JSTOR should be my default webpage

I have been a verry delinquent blogger. Frankly, I can't remember what has happened in the last 3 weeks except that I went to Baltimore for a long weekend. We had a Fall Break, but this is sort of misleading, it was really just a single day off. Although fortunately, its a day that I have class so hallelujah for saving those 3 hours PLUS the 10, 11, usually 13 hours that would have gone towards reading. Spent a very enjoyable weekend watching an absolute ton of college football and the season premiere of Ugly Betty! And seeing Pancho, too, of course.

And, big news, I finally got a new phone. After 4 years and 2 months of that awful awful heavy and brick-like phone (Walf & Ali, remember those struggles of fitting it in my wristlet with my keys, walking over to the Gator games?), I made the leap. Nothing fancy. I told the sales person "I just want to make calls. No photos, no email, just calling." Turns out, they don't even make basic phones anymore. I've got a camera now and all sorts of cool things. I especially like the tip calculator, no more consulting my little faded tip sheet in my wallet. and no more flip phone, this one slides to cover the number pad. Everything works great, except that my apartment is like a black hole. Calls just don't go through, I don't get missed call alerts either, so Pancho has taken to calling several times in a row, incrementally spaced in hopes that something goes through. I just worry about other people calling that I'm never aware of. egh. technology. and big buildings.

So, in the 8th week of classes now. This is a crunch week for me. and I'm just beginning to feel like I'm figuring it out. Which is nice of course but also somewhat frustrating to look back at how I was spending my time before. It has become painfully obvious that I need to be getting up earlier so as to start working, how much stricter I have to be about leisure time, and the need to balance the work I do for each class rather than do everything for one which leads me to skimp on another. Good lessons, now I just need to follow through. and try to remain sane.

Random other things so that I don't keep talking about school:

• I bought tights! I've spoken at length about my anxiety for dressing in the North, and I feel like I'm making progress. I got both grey and black and I've worn them both already under skirts. I'm already sick of wearing pants (which is not good considering its not even winter yet) and any day above 60 is basically fair game to do tights. Which is another thing I've noticed, I can already get away with much lighter layers than I could in Florida for a given temperature.
• The leaves are gorgeous here. and falling like crazy. Its been raining though so they're all a big soggy mess that stick to everything. but a very pretty mess.
• I've been reading The Omnivore's Dilemma (very slowly. basically the only time I allow myself not to read for school is when I eat. which is sort of ironic in this case.) and I'm only about 35 pages in but it's good. I don't know how or even if it will affect what I eat, but I'm curious to learn more about this whole local/organic/follow the path of corn trend that has been going on.
  

Fall

Fall is officially here, with all of its obvious signs: Cool weather, leaves just beginning to turn color, I can leave the windows open all day, seems acceptable now to make hot chocolate, and butternut squash is back in season! I'm a little sad about it not being summer anymore, feel as though I hardly got to experience it and the chance to wear shorts, but fall just seems so much more cozy.

I had my first presentation today. The first thing I've had to actually do, that wasn't just read and discuss books. I had to give a "state of the field" report on the historiography of immigration. Basically identify and look at the major works that historians have done in immigration history, give their thesis, what argument they made, and how it affected historians writing after them. Discuss trends (like looking at Irish, Jewish, women, ethnic groups etc etc) and the new theoretical frameworks that came into play over the years. I of course got myself all worked up over it, As I am wont to do. Had lots of notes, probably talked a little more than I should have, but hey at least I was thorough. I think it went fine, my perspective is still a little skewed at this point. Afterwards I asked the prof if he had any feedback and he seemed to think it was fine so I guess I should just move on. :) Its very new this whole attitude I sense about grades just not really mattering anymore. Like, you do the reading, come to class and discuss, and thats it for most of the time. Never going to be tested on it or need to write about it (at least in my case, not the PhDs so much because they have General Exams) so its very much a learning for your own knowledge type of thing. It is taking some getting used to.

But, there is so much interesting stuff that I have been reading. I started a pile of those books that maybe some day I will go back to and actually get to read from cover to cover and soak it all up. Such a wide mixture of things-- the Progressive era, Japanese American immigrants, British missionaries in Jamaica. My brain is sort of on overload.