soundtrak: kanye west + jamie foxx: gold digger

by the time T and i went to sleep (4 in the morning), kanye's album came out. i didn't feel comfortable downloading the whole album; i need to hear some of it first. still haven't downloaded esthero's new album. playing gta: san andreas made me reminice about the r&b and alt. rock of the 90s. those were the days. remember that song from bo.bby brown on the ghostb,uster's soundtrack? al and i were humming it all weekend. there's this old daft punk track 'musique' that i want. it's one one of their old singles, that i ordered, but i got the wrong single (i didn't think that 1996 was 'old'... *sigh*); it's on the 'da funk' single, but then there is also a single with all 'da funk' tracks. i don't know why they never released it on 'homework', but 'musique' is a good track. if you have it (both versions), let a sista know. i'm still trying to order the right single though.

anyways, new playlist up. i don't usually talk about the music that i upload and i'm not going to start today. it's just stuff i listen to. also, new color up today. i don't know if i like it yet... might change it. i need new pictures too. blah.

more later.

peace.

soundtrak: coldplay: swallowed in the sea

back to school list:

- so i went to happy hour to see jacks goodbye. she explained the whole situation; it was just something else she wanted. as long as she's happy. but i'm gonna miss her.
- i was talking to Y this week; we both got sick around the same time and traced it back to the hooka (he inhaled, i didn't go near it).
- i went to dinner with B and Y thursday, being that i was bored and B had come back from europe (and with gifts!). B showed pictures and gave us our gifts. i got a pack of playing cards with manneken-pis. classy. i don't know; that evening was an off day for me. i just all over the place. i have resigned to myself that this would be the last time going out with B and Y. i overloaded this summer; i need to purge this school year.
- talking about Bs, i got an email from the new B (who i just have to give a new nom). just finished taking the mc.ats and he's going to india for 4 months. and this is me trying not to be bitter.
- i'm still trying to see if classes start on monday or wednesday; i still don't know.
- on the rotations front, i still don't have one, but i'm getting alot of people to help me. meeting with the other director of my program on wednesday morning and she's going to indroduce me to some people. this has got to work out.
- one of my classes got cancelled last week, so now i'm looking for two classes that i can get into. i only have two classes now. if i don't get into any more classes, it'll be ok. the communting back and forth from my future rotation and school is bad enough already.

peace.

soundtrak: ryan adams: wonderwall

wednesday's list:

- i was sick at the beginning of this week, then mysteriously, my illness disappeared. i want to say allergies, but i don't have allergies.
- i don't know why i'm so enthralled with the new movie: the exor.cism of em.ily rose. i really do believe that she was possessed. demons are for real and should not be messed around with. with that thought, i don't think i'll be seeing that movie anytime soon.
- the mosquitoes love my sweet, sweet blood. i'm covered in bites. yay.
- i just found out that jacks, one of the girls in my general program at school is leaving. i'm shocked because she just started and i'm not really sure why, but i know alot of the rearrangements at the admin. level didn't really agree with everyone. dag. she was like the best friend that i could of had, ya know? not that we won't be friends because she's moving away, but just that, she's not going to be there next week. that sucks. she's a very intelligent (way above par if you ask me) woman and i know she'll go gun-ho with any challenge that comes her way. man, who will i commiserate with in biostats this fall?
- so, i'm not going to make this a big thing. i went to the hospital friday night saturday morning, about an hour after my last entry. my disability was flaring up to the point that i couldn't sleep and i started to worry. they gave me pills; i'm fine. i only got three hours of sleep, which so used to work in college, but apparently, i'm older, thus i was dead on my feet. and i had to sing for the whole service. ugh!
- i did it. so should you.
- i haven't talked to T in awhile. it's like he can sense everytime i think he's a dork, cos he'll call and just do something sweet (like, care...). been mostly talking to high school friends this summer than college friends, so i'm trying to call them all in this last week.
- i was watching 'i love the 90s' the other day with the brothers. oh gosh, am i that old already? i can't be. i remember all that stuff like yesterday, while timon vaguely remembers. thanks vh.1, for making me feel old.
- updating radio.blog; any suggestions (as in themes)?

peace.

soundtrak: silence (sometimes you need that, ya know?)

tgif list

- my meeting with dr. c went really well today. he was friendly and laid-back. usually, most of the doctors are, but you never know who you're going to deal with. he was like, "come chill in my office." we discussed my problems and issues and he assured me that i have been doing the right things (all these months...), so i felt a little bit better about that. we came up with a game plan (structure! what i needed all along!) that will hopefully score me a win. science, despite its supposed technicality, is all about luck. somebody once said that to win the nobel prize (in science), you had to work hard and to have luck. you can work your *ss off, but sometimes all it takes is that 'mistake in the protocol' to make you world renown. i can say that i have experienced alot of luck in my short lived career... let's just hope that the buck doesn't stop here.
- i took the train in to campus today, because usually parking is atrocious and rush hour is particular bad around that area. i usually park a couple of stations down and take the train to medical center and everything is all fine and dandy. but not today. there must have been some sort of major delay cos i had to wait 20+ minutes for a train. it was bad. a 15 min excursion turned into an hour. and i was pissed. thanks metro.
- i bought ian pooley's new album, a subterranean soundtrack, and now i can't get #9 out of my daggone head. gah!
- i was reading about dreams somewhere today. i've been having weird dreams lately. one, i was in science boot camp (quick! how fast can you do a western blot?!) and one of the post docs wouldn't stop talking to me, so i had to tell him to shut up. that one, mom said that i was talking in my sleep; mumbling. in another dream, my left eye was badly damaged; my iris was jumbled and leaking. in the dream, mom kept on wanting to touch it, but it was very sensitive and i was getting upset. i mean, what happened to my classic dreams? (i.e. running over people i don't like with saabs... man, that's a good dream...)
- friday dinner in our house is always chapati. i think that's the best kenyan dish i know how to make (i can't get make ugali for the life of me... and for all of you people that don't know, it's not as easy as it looks...and forget about the meat and fish stews... i'm not really good making stuff i don't eat...). but anybody that knows, making chapati is a long process (especially when your making alot). and every friday, who's making it? me. i usually do it grudgingly, but today everything was just smooth and i finished within an hour. i was especially proud of myself that i finished at a reasonable time. i'm still working on my mandazi, but if you ask me, mom always makes the best... *mouth watering* yum! i love me some githeri too.

peace.

soundtrak: album: oasis: (what's the story) morning glory?

why do i feel like a loser today?

so i woke up this morning and checked my other email that i should check just as often, but i don't. and what suprise awaited me? they were going to cancel my graduate award at the end of this month. i started typing a reply before i even started to think. my inital award is supposed to last a year (12 calendar months) and then i'm switched over to my thesis lab and they pay my tuition (if i'm still taking classes at the point) and stipend (living expenses). well, it hasn't been a year and i haven't found my thesis lab yet. but she replied; they're renewing my reward. crisis averted.
going up to n'ih (again!) tomorrow to talk to the new (other) director of my program. i hope he really helps me out; i don't know what else to do.

today, doing stuff that i should have done this week that i haven't done (i.e. emailing director guy, make hair appointment). i feel like... well, i don't know how i feel. i'm not sleeping well, i don't eat, my body's sick, i don't feel like going out. i'm cleaning the house.... hell, i'm cleaning anything, to keep my mind off these things.

peace.

soundtrak: oasis: wonderwall

i don't even know where to start. i don't feel too good; my head hurts, my stomach hurts, my back hurts, everything hurts. a carryover from the weekend.

thursday, i went back up to n,ih to talk to dr. w. commiserated about finding my rotation and she, updating me on my previous work. despite the setbacks, we're still planning on publishing a paper. caught up with most of the lab. the postdoc that i worked with has already moved on. things move on.
(marcus, i really did try to look you up. but if things work out, i think we'll be in the same institute and building...)
as i was riding back to where i parked the car, my cell started acting up, so i stopped by the store to see if they could quickly fix it. three hours later, they told me that it couldn't be fixed. and you know i was pissed. so i ended up upgrading, which i didn't really plan for financially. so i guess i won't be buying books and i'll be photocopying till my next check.
friday, i was trying to get things done before the long drive up to penn state. i don't even know why i even bothered; stuff that i should of been doing waay before. emails and things.
the weekend at penn state was fun. growing up, al and i were very close, so spending time with him is always a treat. we got the 'student' tour of campus and the campus town. in the middle of a valley, there is nothing else around. and i thought umbc was bad; i don't think i would be able to survive that kind of environment. al also showed us where he does his research; his lab.

it's been a while since i've talked with the biochem crew. i talked with nic of course, but with D, i'll have to wait til he finishes his mc.ats. he's more of a people person, so now that he's tried the p.hd, i'm not surprised that he just going for the md. i talked to the boy yesterday. talked about school; he finished his classes (hence, he has a masters) and decided to take some time off. i'm kind of surprised. the boy is a kind of guy that just goes for it; straight out of school, into grad school. i asked him how much time he was thinking about taking off (if he said i don't know, then i would have been truly worried) and he's planning for two years. and i can't blame him. even though i was eager to get back into school, i was glad to get that unwanted year off, just working. now i'm not craving it, not looking for it now.
the boy likes to tease me about how dramatic i am; i always have a story. i do. i am. i have just learned to accept it. when things happen, my mind automatically puts in in story form, just waiting to share it with someone. it looks like i do have delusions of grandeur. publish a book out of it, get some money.

anyways. more later.

peace.

soundtrak: kool and the gang: summer madness

i was all up on n,ih campus last week, meeting new grad students and meeting with dr. b. he's cool, his work is cool, but he might not have space. so now, i'm playing the waiting game to see if i should really do this rotation or not (i have nothing else lined up).

my vacation sucks; i'm not doing anything, not going anywhere. and of course, either people are out of town (august is dc's vacation month) or busy... working! i don't feel motivated.
what have i done then, you ask? well, last week, i did watch my share of really bad movies. the is.land was not as bad as alexander, which i really had to see how bad it truly was (and man, let me tell you, it's bad... i kept on getting lost in the middle of the movie... i felt like i was in history class... ugh). i guess the former was just intriguing because of the whole (hazy) science backdrop. i mean, yeah, that stuff can happen (where you think the organs are going to come from... they don't grow by themselves..).
another highlight of my week was talking with nic. it's been months, but i forgive her for not returning my calls... grant writing is a b*tch. she's getting married soon; i'm excited for her.
also talked to T and we lamented about our school troubles. him, with umb.c (still! they never let go, i tell ya...). they always find a way to screw everyone over at least twice.

anyways, i saw that my camera has dust on it, so i took a couple of random pictures:











Y called me today to tell me that we would be meeting with LS next weekend... unfortunately, i'll be out of town (viaiting al). i know it's mean to laugh, but i laugh anyways. ha!

peace.

soundtrak: oasis: don't go away

this weekend was weird.

had a concert on saturday. as timon and i were driving into church for rehearsal before, we discovered that a car had parked, with hazard lights blinking, at the mouth of the driveway. we just thought it was someone who's car had broken down and were looking for help (the car was empty). two ladies were walking up the road, so i pulled in and timon and i got out of the car. one of the ladies looked distressed while the other lady, just kept on walking, past the car, continuing up the road. she was mumbling something to herself. so i guess to make the long story short, walking lady was going through drug withdrawal and kept on getting out of the car as the other lady was driving. the distressed lady didn't want to call the police at first since walking lady was carrying a purse load of assorted drugs, threatening to go off and OD somewhere. it was all very strange.

aabs just came back from visiting family and friends in the midwest this week; i was surprised to get a phone call from her. since she doesn't have a car (and the maryland suburbs are not as convenient to get around as dc), i offered to take her around to do some grocery shopping and a quick targ.et run (it's not like i really do anything else on a sunday, especially when classes aren't in session). in t,arget, perusing the dvd isles (which i do way too much, with the little money i make), i received a text message from B: see you in two weeks. seems like he's jet-setting off to europe to visit some family. almost makes me wish that i made the effort to try to visit kenya this summer, knowing that i probably won't get the chance in a long while (but then again.. the money...).
after dropping aabs off at home, i randomly called Y and found out that he was nearby, on the pike. we met up at the diner he was in (trying to get some work done before the boss came back in this week) and had dinner. through our meal, an altercation involving the police was occurring the parking lot. i didn't think anything of it, until i realized that my car was parked right in the middle of it all. some guy was stopped by the police, for driving while intoxicated and drug possession. as Y and i walked to my car, i got to see the 50 various bottles of hard liquor, as well as different drug packets, that they pulled out of the back of his car. but even that didn't cause all the ruckus. this guy was a fighter, struggling with the police as they cuffed him. there was blood and puke everywhere (thankfully, not on my car). Y waited with me as i waited for the cop to wipe off the blood/puke mix off his car before he moved it. lovely. that's probably the most action i've gotten all week.

during dinner, Y was talking about meeting up with LS for coffee or something and i asked him why would he be so eager to meet somebody so crazy. but i think he just wants backup, which i'm willing to do. the things i do for friends.

this week finds me meeting new students, coming in this fall, to my program (i.e. free food) and meeting up with the guy that will hopefully let me do a second rotation in his lab. pray for a sista.

peace.