor and me rather bloody. No, I didn't faint; I just got lightheaded and then dropped a glass, then picked up the glass with my bare hands (remember, I had just been through a trauma AND I had a lot of benedryl on board). So, now I have two injured hands! And, my roommate has decided not to leave me unattended anymore.



Today was much better. I had a fun time in my film history class, then went out to dinner and a baseball game with friends. Our team won, I got hit on by the mascot, and we met so really nice people from all of our home states. Good times in Virginia!

Wednesday, June 2, 2010

So . . . Apparently I'm Allergic to Shellfish

It is the best of times, it is the worst of times.

Good news first:
I found out on Friday that I got the job that I wanted, which means that my final year of grad school is paid for. I will be working 25 hours per week starting next semester, doing work that involves data compiling and web design, among other duties. It's with a very friendly department (Institutional Effectiveness), and I'll be sharing an office with a very good friend. On Monday, I took advantage of a spectacular Memorial Day sale and finally purchased one of those netbooks that I've been drooling over for quite some time. Lest you think me extravagant, let me hasten to explain this purchase: my Macbook is wonderful beyond wonderful, but the battery life is a little under three hours and it tends to get heavy when I lug it around all day. Also, I worry a great deal about carrying around a computer that almost literally contains my entire life. So, I now have a cute little mini-laptop that weighs under two pounds and is smaller than most of my books, which I can use for taking notes in my classes (both now and when I am in my doctoral program).

Bad news:
About a week ago, I re-injured my left hand by smacking it quite hard on a doorknob. Since then, it has been a painful, swollen, ugly mess of a hand. I managed to sleep on it wrong last night, with the result that it is quite swollen today and in nearly constant pain. Despite the hand, I had a great day today, which I decided to cap off by finally experimenting with the scallops I've been saving. I cooked them using a delicious recipe that involves quite a bit of white wine, and thoroughly enjoyed eating them . . . until I started to itch and felt dizzy. I watched in horror as the red hives began to spread across my body. I took some benedryl after a hurried phone consultation with my mother, then threw up, then took more benedryl and drank lots of water. Eventually, the hives and the dizziness/nausea went away.

What a life!
"Passage—immediate passage! the blood burns in my veins! Away, O soul! hoist instantly the anchor!
Cut the hawsers—haul out—shake out every sail!
Have we not stood here like trees in the ground long enough?
Have we not grovell’d here long enough, eating and drinking like mere brutes?
Have we not darken’d and dazed ourselves with books long enough?

Sail forth! steer for the deep waters only!
Reckless, O soul, exploring, I with thee, and thou with me;
For we are bound where mariner has not yet dared to go, And we will risk the ship, ourselves and all.

O my brave soul!
O farther, farther sail!
O daring joy, but safe! Are they not all the seas of God?
O farther, farther, farther sail!"

~Walt Whitman, "Passage to India"