My bike got stolen tonight. This would be the same bike whose back tire got stolen about a month ago. I parked it outside of 19th Street Bart in Oakland this afternoon at around 4:45. When I got back at around 10, it was gone. There’s no evidence that I even left my bike there except that the plastic bag I was using to cover my bike seat in the rain was on the ground.
When I parked my bike, there were three other bikes parked at the same spot. There were also bikes parked across the street. When I got back, every single one of them was gone. I don’t know if that means anything, but it was sort of weird.
I have no idea what I’m going to do for transportation now. I don’t have the money to buy a nice folding bike. I could replace the bike with some used beater, but I don’t really want to have that one get stolen a month from now, you know? Plus I don’t want to spend what little money I have on some crappy bike that I don’t even like.
Bah. Total bullshit.
I’d really like to see Persepolis. It is playing at the Parkway this week ad 7 and 9:15. Would anyone be up in seeing it with me?
I seem to only get things done if I’m all Go!Go!Go! within an hour of waking up in the mornings. This morning I left the house before ten and managed to bike from my place in Oakland all the way to Solano Ave to pick up the cover for one of my futons. On the way there I also stopped and did some errands. Now I’m back home. This all didn’t actually take me very long considering that I’m on a rather slow, extremely heavy bike. People with cars must be able to get a million things done in a day, right?
I feel better about having accomplished a little something today. I have a ton of homework to catch up on. Hopefully I’ll manage that today as well.
It is rainy out and I have not felt like leaving the house all day. I could totally go for some hot chocolate, too. But I don’t have any vanilla here so I’d have to go brave the afterwork rush at Trader Joe’s to get some, I think. Bah.
Les left yesterday morning. I haven’t gotten any panicked calls from detention yet, so I guess immigration went ok. I hope that the bag I made held up to the plane ride.
Yesterday after I got home from the airport, Theresa and I went through the fridge and the cupboards and threw out everything we didn’t recognize. It was sort of odd that it was the two of us doing it since we’ve lived in that place the least amount of time. I ended up with three bags of groceries to take over to my place in Oakland. I only had room on my bike for two bag, though. So I’ll have to go back tomorrow and get the rest.
After cleaning out the kitchen, I sat down to look at what my readings are for the week. Between Les’s birthday and all the last-time-I’ll-see-you social stuff, and being busy with sewing that bag I made for him, I didn’t have much time for my classes. I made sure to do the biographical write up that was due for one of them and I’d sort of scanned the websites for my other classes a little but for the most part I just sort of skipped out on the week figuring that I could make up the readings and I’d be ok.
Turns out this was a bad idea. Apparently I had a seven page paper due in one of may classes last night. I totally didn’t realize that I had anything to do until around 4pm yesterday. I hadn’t done any research or thought about my topic! Ak!
I raced over to my place in Oakland and started working on the paper. I just barely finished with just about 6 1/4 pages written at 11:30pm. The paper was due at midnight. Phew.
I really need better time management skills. I’m having serious trouble getting motivated to do my homework in these classes. I’m finding the online format to be really difficult to get a handle on. Without interaction with my professors face to face and other students, I’m finding it to be really difficult to figure out what each professor really expects out of me. Also, I find text books to be deeply boring so it’s hard to stay focused. I knew there was a reason I was reluctant about taking any classes after I finished my BA. Bah.
Yesterday as I was unpacking my dishes I had a memory of once owning mugs that matched my plates and bowls. I went through all my boxes and couldn’t find them. Les says he doesn’t remember them at all. I could have sworn that I owned them just to have matching mugs but that I hardly ever used them day to day because I had lots of other mugs that I liked more.
Did I give them to someone?
I’m also missing my madeleine pan, a shallow glass bowl I used for floating candles, and my Next machine. If anyone knows where these things are, please let me know. :)
On the other hand, I appear to have possession of a food processor that I don’t recall ever having owned. Weird! (I assume it once belonged to either Sophie or the Lagoys at some point and I just got it when they moved? I don’t know…)
I’m Moved!
Thank You again Timanna, Danica, and Annie! And my biggest thanks to Les who put up with me being a stress case way out of proportion to anything reasonable.
My new address:
607 Beacon Street #12′
Oakland, CA 94610
USA
Moving me from my storage unit into my apartment took about three and a half hours including a lunch break in the middle. Apparently I did an OK job of getting rid of crap because that’s a pretty good amount of time.
I’m back in Berkeley now. I have not started unpacking my boxes or moving my furniture yet because we needed to return the truck right away. I also do not own a bed. I moved my bed into the loft when I moved last time and it doesn’t make any sense to move it out and then buy a new mattress for here. So I’ll be spending nights in Berkeley for a while yet.
I’m looking forward to getting unpacked and setting up shop. I don’t remember what all I even still own. I’m also looking forward to having my own space again. I really like the loft but I always feel like I’m going to be bothersome I leave my things lying around.
So yay! I’m moved!
Blade Runner is playing at the Parkway this week and next week
I missed it when it was playing at the Grand Lake but it would be super extra keen to see it at the Parkway. Anyone wanna come with me?
Ok. So this weather is just out of control and the rain may or may not let up tomorrow. So I’m going to wait a week and and move next Saturday.
Unfortunately, Aaron’s not going to be in town next weekend so I’m short another person. :/
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Seriously, if anyone is up for helping next weekend, that would be super keen. Esp. if you’re up for driving a uhaul. I swear, it’ll only take an afternoon.
I’ve been spending much of my idle time thinking about how I want to set up my apartment once I get moved in. I’ve been thinking about different bedding options (has anyone used the sort of japanese futon that you can roll up and store in a closet? Are they the sort of thing I’d want to sleep on long term?) and various organization systems. I’ve also been thinking about decorating. I’m planning on getting a few of my photos blown up and them framing them. but I’ve also been looking for other pieces of art that I like. Les and I went to some galleries and open studios this last week looking for paintings to give for Christmas. I’ve also been keeping tabs a few websites looking for ideas.
I saw a post on Apartment therapy yesterday about London based illustrator Linzie Hunter’s series of illustrations based on text in email spam. I really rather love them, although I’m having trouble picking a phrase that I’d actually want framed on my wall. AE suggested this one:
Which I do enjoy. Not only because the idea of me worrying about my cup size being too small is really funny in a surreal way, but also because I love that thanks to this spammer I’ll have to blame my embarrassment on something other than my cup size. Nice.
I sort of think doing a cross-stitch sampler of choice spams would be fun.
I also like the two prints she has up on the 20×200 site.
This all got me poking around various sites looking for prints that I want. I still love the You’re Impossible print that I posted about a while back.
I’m also rather fond of this winter themed piece from Tiny Showcase. I also like this other winter-y one.
From Thumbtack Press, I’m enjoying this and this.
So much stuff to like. Last week I saw a small painting of the the W from the Quik Way (now closed home of greasy fries, whole pies, and giant prawns) sign. I also saw a huge painting of the Quik Way which I really liked. The W was something that I could actually afford, though.
Wee!
I’ve been apartment hunting on and off since I got back to the US. I was totally spoiled by my last apartment what with it being larger than your average one bedroom and in a great area and totally reasonably priced. I was trying to find something similar and just wasn’t having the same luck.
And then I saw an ad for an apartment in my old building! It’s also a large studio with good closet space and a separate dining room. For 40 bucks less a month that I was paying before.
I’d looked at an apartment owned by my previous landlords back in October and they were very nice and offered to be a reference for me. So they were happy that I was still looking for a place now and wanted to make sure that I’d get first crack at it.
So I’m signing the lease on Monday evening and I’ll be moving in January.