"I'm leavin' on a jet plane..."

The time has come, the walrus said...I'm goin' to Brazil! I'm packed, my bills are paid in advance, I've received my grant money, I have books to read, my research is ready to go, tuition is paid, my Portuguese is rather good and I'm starting to get butterflies. We fly tomorrow night from Pittsburgh and should arrive in Rio de Janeiro the following morning.I would leave everyone an entry on the day of, but I know Felipe and I are going to be crazy busy right up until the flight. We've been running like headless chickens for the last few days to buy presents, pack, clean house and just generally get our lives in order. I'm day-dreamy about the trip now...wondering how everything will look, sound and smell. I've given my whole family and many friends a link to my blog so they can tune in to my adventures. Right now, I'm dead tired and rather hungry. I just want to go to sleep and magically wake up in Brazil without battling my way through O'Hare and the various other lay-overs we have; not to mention customs :( In any case, by the time most of you read this, the trip will have officially begun!! Until next time...

The ants go marching one by one, hurrah! hurrah!

The annual invasion has begun: primary objective-- my kitchen. Every time I set up those little ant traps, for some crazy reason, I get the song "The ants go marching" stuck in my head. I hesitate to tell the world these kinds of things lest they think "Hmm...this is the kind of grad student that's teaching my child??". Frighteningly enough, yes. Back to the ants...I have lived in my apartment for about 5 years now and the same thing happens every year at about this time. My kitchen becomes the hatching habitat for about a million ants; too bad they aren't the cute Mexican variety like the above picture, hehe. I suppose this is the curse I am given for living on the ground floor of my building. If I am vigilant enough as the designated Orkin-woman, the wave should subside in about a week or so.

In other news, I leave the country in 8 days!! Agh! I'm not ready yet! Well, technically I am but, it never feels that way. I'm the kind of person that always walks out of the house feeling as though they've forgotten something--- imagine that person faced with international travel as opposed to driving 5 miles to the grocery store. I'm turning into a maluca. Getting everything in place for research is the biggest mental hurdle for me. As Dr. Jacobs said, "Niki, you're OUT HERE and you need to be in here." I just like way too many topics and I get intellectually passionate about things too easily. Plus, I love to write so, 100 pages seems like cake but, in reality, it always takes longer than anticipated; not counting the translation I'll have to do. Anyway, I need to get focused and then relax...Felipe keeps telling me to breathe...though, breathing isn't the thing I forget-- it's sleeping, eating, bathroom breaks, etc :(

The Picto-Personality Test You are a person who is very ambitious, and constantly thinking of ways to further your own goals. When alone, you like to relax and dream about the future. You are romantic, and when you are with your partner you like to woo them with your imagination. In the future you will be prosperous, wise and healthy.

Click here to Take This Test Quiz Galaxy

Belly Laughs and Guerilla Tactics

A big thanks to my girl Amy for sending me this link-- it definitely gave me a good laugh for the day-- Go 'Eers!!

WVU Sprint Commercial

On a much darker note, in São Paulo, Brazil, gangs have taken to the streets and are practically waging a war against the police force. It all begin as a result of a new piece of legislation aimed at preventing a prison uprising. Gang members that were incarcerated were opposed to it and asked fellow members on the outside to act in retaliation. As always, it is a more complex situation that what meets the eye. This NY Times article explains it much better than I can:

5 Days of Violence in São Paulo leaves 115 Dead Before Subsiding

I'm just glad Felipe and I are going to Rio de Janeiro, which is a significant distance away. Hopefully, things will be under control by the time we land in Brazil; I hope even more that my Mom won't find out about all this-- she'd be really worried, even though it isn't necessary. Below is a link to a Brazilian newspaper, in case anyone knows Portuguese and wants "the rest of the story".... only about 11 days left...

O Jornal do Brasil

Photo Finish

I have so many events to catch up with, I thought I would just post some snap-shots-- since a picture is worth 1,000 words, or so they say. First of all, I met with my high school buddy, Marian the other day at Panera. It was a lot of fun catching up and I'm happy to report that she is still the funny, sweet person that was oh-so-good-a-friend back then. Here's our "auto-portrait"; she looks cute but I look rather bedraggled.

Next, there are a few photos from a dinner that Felipe and I attended at the house of Lupita (my surrogate Venezuelan mother). I love the shot of me and the three guys--I'm like everyone's little sister with these guys. How nice is the shot of the whole group? Que guapo, no?! Looks like we planned it.

The last one is just me (fresh off the highway) at my parent's house with my girl Kitty.

In the summertime, de-de-de-de-de

My parents rock. They are always thinking how to give back all that we've been given, which I really admire. Saturday morning, we went to Pennsylvania to a fishing competition for kids. It's something that my brother and I did every year when we were little (where I beat ALL the boys' butts every year) so, it was fun to go back and see all the kids. In memory of my grandfather who was the ultimate outdoorsman, my parents gave away fishing rods and gear to some of the kids who seemed really enthusiastic about fishing. We took pictures of the kids, got their names and I wrote up an article that was recently submitted to a local newspaper. Most of the participants were below the age of 8 so, needless to say, they were all so adorable I just wanted to take them home with us. I wish I could post the pictures on this blog but, I don't think the parents would appreciate that. In any case, it was very sweet to see the kids get SO excited over "winning" the gear. Just makes you go "awwwww".

Today, I READ whatever the hell I wanted, which doesn't sound like much but it was great for me. I just got my water bottle and my shades and sat out on my parent's deck all day long with my book. I seriously didn't have time to read more than about 3 books for pleasure for the entire Spring semester. I plan to make up for lost time this summer. I have a stack on my coffee table in Morgantown just calling my name. Some people are just not reading people---which makes me very sorry for them. Tomorrow, I look forward to meeting with an old girlfriend from high school that I haven't seen since graduation; then, it's back to Motown to be with my honey.

Going home

Last night was a blast! I organized a Ladies Night with a group of about 10 of my craziest girlfriends. We went to dinner, had a few drinks and then went dancing. If we had been a bit less tired, it would have transitioned into a night of hard-core karaoke. Alas, everyone had something important to do today so, we had to wrap it up at 1am. I only wish that going out didn't mean reeeeeking of smoke when you return home. There aren't any pictures of last night...which is probably for the best...hehe ;)

Anyway, I am now packing up to return home for the weekend for Mother's Day and my Dad's birthday. I love my little house and my parents are awesome. It's always nice to have someone cook for you, fix your car, and force a fistful of money on you as you leave. How can I resist? Plus, it will give me a chance to see my extended family as well, which is always an adventure! (This is actually my house ---->)

Cleaning house

Well, I'm very proud of myself. I've cleaned my apartment from top to bottom and I'm not even moving out! It really needed it--- it was really dusty and we even had cobwebs in the corners of the living room. I'm usually good about keeping things clean, but this first year of graduate school had me running all the time. Next year will be about the same, maybe more so. My coordinator wants me to do either the department webpage or the annual newsletter. I'm up for either one, really. I love technology and I love writing too. We'll see, I guess; she said I seem a bit over-extended already so it might just go to someone else.

In any case, I feel so much better now that the apartment is clean. It's also like a psychological cleansing of the past year-- getting all the useless cobwebs out of my brain. I also gave away two trashbags filled with clothing to Goodwill and one filled with shoes which gives me much less clutter in my closet. My roommate asked me if I just wanted to have a yardsale but I HATE yardsales and the trashy rednecks who frequent them. That was a big NO. To me, it's just dumpster-diving with an exchange of a few bucks. Why would anyone buy someone else's trash??? I guess I just don't get it or I've never been that desperate. So, I'm now enjoying my clean house, my spacious closet, and the mountain of good books I've been meaning to read all semester. Ahh...I love summer! 19 days 'til take-off!

I'M DONE!!! Time to party...

This was a really fun night...though how it ended is a little fuzzy--sangria is heavy stuff when made right. I'm SOOOO happy to be done, finally. Now I can completely concentrate on Brazil. I'm starting to get excited. It's funny, though, it still doesn't seem quite real. It probably won't until I actually board the plane. Only 21 days left!!!!

Stupid Girls

Pink- Stupid Girls or, if that doesn't work, Pink-Stupid Girls or maybe Pink- Stupid Girls

I LOVE, LOVE, LOVE this video. She says exactly what I think. Watching it has been a nice brain-break while I grade final exams...

Random stuff for a random day

Your Sexy Brazilian Name is:

Luciana Ambrosio

What's" Your Sexy Brazilian Name?

Just had to post this Brazilian name quiz...found it rather amusing. I'm just taking a break from writing endless papers about "deconstructionist theory" and "literary musicality"--arg. Received this photo from my girls "The Annas" from a cook-out that Felipe and I attended at their house last week. Thought it was nice so, I'm sharing it...they're so cute.

Well, I think that's all for now. Gotta get back to work since the swelling in my arms has now subsided....only 29 days to go!! :)