Em’s Blogtime Fun

     It has taken me over a week to find time to sit down and write to you guys.  I have been swamped with homework and I also started a new job.  Well, not new, but I haven’t worked it in over six months.  I have been working a lot of hours these past few weeks– it’s killing me, but the pay makes it worthwhile.  I am finding that I took all that free time I had last semester for granted.  Sometimes I would just sit and watch the sky.  For hours.  Now I can only catch quick glances as I pass from one building to another.  I appreciate architecture and buildings and everything, but dang, I wish they had glass ceilings or something.  Wouldn’t that be neat?  That way you could always see the sky.  Instead of beams and ceiling tiles.
     This is going to be a short post, seeing as I am in passing from class to work.  I have fifteen minutes between the two and thought I’d be productive.  I most likely have tomorrow off from work, thank goodness, and will post again with a drawing I did about my job.  Check back tomorrow!

     The 2009 spring semester is underway!  After the first week, I can confidently say that I am excited to see what the semester will bring.  My classes all seem very interesting and beneficial.  I am taking Design I, Drawing II, Intro to Psychology, Composition II, Creative Writing and Computer Art.  It’s exciting to think about all the things I am going to learn.
     While being back at school gives me something to do during the day, I can’t help but sit here and frown because semester break is over.  The last week of my break I took a trip to southern California to visit some good friends of mine.  It was one of the best trips of my life.  Quite possibly tied for first place on my list of awesome things I have done.  I flew alone, (I’ve only ever flown once before this, so it is a big deal) and I felt so independent and powerful.  Well, not powerful in a sense like I could challenge a thousand armies and win or something, but powerful because what I did with my time was really up to me– without a dozen eyes watching me every second helping me do what I am “suppose” to do.  It was nice.  My first flight, however, was delayed until the next day, which was a bummer, but the next flight was roomy and comfortable.  I caught a second connecting flight in Minneapolis, MN.  This flight is one for the memories.  I met an interesting girl from Washington DC on the plane who loved to talk.  About everything, actually.  I’m not sure whether it was a good or bad thing, though.  It was entertaining nonetheless.  The big thing about this flight, though, is what happened in the middle of the flight.  I was chatting with Miss DC and all of a sudden I heard several gasps come from the back of the plane (I was in row 06 C).  Right after a man yells, “WE NEED A DOCTOR.”  I almost wanted to check for cameramen or something, because no way does this happen in real life.  We had to make an emergency landing in Rapid City, SD.  The man who needed medical assistance was safely taken off the plane and rushed to a hospital.  My prayers are with him.  After the instance, though, Miss DC could not stop talking about death and the apocalypse.  It was funny, though, because right after the sick man was taken off of the plane, the people behind us began coughing.  Immediately Miss DC turned to me with the most serious face I have seen in a long time and said, “What if he had an infectious disease?”  I wanted to laugh right there because of the irrationality of the question, but instead I returned the serious look and said, “Then we’re going to catch it, and then it will work its way to the captain, and…”  I think that may have been the wrong thing to say at the wrong time, but sometimes I don’t think until I already say the thing I should have thought about saying.  At any rate, I thought it was funny.  We landed safely in Palm Springs, CA and my adventure continued.
                             
               
     My friends live in the Marine Corps base at Twentynine Palms, CA, an hour or so away from Palm Springs.  It was interesting to get a first-hand look at the daily life and living environment of base-residing Marines.  Twnetynine Palms is only three hours away from Las Vegas, NV–  that is, if you drive through the Mojave Desert.  Since it was so nearby, we decided to spend a day there.  I have been to Vegas before, but it felt like an entirely new place.  In the sense that I didn’t get to really experience it the first time (visited with my parents).  Surprisingly, though, I still knew my way around Vegas three years after I had gone the first time.  It was a trip to remember.  I met some interesting people.  One guy that I remember most distinctly was a guy in a green shirt on a corner.  He was funny– however, he also tried to sell me questionable things.  But, can you really go to Vegas and not experience that?  Part of the life there.  There were a lot of really, really awesome street performers, too.  My favorite, other than the magicians, was a guy dressed as a robot.  He was so awesome.  He was covered head to toe in silver paint and silver sparkles.  That is a dream of mine, actually.  Not necessarily silver, but just to be covered in sparkles and shiny paint.  What a glorious job that must be!  I also really enjoyed the large-scale water show that the Bellagio hotel and casino put on.  You can click on the picture below to watch one of the shows that my friend caught with her camera:

             
                                                                  [The Vegas strip]
                                            
                                                                    [Emily and Katy]
On the way home from Vegas was the real adventure.  Leaving Vegas around 11 PM, we ended up getting to the desert around midnight.  Firstly, let me tell you how absolutely beautiful the desert was.  The moon was almost at the biggest it’d be in all of 2009 and it illuminated everything with a subtle blue glaze.  You could see every star, it seemed.  Seeing the moon hanging above the tops of the mountains with stars shining around it was absolutely breathtaking.  And the temperature was so perfect.  It was that perfect spot right between warm and cold.  Just right.  Eventhough the desert was beautiful, it became a little scary.  Probably because we got lost in the middle of it for about an hour.  I was running a fever, so I was no help finding the way, and my friend was on her own.  I am still sorry, friend.  We eventually got back to her house around 3 AM, safe and sound.
     A lot more happened on my trip, but I will spare you, because this is already unbearably long.  I just want everyone to know that I appreciate the beauty and awesomeness of southern California.  I think I am visiting there again in March over spring break.  I am beyond excited.  I am not excited right now, though, because I must do homework.
           
       [This is a tree covered in shoes that we passed on our way to Vegas.  Creepily awesome.]