Being a bad blogger

Man, I SUCK at keeping this updated.

Here are a few lists of things I have been thinking about:

THINGS I HATE ABOUT TEXAS
cockroaches the size of a tennis ball
mosquitoes everywhere
mosquito bites
the itching that goes with mosquito bites
the swelling that goes with mosquito bites
smelling like bug spray & SPF 50
forgetting to put on bug spray
forgetting the bug spray at home

THINGS THAT ARE GOING PRETTY OK
I don’t have a dishwasher and I am doing ok at doing dishes every week!
I don’t have a washer/dryer and I am doing ok at hand washing everything I own every week!*
I have actually been going to the gym 2X a week!
I am not completely sucking at being a student!
I really like the BBQ here!
I worked** a football game and had a FIELD PASS and that was pretty okay!
I have been DRIVING in AUSTIN and that is AMAZING OKAY REALLY
I also made spaghetti last night and that was great
I have been going to happy hours with class mates and I have met some really really awesome people
I got an ENORMOUS couch and it is gray and I have yellow throw pillows and I love it.
I have been decorating my house and it is really coming together and I love my apartment so much. ❤

*minus jeans, slacks, and bedsheets, but you can't win them all.
**By worked I mean I stood on a corner and Looked Official and then went home. It was GREAT.

No, really, Texas is fantastic. And I’m not only saying that because I haven’t had a cockroach in my apartment for five whole days now. Count them. F-I-V-E. I’m sure I just jinxed it and there is now a spindly icky enormous cockroach wriggling its way into my apartment right now and that when i come home it will probably be somewhere terrible, like my bed, but whatever. I’m on a heckuva good streak right now and that is basically the best.

Classes are good. I’m in the midst of a multi-week series of Giving Presentations Every Five Minutes and that really sucks but it’s do-able… even though I am already reverting into being a Terrible Student again and I need to find a way to focus even though I feel burnt-out and braindead.

Like I mentioned earlier, this weekend I was a staff member at the UT v Baylor football game and while losing really sucked, it was fun to be on the field, watch the game happen live, and also to stand in front of Bevo the bull and wish with all my heart that I could pet his nose, just once.

ISN’T HE ADORABLE!??!?!?!

In semi-related news, I have yet to invest in any form of taxidermy while I’m here, but I still have time. I’m somehow going to get me a set of long horns even if it means I don’t get to eat for a month.

But really. Things are great. While I’m still occasionally overwhelmed by how distant everything I know is, I’m doing awesome and having a fantastic time. I’m thankful that I have Thanksgiving & Christmas break to look forward to, but in the mean time, everything’s coming up longhorns. Or roses. Or something.

settling in

I’m getting more settled. I’m getting more used to the heat and humidity and the pace and the not-knowing-people and knowing where I am (ish).

Moving here has really solidified my complete lack of directional awareness. People keep pointing North in everyday conversations and all I can do is smile and nod. It’s incredibly frustrating. I admit I’ve never devoted much effort in truly learning my directions, but even the little I can do feels lacking. I took a walk and attempted to retrace my path in my head at one point, thinking I had travelled in a zig-zag pattern, only to turn a corner and discover that I’d walked in a circle!

That has to be metaphorical, somehow.

Grad school is fantastic. I’m simultaneously enthralled by the subject matter and overwhelmed. Management and leadership skills intertwine with academic affairs and the like. I still don’t have a clear direction (ha! directionless) on where I’m going to end up, but I’m going to keep walking, even if it’s in a circle.

In the meantime, I’m trying to focus on school and not spend money on things shaped like Texas.

I miss home. I miss the social network, I miss understanding what I’m doing at work, even though I thank my lucky stars I no longer spend any time filing documents… so far!

But it’s all right. I’m getting settled.

Moving from OR to TX!

Hi guys! I’ve been here for almost an entire week and so far am doing really great! I have been very lucky to have a ton of help from friends and new acquaintances this last week.

Here’s a breakdown of the last few weeks for me:

I moved out of my first solo apartment downtown. 😥

Not pictured: sticky marshmallow-chocolate hands

I then went on a week-long beach trip with my girlfriends from high school! This was wonderful. It took me about four days to be able to relax and enjoy the fact that I had nothing to do and that was okay.  We did a lot of sitting around doing nothing, hanging out on the beach, eating roasted marshmallows, drinking, and being silly.

We climbed the Astoria tower!

I came home and immediately went on another week long trip. This time to Manteca, CA, where I met most of my boyfriend’s family and saw his nephew perform in the musical, Suessical, Jr!

Yep, that’s the guy 🙂

I finally came home to my parent’s house for a little over a week, bummed around a lot, packed, panicked, and then had a wonderful going-away party thrown by some of my dearest friends.

This is a group of them being VERY UPSET that I left

It was a really nice party. Even though I tripped in a gopher hole and had to ice my ankle for the following two days.

And then I flew to Austin, Texas! So far all of my photos are instagrams, so I apologize for that. It’s great here. I am getting more and more settled into my apartment and am acclimating to the heat. I’m still sleeping on an air mattress, but now I have a table/desk and chair, a microwave, dishes and a couple of fans! I have spent SO MUCH MONEY in the last week, it is mind boggling. But I am doing great, I think!

I’ve been to two orientations, received a free t-shirt, bought myself a longhorns shirt, and attended Gone to Texas last night.

I haven’t really met that many people so far, but I’m doing pretty good. The campus is lovely and about a 15 minute walk from my house, even if it’s like 50%+ humidity.

Austin is beautiful though. So colorful! I’m having fun slowly exploring the city! I haven’t made it to the trendiest of spots yet, but to be honest, I’m okay with that. I’ll hit up the trendy spots eventually, I’m sure.

The biggest thing about Texas I have noticed so far is that Texas is on EVERYTHING. Even the eggs.

So far, so good! I’ll be back later with more updates!

 

stagnancy

I admit, I’ve been a little stagnant on here, lately. I’m not really sure why. The initial excuse was because work got INSANE this tax season. And then I was busy with my new(ish?) boyfriend. And then I’ve been busy with moving out of my apartment. And now I’m busy with quitting my job. MY LIFE IS INTENSE, OKAY?

I think a big part of my lack of writing on here is that for the first time in awhile, I am being forced to constantly express myself to the people around me. More and more people are popping in and out of my life and wanting to say something (usually hello or goodbye) to me before I leave. And they all ask me the same questions, most of which I’m going to answer in this post.

Also I’ve been blocked on twitter at work for the last six months, which… really is where I get 90% of my material. Hopefully I can start tweeting often again soon. I really miss my twitter buddies.

So let’s try to start from scratch!

Facts about me:

My name is Brittknee, Brittneigh, Brittnooooooo. Yes, all three.
I spell my name these ways because nobody ever gets the legal spelling of my name correct anyway and also these ways are way cooler and much more me than anything else.

Yep, that’s me, but I bet you knew that.

I’m about to move from Portland, Oregon (land of hipsters, craft breweries, and rain) to Austin, Texas (land of hipsters, craft breweries, and heat).
I’m starting a graduate program at the University of Texas. When I am done, I’ll have a Masters in Educational Administration, which means that I’ll have a Masters degree to work at higher level administration in academia. I’ll hopefully eventually end up running a tutoring center, but we’ll see where I end up.
I have a graduate assistantship in my department and I start almost as soon as I get to Texas. I’m simultaneously terrified and excited.

Yep, that’s Austin.

I am only taking four suitcases and attempting to minimize my life. (So far I’ve taken six loads to Goodwill, only more are to come!) I move out of my downtown apartment tomorrow and have… significantly more than four suitcases worth of stuff. Hopefully I can make a little more headway into that in the next month.

I haven’t seen my studio in Austin yet, only a few craigslist pictures. Google Maps tells me it’s a fifteen minute walk to campus / the building I’ll be doing most of my work at, so that’s a relief! I have yet to see how I fare walking around outside in extreme heat.

This photo is almost ten years old! I’m not in it, but I was there.

Next week I am going on vacation(BABECATION) with a group of my closest girlfriends. The plan is to sit around, read romance novels out loud to each other, and eat a lot of food. We’ll be on the Oregon coast for six days- a perfect goodbye to my beloved west coast. After that, I’m off to California to meet part of my boyfriend’s family for a few days. Hopefully I’ll get to spend some quality time with my parents in the weeks following before I move.

Man you guys. This summer is already crazy and I haven’t even done any of these things yet!!

HOLY CRAP, YOU GUYS

(On one hand)

I AM ABOUT TO QUIT MY JOB… THIS THURSDAY!!!

I GO ON VACATION NEXT WEEK!!!

I WILL BE UNEMPLOYED FOR ALMOST AN ENTIRE MONTH!!!!

I’M MOVING TO AUSTIN IN 45 DAYS!!!!

I am SO ridiculously excited! I have prepped for three different graduate programs and never gotten as far as actually going. I’m getting rid of most of my possessions and moving and going to live in a new place and that is so incredibly cool. I’m thrilled to quit my job, not work, vacation, travel around, and pack for the next month.

On the other hand… This is me whenever I think about actually leaving.

And saying goodbye to the people I love (even though it’s temporary).

It’s ridiculously bittersweet. I keep feeling like I’m dreaming, you know? Like, there is no way the plans I have for next month are actually about to happen to me, rather, they must be happening to someone else. Or maybe I died? Like, awhile ago? And I’m just a ghost and I don’t know it? It’s a weird sensation to describe.

Thursday, I quit my job.
Friday, I move back into my parent’s house
Sunday, I go on vacation.
Tuesday after, I go meet my boyfriend’s family.

August 20, I land in Austin.

bohemian addictions and other things

This post is going to be ridiculous. I’m ridiculous.

All I have been doing lately is playing doge 2048. It’s devouring my life. I dream of doges with googly eyes circling my head and I basically am incapable of coherent thought. Am I addicted? Maybe. I keep thinking about deleting the game so I can move on with my life but I don’t wannaaaaa.

Which probably means I have a problem.

The weather is wonderful here. Warm but not too hot. I need to get used to perpetual heat. And torrential heat. Does torrential work when you’re describing hot things? I’m using it anyway. Austin is rumored to be incredibly hot. Devastatingly hot. Terrifyingly hot? I’m not sure. And I’m not sure how I’ll deal with it when I get there, but I’m going. I bought my one-way ticket to Austin about a week ago, and the reality of my move is starting to set in.

Guys. GUYS. I’m going to grad school. It really finally feels like it’s happening. IT’S HAPPENING~!~!~!!!

This is my third round of researching graduate degrees and programs and working on pre-reqs and looking at schools and worrying about the cost and holy shit, I’m finally doing it. I have an assistantship, I have a plane ticket, and I have three suitcases to pack full of stuff.

Oh yeah, I’m flying in broke and also without almost anything.. Whatever. I guess it’ll be a great story to someday tell the kids, amirite?

In the midst of panicking and attempting to cull my closet (while accidentally buying a few more items of clothing I don’t need this weekend), I have become addicted to pinterest and looking at photos of women in long skirts with flowers braided in their hair.
Am I finally caving and admitting I love bohemian style? I’m daydreaming of a multicolored room with colors and patterns and tassels and hanging lanterns where I can lie around and finally eat bonbons in the luxury I deserve. Maybe I’ll try to do a poor-woman’s bohemian lair in wherever I eventually end up in Austin.

I’ll have to pack some tassels, I guess.

pop quiz

• What the heck have you been up to lately?
  Man, I don’t even have any idea. In February I had LASIK surgery, which was amazing and super cool and if you’re thinking about doing it you should go do it right now, what are you waiting for. In March I was devoured by tax season, in April I was still being chewed up by tax season, and now work has slowed down to a crawl that reminds me how frustrating I find having a job that goes from 0 to 60 to 0 in less than a three week span.



• What have you been buying lately?
  Lipstick. So much lipstick. I have too many lipsticks and I want to buy more. Someone, give me more money so I can buy another purple or black lipstick.
• What did you do this weekend?
  This weekend I went to my parent’s house and cleaned out the remainders of my childhood bedroom, attempting to create some space for the books and trinkets I’ll be leaving behind when I move. And then I came home and cleaned my apartment. I think tonight warrants my fourth closet cleanout in as many weeks. Yeah, I’m going kind of slow, but right now I have a little time to shed excess in slow motion.
• Are you REALLY moving to Texas?
  YES YES YES I AM MOVING TO TEXAS I AM QUITTING MY JOB AND I AM MOVING OUT OF MY APARTMENT IN JULY AND AAAAHHHHH
• When are you moving to Texas?
  Oh man I have no idea, don’t ask me D: D:



• What have you been reading? I just finished reading Jeff Smith’s Bone graphic novels and those were wonderful! I’m still slowly working through my Harry Potter re-read, currently about 1/3 of the way through book number 5. I took a break to read the first two books in Brandon Sanderson’s The Stormlight Archive and hoooly cow those are epic and awesome and they almost never end. Can’t wait for the rest of the series, even though I have at least another year to wait for book 3. Not sure what’s next, though I have many many suggestions.
• Anything else?
  Uhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhh no, nothing really to share. Hopefully now that I’m bored at work 89% of the time I’ll update a little bit more.

well I guess I should update.

GUYS

I GOT INTO GRAD SCHOOL

But that means I have to move to Texas.

IN the meantime, I have housing to find, an apartment to downsize, jobs to get, and life to live. I’m excited to leave the Pacific Northwest but also terrified of moving and living in a new place, even though I’m also reaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaally looking forward to it.

It’s all terrifying and awesome! Work has been crazy lately and I just haven’t had much to talk about. Well, I have, but every blogger knows the blank slate feeling.

My oh My

What an insane last four weeks. I am almost unsure how I came out of them. Or if I even did? Am I even here?

I completed and turned in my grad school applications almost a full week ago. Two weeks before that, I actually visited the campus of the University of Texas, basked in the 70 degree heat and ate about three gallons of Amy’s ice cream.

Austin is a beautiful city, and my vacation there over Thanksgiving weekend gave me a fantastic break and escape from the daily grind.

Me and Darcy, who lives in Austin and that’s not fair, it’s too far away

It’s a total relief to be done and done and done with graduate applications for now. Hopefully I’ll find out soon if I’m staying in Portland, or packing up and somehow moving into the middle of the country.

For now, it’s nice to just relax, and do whatever I want.