Twin Peaked

My life hit a tragic moment yesterday; I finished my favorite TV show.

I always fall for these shows that were cancelled too soon and therefor am inevitably heartbroken. Like the time I finished watching all of Arrested Development and wondered how I would live without seeing George Micheal's life develop any further. Now, there is no more episodes of Twin Peaks left for me, no more Billy Briggs and Shelly Johnson, no more Donna and James drama, most depressingly no more Agent Dale Cooper. The problem with fiction, whether it be TV or a book, is that it ends because it can't last forever. I hit this same emotion every time I finish a really good book and realize I can't go back to that world because it doesn't exist. This seems dramatic; I know. But don't you remember when you were reading The Great Gatsby and then it ended and you still wanted to talk to Nick just a little longer. Or when Lord of the Flies is over and nothing quite felt resolved. We get caught up in these wonderful worlds of optimal whit, romance, intrigue or whatever we seek but then have to remember that reality isn't that way. Boo.

Sam's coming this weekend, so I think I'll survive my withdrawal from Twin Peaks.

Have a good couple of days, smiles, Morgen.

Pumpkin frozen yogurt and planning a future

The weekend was spent mostly with my lovely roommate, and getting some good time to think about what I'm doing with my life. Friday afternoon was spent in Rittenhouse Square with pumpkin frozen yogurt. Can I just say how excited I am for everything to be pumpkin flavored for the next few months, I love it! I wandered around the West Philly/University City area for most of the day on Saturday, spending some quality time with myself and eating Indian food.

I finally did some hemming and started a scarf that Sam picked out the colors for, which I worked on all day yesterday while watching Twin Peaks after my homework was done.

This fall weather makes me feel a little more serious, like I need to be figuring something out and I need to have a plan. So I'm sure within the next few weeks I'll try to over-think it and plan my life out, which will undoubtedly change by next year. For now, I've come into my own as a Women's Studies major who is interested in gaining experience in sex-positive sex education. I'm hoping to start looking for internships soon. It's comforting to atleast have an idea to cling to as far as what I want to do.

Smiles, have a good week!
Morgen

Home [bitter]sweet home.

As I rode my train, that I almost missed, from Philadelphia to Lancaster I was half-listening to a podcast about Marxism. I was mostly thinking of what going home would be like, and making a point o picture all the details of home I could remember. It's only been three weeks since I left home, but the distance of time and space has caused my memory to blur. 

My brother and his girlfriend picked me up from the station, as I glanced at Downtown Lancaster which had at one point been my source for doses of city life and cultural knowledge. Now it just looked calm in comparison to the constant bustle of Philadelphia. In a hurry I tried to catch up with my brother and explain some of the happenings of living in Philly. When we pulled into the neighborhood that had been home for the past 13 years, I was overcome by deja vu and an uncomfortable confusion. I had thoroughly enjoyed growing up here, but as I walked into my house I realized it wasn't really quite home anymore. Everything was familiar, from my dogs jumping into my lap or the site of my bed. But at the same time, everything had moved on in my absence. My bedroom was covered in my mom's study materials, the bathroom had been redone and there was nobody home to greet me. It was at that moment that I realized I didn't really have a home anywhere, this house was only home in concept and my dorm was only home in practice, but nowhere has the complete feeling of home. 

I moved on from this realization, and worked a shift at work before being reunited with the boy. The following day we trekked out to Sam Lewis Park, which was the location of our second date, and a couple other poignant moments in our relationship. In the same way home had gone away, so did our ties with York. The park still has romantic ties, but as Sam said, I'm now part of Philly, not York, and thats my association now. 

 

We went to dinner with Sam's parents and then went to our spot at Maple Donuts. In all the craziness of things not being the same as they used to be, I can promise that the donuts were still equally delicious!

Thankfully I also finally got some DIY supplies so I can go back to doing-it-myself, in the form of yarn for christmas crocheting projects. Also, got to try my hand at cheese making with my dad - we made our own mozzarella balls! It was a lot of fun, but we over developed our cheese and it turned out a little more firmed than we wanted it. I would love to get to explore more cheese making sometime when I actually have a kitchen!

A weekend of free thrills.

It's come to my attention that I actually live here now - like I eat my cereal and sleep here, but I also have to shop and make friends here. I really enjoyed my classes this week and it's pleasant to spend my week engrossed in my studies. The weekend was a lovely break to come back to my sense of self, as usual. On Friday night, we went out for First Friday and attended a gallery where one of the Tyler School Of Art Professors was showing. Following the gallery, we wandered through Chinatown but ended up at Jimmy Johns back on campus for a late night dinner. 

Saturday started off with an intense track work out and a heavy breakfast. I then found myself back in Rittenhouse square, where there was a cute little farmers market set up and I had a few minutes to work on a reading assignment. I took a detour through a residential block of southern Philadelphia and saw these beautiful homes on my way to picking up Rachel. One of my favorite past times in the city, is just walking through neighborhoods like this and imagining how it would be to live there.

After picking up my lovely friend from work, we walked a lot of blocks because the eastbound subway was down to get to this free concert featuring Maps & Atlases, Frank Turner and Yo La Tengo. Within a half hour of being at Penn's Landing, the rain started coming down. Rachel and I waited under the umbrella for the bands to start. The rain did not stop at all that night till almost 11:00. So Rachel went back early but I stuck it out and did not regret my decision to stay! The bands were amazing and it was my first concert alone which was a liberating experience.

Here I am at the end of it, catching up on sleep, readings and sunshine. It's a beautiful day out today. Hope everyone else's weekend was equally enjoyable.

Smiles, Morgen.

The boy & big city.

The first week of classes finished up on a very good note. All of my classes have been a great experience so far. I love that just about all my classes are things I am passionate about, especially my women's studies and human sexuality. I celebrated the weekend with a visit from the boy, but he got here quite late on Friday, so I got to spend some time relaxing on the empty campus while everyone was at the football game.

We spent some time catching up with his friends, ate at an adorable gelato place and exploring the city that has become my temporary home. It's always pleasant to get out of North Philly and see the more picturesque, older parts of Philly. Additionally, some green space in Rittenhouse is a nice break from the concrete. Now I'm winding down, doing some reading and listening to Voxtrot.I'll try to do an outfit post or something during the week this week.

Have a lovely week everyone, smiles,
Morgen

Penguin gummies, highlighters and study breaks.

Well, I think I've read at least a hundred pages of assorted text books today. This is not me complaining though. I'm loving every minute of it - I'm taking Human Sexuality from a professor with a riot grrrl tattoo, a class about the autobiographies of women in radical social movements, and my English class is discussing the politics of disabilities. For those of you who are not social studies or English nerds, this is the kinda stuff us nerds get hot and bothered about. 

Besides my extremely consuming studies, I haven't had too too much time for fun activities. The most creative part of my day at the moment is picking out my outfit for class in the morning. Basically if avoid the dreaded athletic shorts and hoodie, I feel fashionably accomplished. So here's a peak at what I wore earlier in the week - I love this dress because of the color and it has a very comfortable fit with a neat open back detail. The scarf is just the bottom of one of my hemmed skirts - when you cut off a couple inches of skirt, you have an insta-infinity scarf!

As far as crafting goes, I finally caved and got a Pinterest so I could find stuff to do while I'm at school, where my time, materials and space are extremely limited. I hope to get a little crafting routine set up once I find a craft store to buy yarn for crocheting, and a cheap consignment store or salvation army to get clothes for altering. Sorry for letting you down as a craft blogger but I will avenge my love of crafting!

Smiles, 
Morgen

Dorming time.

I've been here since Thursday and it's already been an emotional adventure that I get equally excited and nervous about all the time. I thought I'd take this quiet Sunday off from going out to read some of my book (still loving Anna Karenina a lot) and to post about my living space as of now. It doesn't feel like home yet, but hopefully it does soon.

 I'm not really one of the matchy-matchy types, and my dorm isn't quite as cute as half the others I've seen but it's mine. As you can see, I had to bring my swing music CD and a copy of the Great Gatsby. Also, I have a cute little collage of photos of Sam and I from Prom which is nice for smiles. My jewelry containers have definitely been very convenient. I love my mixtape comforter too, it reminds me of one of my favorite books, "Love Is A Mixtape." If you haven't read it, look it up, I'm thinking of re-reading it soon.

I just started feeling a little homesick starting today. My little brother and I are texting a lot which is nice and keeps me from feeling far away. Living with three girls is much, much different from growing up with two brothers, that's for sure. Of course, I'm also adjusting to not being able to see Sam. It's not quite as dramatic as either of us imagined, but it'd still be nice to hold hands with my best friend. Anyone else going through this transition/remember going through it?

Smiles, Morgen.