The New Faces of J-School, Oh Yeah!

An ad in the New York Post yesterday.

This Guy is a Genius

There is no better way to get me to donate a WHOLE DOLLAR than by having a kitten as your mascot. It helped that when I bent to pet her, she climbed into my lap and purred. SO sweet.

The Apartment

Sorry it took me so long to get photos up. Here are some views of our place. . . Click on them for a closer look.

Studio:

Bathroom:

Nate's Room:

Guest Room:

Hallway Leading to (clockwise from bottom left) Linen Closet, Bathroom, Studio, Nate's Room, and Guest Room: Living Room looking toward the hallway to the front door:

Living Room looking toward the back of the apartment (and brick wall out the window):

Front Hallway looking toward door:

Kitchen:My Room:

A Funny

This is one of the most hysterical things I have seen in a long long time. Dog owners especially will enjoy it.

Feeding Time

The five monsters, a.k.a. the Thunder Cat Army.

Update

My brother seems to be doing ok, and I have taken up a collection to get him a new computer since he lost a brand-new one in the fire. It's likely that most of you who read this blog have gotten the email. (If you didn't, just let me know.) Thanks so, so much to those of you who have already donated. We are eternally grateful for your generosity and support.

Mitch is now looking for places to live in Troy so he can be closer to school. If anyone in the area knows of anything available, please let me know.

Fire

My brother's house burned down today. He and his girlfriend and his dog got out. Everything is lost. More later when I can see straight.

3 . . . 2 . . . 1 . . .

Holy shit, I'm 28.

Shmutzy

This made me giggle.

Deluge of Fall Birthdays

Sept. 25: Happy birthday NATE!!!!
Oct. 10: Happy birthday MOM!!!!!!
Oct. 25: Happy birthday ROBIN!!!!!
Oct. 28: Happy 30th birthday MIKE!!!!!
Nov. 4: Happy birthday KATHY!!!!!
Nov. 6: Happy birthday KEN!!!!
Nov. 9: Happy birthday ME!!!!
Nov. 15: Happy birthday HEATHER!!!!

alright, now everyone stop getting older. ready? ok... go!

Today's Assignment

Abi, Erin and I are about to walk the half-block to Port Authority to profile it for our afternoon drill. Upon hearing about our assignment, Dana says, "Ew.. You guys have to go inhale dried piss??"

Port Authority, here we come.

Sometimes Lectures Just Need to END

Over-read on my classmate Steve's computer during lecture today (which, by the way, is closing in on three hours right about now):

"Dear Sister,
I am in class and I want to die."

Gotta love laptops--for visual eavesdropping alone. ;-)

Our Humble Abode

Nate's selling a keyboard on Craigslist and a girl came to look at it this evening. She was pleasant and took her time playing the keyboard in the foyer while Nate and I chatted in the kitchen. She talked to Nate for a minute about the instrument and then proceeded to gush about our apartment. Among other things, she said, "I've never seen an apartment this put together in New York." We thought that was cute, and it made us feel even more proud of our very cool apartment.

Oh the Trauma

Augh. We had a vet emergency today. An expensive one. So yeah we have five cats (I know, I know) and the (three) boys fight once in a while. We usually let them duke it out, our logic being that maybe one day they'll realize just how silly they've been putting so much energy into being enemies and they'll start loving each other, as cats should. Well. Apparently Jonah was bitten on his back by one of the evil boys the other day and last night, Nate discovered that a huge lump had developed in the area of the wound. After a bit of Internet research I discover that it's an abscess, and that yeah, we should probably go to the vet (DAMNIT). So we go to a vet's office in Park Slope, one that Nate researched out when he got a couple of his cats' shots updated, and learn from our vet that the abscess has to be lanced. So lance it they did and poor Jonah had to be drained. Poor thing. He was so terrified and in so much pain that he peed in the cat carrier on the way home, so Nate tried his best to clean him up in the tub before we gave him his first round of pain meds and antibiotics. This was extremely difficult, you know, what with the large gaping wound that we weren't supposed to touch on his back. We were instructed to place him in solitary confinement for a few days, so he's in the guest room with his own litter, food, and bed. I feel awful for Jonah, but ohmygod, what a pain in the ass.Jonah in his sickbed. The wound is on the other side. Believe me, you don't want to see it.

City Livin' 2

I just figured it out. The kids are rollerskating up there. I am so serious. Rollerskating! Or rollerblading, whatever it is they do these days. You've GOT to be kidding me.

City Livin'

A very nice family moved into the apartment directly above us about three weeks ago. Until then the apartment had been blissfully empty, and we enjoyed the uninterrupted silence for a good month and a half. The new family has three very cute, very bouncy children. They bounce a lot. Like, all evening long sometimes. And apparently the family rearranges their furniture almost every evening as well. At least, that's what it sounds like. All of a sudden something will roll from one side of my ceiling to the other. I don't know quite what to do about it. All I know is that I'm on deadline. And they're moving furniture. Again.

Post-script: By the way--though really annoying, mostly because I have to write right now--this isn't as bad as it was in my bedroom in Albany. I'm sure some of you remember me telling you about the morning when the guy who lived upstairs from me there threw a chair through the window, which was located directly above my bed, at about 4:30 AM. That was fun.

Politics as Usual

Mike shows me a Web site that is designed to help you choose who you're going to vote for.

Me: it tells me i should vote for kucinich
Me: wasn't expecting that
Me: 95.92%
Mike: uh oh. you better change your mind to start better suiting the band wagon
Me: oh? which bandwagon am i supposedly on?
Mike: knowing you? well. i'd say obama for you....let's see...
Mike: young?
Mike: yes
Mike: female?
Mike: yes
Mike: jewish?
Mike: yes
Mike: NYC?
Mike: yes
Mike: works next to the times? mouth piece of the left?
Mike: yes
Me: lol
Mike: that's an obama supporter.

Midterms DONE

Ugh let's not do that again soon, shall we?

I got some awesome feedback from school peeps (like professors and such) tonight, and I am riding high. That is, until I pass out. Which will be in 3... 2... 1.

Oh God

Two midterms tomorrow. HELP!

Week in Review

The week, in highlights:

--Wednesday, I went on a ride-along with a couple of NYPD cops to check out what they do every day (hence the bulletproof vest a couple posts down). I went to Precinct 107, which is in Queens, where apparently they don't have cabs. I had a mile-and-a-half walk (run) from the subway stop. Other then that, it was fun--I got paired with a couple of young cops who were very sweet and chatted openly about the force and about public perception of policepeeps. Very informational.
--Wednesday night I attended Stephen Colbert's reading/signing of his book, I Am America (and So Can You) at the Union Square Barnes & Noble. The guy is good.
--Yesterday, I attended a study session for the Legal & Ethics midterm that's looming in my immediate future. AKA Monday. I am, in a word, terrified. Also Monday: Research Methods midterm. Here's hoping I survive the day.
--This morning in Interactive, we made our first audio slideshows public, and got our first video assignments. We made mini-docs about making PB sandwiches as practice. I have to say--so far, video is seeming like a lot more fun than straight audio. We'll see.