Dominos

Recently, the Fort Worth Museum of Science and Natural History reopened after months of being closed for renovations. I was finally able to visit, and I hardly recognized the place I had loved so in my childhood.

I felt so at home now, after my basic archaeological training. I felt so great finally being able to explain things to my family. I feel like I can finally live up to my family’s expectations.

The best part was not the child-driven planetarium, seeing Avatar at the Omni Theater and almost throwing up, “digging” for bones…no, it was attempting to make a domino chain with my sister and her fiancé.

My sister and I do not have the most steady hands; let me just put it this way, neither of us will ever be surgeons. Whenever we started to make a half-decent structure, we would accidently knock it down.

Actually, I may have lied. Stealing a rubber duck with the Star of David on it may have been my favorite part. Who needs a gift shop?

Sustainability

A sign on campus brought my attention that only 5% of the things we buy are still in use six months after their purchase. With everyone turning “green,” this statistic seems a little far-fetched.

On further review, however, it began to make sense.

Most of the things that college students (the target demographic for the sign) would buy would not be in use all that long. We only use textbooks for one semester; once a notebook or pen is used up, we simply throw it out; and we purchase so many things on a whim that we only plan to use once.

Looking even further, it can be said that all of the clothes we buy can work with this statistic. Theoretically you wouldn’t wear short shorts in the winter, or Ugg boots in the summer (yet the sorority girls at TCU don’t seem to follow this norm). It does not take into account that you would use it again twelve months later. Yes, it is not currently in use at that six month mark, but with enough time it would be pulled back out of the drawer to be used again.

Yes, I believe that we should work to sustain the world that we live in. In an ideal world we could go back to living the way the indigenous people in the Amazon live; they use slash-and-burn farming yet it enables their environment to recreate itself over and over again. That is the epitome of sustainability. We are far passed that point.

We need (to quote Mao Tse Tung) a permanent revolution. I believe that we can sustain our current ways of living and sustain the world in which we live. Let us all pick three things that we will do to help sustain our world. Three small things by each person could make a world of difference.

My three things:

1. Use my entire notbooks. This includes writing on both sides of each paper and if need be, use the same notebook for multiple classes and semesters.
2. Recycle all of my bottles. There are plenty of recycling bins on campus, I generally just throw my bottle away in the first trashcan I see. I will carry my empty bottles until I see a recycle bin, and recycle instead of throwing it in the trash.
3. Turn off the AC. I will not touch the thermostat upstairs. This will help me burn less fossil fuels, and it will save my mother money on her electric bill. A double win.

Long Time No See

My father is coming in town this afternoon. I am really looking forward to see him, I haven’t seen him since Christmas.

I wish that I could go with my sister to go pick his up from the airport tonight, but I have to work tonight. I would have felt guilty asking for Friday and Saturday off, so I chose to spend all Saturday with him, and who knows, maybe he will decide to come visit me at work tonight.

What do we have planned, you ask? Well, that is a good question. As of now, we do not have any plans. As my father say, “We will play it by ear.” …or at least he would have said that when I was five, right after he would say, “We’re having frogs’ feet for dinner tonight.”

Needless to say, we learned to stop asking him what the plans were.

I do, however, need to drive home, get ready for work, clean my car out, and go to work all in an hour time. That will be fun. I would let my sister drive while I clean the car, but she is pokey on the road. Who goes the speed limit?!

Moral of the story: I have to choose the best of two evils, be late because I need to clean the car or be late because my sister drives slow…

There is Nothing Like a Crisp Salad…

Trying new food is hard for me, not because I don’t like trying new food, but because I like what I already eat so much.

Take, for instance, what I eat at TCU: there are hundreds of options in the student union, but I almost always gravitate towards the salad bar. I attribute part of this to the fact that I used to be a vegetarian, the other part I give credit to how good a salad tastes.

With the right dressing, a salad can stimulate every taste bud while filling you up. We cannot, however, forget the health benefits of a salad.

Even at the salad bar, I get the same mixture of flavors from day-to-day: romaine lettuce, cherry tomatoes, carrots cut julienne, green peppers, sliced mushrooms, and red onions all topped with croutons and French dressing.

I am the person who everyone hates standing behind, because I load my salad up with so many things. The normal salad-eater will get one or two veggies, while I leave only one or two out.

As I write this, keep glancing at my empty salad bowl, trying to decide if it would be distasteful if I went back for seconds.

The Little Things

I take the little things in life for granted. We all do. It isn’t until something is taken away that we truly understand how much we use and need it.

Take, for instance, being sick (which I underwent today). Being able to breath without feeling like your chest is going to explode, a little thing I learned was nice today. Going to school and work, yes I missed both of these exercises.

I found myself bored and unable to sleep because the house was so bright. I really did miss sitting in a classroom and learning something. We all complain about how much we hate going to school, how tedious it is; however, I reacquainted myself with my love of learning today.

I love my job, I love both of my majors, but why is it that I find myself going through the motions half-heartedly? Being away from my normal life for twenty four hours has made me realize a lot of things.

We should all step back once in a while and reacquaint ourselves with our realities.

I Am Neurotic (And So Are You)

I cannot leave the sliding mirror/door open in my bathroom at night while I am sleeping, or else the ghost that lives in my house will act up and I will never fall asleep.

Yes, there is a ghost that lives in my house.

Fact 1: He runs water in my bathroom while the door is closed.

Face 2: He types on the keyboard when nobody is in the computer room.

Face 3: He turns on the light in the spare room if he thinks we haven’t been in there in a while.

Face 4: At night, when he is out and about, Dakota (my dog) will hide under the bed and refuse to come out.

I don’t like him out and about at night while I am trying to sleep, and he’ll leave me alone if that sliding door to my closet is closed. Neurotic: perhaps. Practical: yes.

It was brought to my attention while shopping in Urban Outfitters that Lianna Kong wrote a book about all these peoples’ neurotic traits. I felt the need to contribute my bit.

Looking back at it, I wish that I had bought it…

Me? A Model?!

My mom is convinced that this is me in the Tidy Cats ad. Yep, I have a secret double life where I am a model.

I do think it is a tad ironic that I am apparently in a cat ad when I am not even allowed to have a cat. If anything this is just a sign that I should be allowed to. It is destiny. Mom, the universe is giving you a sign.

But hey, if anything I am famous. The Oscar preview issue of People Magazine…I have made my break world! Next step: a billboard in Times Square.

Apparently I am also on the cover of a Nordstrom catalog. I have not seen this so-called “me,” but I am a tad skeptical. Nordstrom is a little out of my league. But hey, maybe it is a sign that the universe wants me to spend more money shopping…

What do you think? Is this me in the picture? If so, is it a sign that I should be allowed to get a cat?