Christmas Happenings

My mom sent me a box of decorations for my apartment. I never actually got a tree, and I have nothing tree like in or around my house. Now, many of my neighbors have put their strands of light out on their porch handrails and/or back decks. I decided that would not put my house in the Christmas spirit at all, so I decorated my living room lamp in place of a Christmas tree. I love it.


As far as my Christmas goes, it was entirely uneventful. I live in a college town, so the majority of our population left on December 17th to go home and celebrate with their families. Living over 2,000 miles away and being a starving college student, I thought it better to stick around and work instead. My boyfrind, my neighbors, and all of my friends have left for better things.

The day was not entirely lost. After cleaning the last of the mess in the kitchen left by my neighbors, my very messy yet lovable neighbors, I made the best cup of hot cocoa on the planet. I am running on limited resources with a time limit, because I am trying to use the food my neighbors left before it expires. I whipped the rest of the half-and-half left from their coffee, heated up the last of the milk in the fridge, mixed in both chocolate bars and powdered mix, blended in a few sprigs of fresh mint, added a dollop of whipped cream, and a small stream of chocolate syrup on top for effect. It was very rich, but incredibly delicious.



I spent the rest of the day baking a homemade feast fit for the greatest royalty. Most of my time was used in making a loaf of homemade white bread, which is worth the while. After getting that set up and ready to rise, I made a beef pot pie with whatever was left in the fridge: potatoes, carrots, celery, garlic, peas, and corn. It was so incredibly hearty, andd the crust turned out absolutely perfect. A few quick sides while those two baked: applesauce and stuffing. It was the best meal I have eaten in a while.



It was a lot of work for a single person meal, but I was so very pleased with it. I ate until I couldn't move. I called a few of my family members, and a few of them called me. I bragged about my resourceful cooking, and we chatted about life on opposite sides of the country. I had a tame Christmas, but it has been a relaxing holiday.

They Physics Department

For some reason, Penn State Physics hates everyone. They make everything difficult, complicated, and unreasonably strict. As demonstrated by the photo above, they even build stairs in the most ridiculous patterns. What happened to the stairs that stuck to the walls the entire way down?

With two weeks left in the semester, I am really feeling the pressure. I have an exam tonight, and I am not entirely positive what it will cover. I will be working on the practice exam all day, so I should be able to do at least part of it.

I don't study enough. I should really sit down with my textbooks more often. Sure, every single one of my classes has required homework, but I don't learn as much from that as I feel I should be learning for exams and things.

I guess I'm just feeling really frustrated, not having internet off campus. My laptop is broken, and Kalen just told me this is a problem that Toshiba will have to fix, and I will probably need to send it back to the factory. I hate staying on campus after classes, because I am already pushing 10 hours of working at that point, and I would really like to cuddle up in my bed at night and study in the comfort of my own room, with music blaring, the television going, food on the stove, and immediate access to the bathroom.

I feel hungry all the time, because, like I said, I stay at school for 10 hours at a time. If I eat breakfast in the morning, I still won't get dinner for another 11-13 hours, depending on how long the bus ride takes, and whether I go home directly after classes. I would love to carry a lunch with me, but my backpack already weighs as much as I, and I am most positive that ramen noodles or cereal would not travel well. That's pretty much all the food I have left at this point, because I never have time to go shopping.

I am ready for the end of the semester.