Some things:

Since I last posted, some awesome things happened!

(1) I went on a trip to Chicago with my mom! I had lots of fun, ate some awesome cupcakes and macarons, and shopped like it was my job.
(2) I turned 30! I find it hard to believe, but it's true... My twenties are over, and I guess I'm ok with that.
(3) I finished my first semester of library school with a 4.0! I worked harder than I ever had, and I am so grateful for those A's!

I'm going to try to blog a lot more now that I have a little bit of time off from school. There are lots of things that I want to catch up on: reading, crafting, blogging, relaxing!

Seriously. One of those days.

You know those days where EVERYTHING goes wrong? Welcome to my Wednesday. I won't bore you with all the little details, but just know that my day at work was totally ridiculous (broken safe, no change to give customers, super busy, I spilled a million Frappuccinos and mixed up a hundred drinks, and one of my co-workers was pretty mean to me ALL DAY for no good reason), and I am so so so super glad to be home. And to have the next two days off.

What will I do on my days off?

(1) Read! I have been on a major reading kick lately. I've been tracking it all on my Goodreads page... Let's be friends!

(2) Homework. I have a few projects that I need to attack. Plus, my laptop died over the weekend, so I lost a lot of the work that I'd already completed. Which means that I've really got some catching up to do.
(3) Sleep.

Only 29 days left...

It's July 1st, which means that my 30th birthday is only 29 days away. I guess it's time for me to update my list of things to do before I turn 30!


Here's the list again, as it was when I posted it in my very first blog entry:


Things To Do Before 30
1. Lose weight
2. Start a blog
3. Post something every single day 
4. Get accepted into Library School
5. Start a new Etsy shop to sell vintage stuff
6. Learn to knit on circular needles
7. Learn some basic CSS
8. Get some basic Photoshop skills
9. Go on a fun weekend trip


So, let's see where we are today...


1. Lose weight: This one is still in progress. Since May 2010, I have lost 52 pounds. I could honestly stay where I am now and feel fine, but I would really love to lose at least another 40 pounds. 


2. Start a blog. Done!


3. Post something every single day: Failure on this one! Oh well.


4. Get accepted into Library School: Done! I'm actually almost done with my first semester!


5. Start a new Etsy shop to sell vintage stuff: Haven't done this yet. Due to my workload & library school, I've actually had to put my regular Etsy shop on vacation. 


6. Learn to knit on circular needles: I'm going to do this!


7. Learn some basic CSS: I have been working on this one. I will definitely be able to cross it off once my birthday comes around.


8. Get some basic Photoshop skills: I've been using GIMP, because I'm cheap... But I've picked up some minor skillz, I think!


9. Go on a fun weekend trip: This one will be done once my birthday rolls around. I've planned a five day birthday party for myself in Chicago with my mom, sister, aunts, and nieces. I'm SO EXCITED for it!


Even though I haven't gotten super far on my list, and there's only 29 days left, I still feel pretty good about all the things I have accomplished this year. I graduated college, started grad school, lost a bunch of weight, started getting healthy, and have really pushed hard to live more of the life I'd like to live. I'm going to come up with 31 things to do before I turn 31, too! 

Penguin rides!, a photo by hello jenny on Flickr.

I saw this cute little penguin while I was taking the dog for a walk earlier. It really stuck out in the middle of the park, as it was the only toy of it's kind, all alone. I'm afraid it is probably going to get pulled out soon to make way for newer playground equipment. I hate how that happens.

I actually read a book for fun!

What I'm reading..., a photo by hello jenny on Flickr.

So, I have been so ridiculously busy lately. Library school = tons of work, all the time, and I am starting to pick up lots of hours at the 'Bux. It seemed like my days of pleasure reading were over, at least for the near future. Last weekend, I went with my mom to Target, and on a whim, I bought a copy of Shiver. I'd heard of the book, but I didn't really think it was something I would be into. My plan was to save it until August, when I will have a few weeks off from school, but on Sunday night, I had a little spare time before bed. I read the first few chapters, and I was hooked. Even though I had to work Monday afternoon, I was able to finish it within 24 hours.

I never really thought I'd be interested in a werewolf story, but this book was a lot different from what I expected. I really enjoy Stiefvater's writing style, and while initially I didn't think that dual narrators could work, it actually worked REALLY well.

What I found especially awesome was the fact that Grace was not some helpless baby, as so many of the female protagonists seem to be in paranormal romancey YA books lately. I mean, I'm not totally hatin'... I love fluff, I thoroughly enjoyed the Twilight books (for what they were; it's not like I thought they were amazing literature or anything). But I think it is important for girls to read about girls who can actually take care of themselves, and don't need to be saved. In fact, there was definitely some role reversal in this book, in terms of who saved who.

I could talk a lot more about this book, but I just got home with Linger! I need to quickly do some homework so that I won't have to feel guilty for staying up late to read.

Caturday

Caturday, a photo by hello jenny on Flickr.

No time to write a real post... I have to be at work at 7 am tomorrow, so I need to go to sleep. I have to finish up a blog post for a group project as well.

Tomorrow is Father's Day, a pretty depressing holiday for those of us who have lost our fathers... I'm sure it will get better the more time that passes, but now, only a year later, it's still pretty sad. Usually the sadness only comes through when I hear of someone's dad being sick, or when someone dies. Or maybe if I hear Steely Dan (he was a fan) on the radio. My dad wasn't a perfect guy, and we didn't even always get along. But he was my dad. And it is really hard to accept that I am never ever going to get the chance to see him or talk to him again.

So I am just going to hope that we don't get a lot of people taking their dads out for coffee at my store tomorrow. And that I don't have to help too many people who want to buy a present for their dad. Maybe it won't be too bad, and I'll just be distracted by all the things I have going on.

I didn't intend to write out this bummer post, but I guess it's been on my mind. :(

Best Coast + Design

Recently, I've become totally obsessed with Amazon's MP3 Store and the Amazon Cloud Player. $5 albums are my jam, and not having to fill up my laptop's hard drive with MP3s is pretty awesome.

The album I've been listening to the most lately is Best Coast's Crazy For You. It is amazing, and I keep listening to it over and over. It has helped me through a monster of a Microsoft Access assignment, a bunch of reading, and a few webdesign projects. Here's one of my favorite jams:



On the webdesign tip, can I just say how hard it is for me to design things that are not cutesy? Cute is my default. Unfortunately, cute is not really appropriate for library school group blogs. :(  I think I was able to come up with some nice, adult designs, but it took me so much longer than it would to design a personal blog. Oh well.

In other news: I got a haircut today! Nothing exciting, just a trim and some bangs. I also heard back from a friend who gave me the good news that I'll be able to start volunteering at her library very soon! I'm super excited about it; she's a youth services librarian, and I am going to be helping in her department. Youth services is the area that I am interested in, so I can't wait!