A Nightingale In A Golden Cage

So....break was lovely. It was just the recess I needed from the rushed atmosphere of the college life.

And how did I spend Christmas Eve/Day? Huddle over my computer in my room, collecting album art, playing with Facebook apps, and attempting to improve my win percentage on Minesweeper. I started at 30% and got to 32% at one point after a huge win streak. Then I lost one game and it went back down to 31% and it's been stuck there ever since. -_-   <--- Seriously, MLIA, right?

Anywho, so aside from the unfortunate, unplanned, and mostly unexpected drama that occurred this break, I would call it, in a word, "perfect." I hung out with people that I'm super close to and had some great adventures (one including tantalizing ankle skin and depth of field, apparently - oh, and a trip to Guitar Center in San Marcos, as well).

I've discovered a love for vinyl and record players, all thanks to one particular evening with a group of amazing individuals. And so, when Angie and I went a-hunting for treasures in various thrift shops, I snatched up a book of Bing Crosby vinyl, Jimmie Noon and his clarinetists, something else I can't remember, and a book of jazz/blues including some classics from the Glenn Miller orchestra and Irving Berling, etc, etc. Needless to say, those purchases had me on a high for the rest of the day - and they still do. My mother, stunned by the fact that I was so happy, told me that when I get an apartment next year, she would buy me a record player and hand over all her records, which is even more exciting because those include the coveted Michael Jackson "Thriller" album, along with some Abba, Rolling Stones, Beatles, and many more, including a recording of a Disney Christmas Carol on vinyl that we used to play every holiday season when I was a little girl. Needless to say, I'm overjoyed.

The bad part about break? The unnecessary and, as aforementioned, unfortunate, unplanned, and mostly unexpected drama. Oh, and almost having to go to the ER. Why, you wonder? (Yeah, right. Like anyone reads this XD) Because I've been having breathing problems at random intervals. My chest just gets tight and it becomes difficult - and a few times painful - to breathe. My mother insisted that I go to the ER if it continued, but thankfully it went away.

I spent New Years' Eve with some amazing people that I love. We rang in the new year by playing Apples to Apples and Trivial Pursuit, minus the Pursuit part. So, essentially, just the trivia. Aren't we the weirdest bunch of nerds ever? Anywho, I've decided that I'd like to spend one New Year in each of the following cities before I die: Paris, France (just to see the sparkly Eiffel Tower); Moscow, Russia; London (to see fireworks and the Eye); New York City (though not from the ground. can't imagine being stuck around so many people. ugh.); and several others that I don't feel like typing out. I love seeing new places.

That said, I hate travelling. Checking in and going through security? The biggest hassels in the history of life. Ok, maybe that's an exaggeration, but you can't deny that it's a hassel to fly. Unless you're one of those people who has somehow mastered the art of stuffing all your belongings into a tiny carry-on bag, which allows you to breeze through the check-in process and bypass long lines. I envy those people. Another reason I hate travelling? Motion sickness. And you're up so high in the air. Ew. I looked out the window and saw snow-covered mountains as we were coming into the Sacramento region and I just about balked at how high up we were. Christina + heights = possible panic attack. Thankfully, that didn't happen....I had Cobra Starship, Natasha Beddingfield, Lady GaGa, and other various artists to distract my traitorous imagination...

And now I'm staying with friends from church for the evening since the residence halls don't open til tomorrow. Needless to say, I feel torn between two places that I've grown to love. It's like I have two homes in two different worlds and I want so badly to squish them together and somehow reconcile my love for both of them, but unfortunately, that's not how it works. Oh well.

Oh hey....Greek pizza for dinner! First new experience of the new year! :)

Oh, and did I mention that today is a palindrome? 01/02/2010 :)  Doesn't that just make you smile?

Cheers, all.