Bad, bad news.

Tragedy of the day: I've realized that I have three midterms next week. Tuesday, Wednesday, Thursday. In my mind, next week is now hell week. I have two options: I can either crawl into a hole to study and accomplish things or pretend that midterms aren't happening and have fun the last week before spring break. Which will I do? I'll give you a hint, I've never been very responsible...

Tell me something good

I saw an RV driving down Beacon Street today on my way home. I’m pretty sure it was the first RV I’ve seen in Boston and it reminded me of the RV of my childhood. Not that I ever actually had one, even though I kind of really wanted one - there was just something that seemed so cool about them. Not a popular kind of cool, more like cool in the sense that you could travel around with everything you own. Which is what I try to do every time I fly, and I always fail epically. But my friend’s neighbors had an RV that was always parked in their front yard. In the early days of our friendship, this was a marker of where to turn to go to our house. That was in the fifth grade. Ten years later, it’s still in the same spot. I don’t need it to find her house anymore, but it’s kind of comforting that it’s still there. And I’m pretty sure it hasn’t moved, like I don’t think I’ve ever not seen it there.

I did find, upon coming home in December, that there was a new addition to my neighborhood – a school bus. Literally just sitting in my neighbor’s yard. I don’t know what they could be possibly using it for (or even if they’re using it for anything, maybe they just wanted a bus?), but it’s pretty awesome in a weird, quirky kind of way. I feel like that’s something you lose living in the city because you don’t have a yard to put funky things in. I think I’d settle for an apartment, though, and I could put whatever quirky tchotchkes on display in the living room. Not that I don’t love my current room in my adorable brownstone, but living in what’s still effectively a dorm is kind of drab and tragic. No matter how much you put on the walls (and we have a lot), it’s still a dorm room, despite the pretty fireplace/mantle. On the bright side, housing starts in March – so I’m crossing my fingers for something good!

The best of both worlds

Cookie cake is incredibly underrated. And I think it’s entirely unfortunate because it’s basically the best of both worlds. The other night, on a whim, we baked a cookie cake to go along with our Thai food and Cold Stone cupcakes, and it was probably the best thing we ate. Granted, after a couple of hours of doing nothing but eating and watching chick flicks on television (thank you, ABC Family), appreciating the cookie cake was probably the furthest thing from our minds (much more immediate was the idea that we should probably never eat again). Still, though, they’re pretty fantastic. And it’s not the cookie cake’s fault that we have no self control. It just happens to be an enabler – a delicious one, at that. And for every once in a while, that’s just fine. I’d definitely choose it over the ice cream cupcakes we got from Cold Stone (which were not as exciting as I’d hoped), and probably over many other desserts. Except for bread pudding, but that’s an entirely different situation.

The wonderful cookie cake we made the other night.

All you need is love

Today I saw a heart running down the street. Not even kidding - there was a man running down the street wearing a huge felt cut-out of a heart. At first I thought it was just the Valentine's Day spirit hitting him and him choosing to react in whatever way he felt best - for some, it's chocolate and champagne, for others, running down the street dressed as a heart. I was wrong. There was, it appears, some kind of Valentine's Day race/run. Maybe for a cause, maybe for love - but it was definitely fun for me. Walking down Beacon Street, I was passed by many a pink-clothed runner - one wearing lingerie over her running gear, some in pink gaudy sparkles, Thing 1 and Thing 2, and some people just generally decked out for V-day.

Wearing his heart on his sleeve, err, body...

I wonder what they were running for, though. As we passed the Holiday Inn, there was some table handing out drinks to the runners as they ran by, but there was no mention of a cause. Maybe their cause was love? I haven't heard of a run for love, yet. I think that would be original. There's a run/walk/jog/scoot for every other cause, which is great, but honestly kind of overwhelming. Any weekend, every weekend you can walk for a cause. They've sort of lost their novelty. Not like people shouldn’t be out actively pursuing cures for every disease, I think it’s great, but I feel like walks are kind of overdone now. They’ve saturated the market, in a sense. It’s much more powerful, more effective, I would think, to have a few large-scale walks every year, the way Race for the Cure was. Less is more, my friends. That being said, don’t stop looking for cures, don’t stop with the social action – just be creative about it. I kind of enjoy coming across costumed runners on the street – it’s like Comm. Ave running guy, only better!

Cheese.

I’m really trying to like cheese. It’s a goal of mine, mostly because I feel like I should like it. Everyone else does. Maybe that line of thinking is sheep-like, but I don’t think being a sheep is always the end of the world. Right now, for instance, it’s driving my desire to like cheese. It could push me to try something else new later, who knows?

But cheese. I’m trying, really. I started out slow with the sharp cheddar, and it’s been working quite nicely. Last night, while out for a friend’s birthday, I decided to make the leap to goat cheese. Success! It was a little overwhelming, but I actually enjoyed it. It was some kind of goat cheese and eggplant mix that was really quite enjoyable. It left me feeling satisfied and empowered – think of all the new cheeses I can try – brie, gouda, Swiss, mozzarella, provolone… we’ll see how adventurous I’m feeling next time around. Not to say that I’m not an adventurous eater (although I guess I’m probably not), but I have a strange habit of not liking what are generally considered staples: ketchup, coffee, pickles, cheese (a work in progress), and most other condiments. I guess I just have strange taste. I really wanted to like them all, I tried… and failed. But cheese and I are starting a nice new relationship, so maybe there’s hope for the others? Probably not, but it’s a nice thought.

Adventures in eavesdropping

Today may have been one of the longest T rides I've been on. Ever. It actually took us 20 minutes to get from North Station to Government Center. And at Government Center, it took probably another 20 minutes to get a B train... although it was really nice to see two C trains go by empty because they came immediately after the first C train.

Once I finally got on the train, I discovered one of the more awkward situations you can find yourself in - caught in the middle of someone's conversation. Some people enjoy awkward encounters - I don't. I really do all that I can to avoid them, but this one was unavoidable. And entirely not my fault - I sat down first. But there they were anyway, the guy standing over me, chatting with his (I assume) girlfriend sitting in the seat behind me. I really didn't want to be eavesdropping, I tried turning up my iPod, but in the end their conversation (mundane as it was) had more of a pull than Matt Nathanson.

Would I normally care about the lives of random people? I would think not, but really that's what blogs are - tidbits about bloggers' lives, their thoughts on certain topics, things they find interesting - and I do read those. I guess the anonymity of the internet just makes it easier. And significantly less awkward because, let me tell you, this whole situation on the T felt awkward. At least for me, anyway. Because, when it came down to it, I did want to know about the appetizers they were thinking of serving tomorrow night, the vegan restaurant she was taking him to for dinner, the battle of the bands he was going to be in, and how she wanted to rearrange the furniture in the apartment. I was just curious. And bored. But I also felt like they knew, in some way, that I was listening to them. I had my earbuds in and was still listening to music and was trying so hard to stop eavesdropping, but I feel like they knew. Uncomfortable.

Hey, cupcake

Cupcakes are taking over the world. Not in a dangerous, morally bankrupt kind of way, just in the way that they're now everywhere. If I didn't love them, I'd think it was entirely ridiculous. Yesterday my friends and I ordered cupcakes from Cold Stone for Valentine's Day. They look awesome














but still... cupcakes filled with ice cream? Because ice cream cake (while awesome) wasn't enough - let's make them smaller, cuter and more irresistible. Thanks, Cold Stone. Apparently they're only available until mid-March, but if they do well I'm seeing a spin-off store in the future... Cold Cake? Cold Oven? I don't know. If the cupcake craze continues, I'm sure its spin-off will go over better than when Joey tried to replace Friends. The Cupcake Activist approves... do you?

Regardless, cupcakes are everywhere. From Sweet, the adorable cupcakery around the corner from me, to the cupcake bouquets I see advertised on passing buses, they're actually inescapable. It seems sudden - like they were creeping up... last year, cupcakes were a dessert occasionally found in the dining hall, obsessed over by a few friends and a novel concept store in Somerville. Now they've got their own stores everywhere, "make your own cupcake" night is always going on in some dining hall, and they're plastered all over. They had no marketing strategy, no political campaign, and the most evil thing they've done is add a few hundred calories to people's diets. And now they're sitting on top of the world, fluffy and sweet as always. Maybe it should serve as a lesson to the Brain: you don't have to be an evil genius to take over the world.

Hey, big spender

I'll be honest: sometimes I talk to inanimate objects. Or really, just people who aren't there - names on sheets of paper, like tonight when I'm just asking Eric to pick up the phone, or Joseph to donate some money, or cursing Lyle because his phone number is out of service and I really wanted him to repeat last year's $360 donation. There are only so many times that I can initial a sheet and mark it NH (not home) or PP (phone problem) before I get a little frustrated. Even more frustrating, though, can be when people actually do pick up the phone. So, I've compiled a list of things that irritate me about people on the phone.

1. Picking up your phone during dinner. It is quite possibly the most irritating thing you can do, especially if you don't know who's calling. If it's important, I'll leave a message. Or call back. I promise. There's no need for you to pick up the phone only to tell me I've interrupted your dinner and that youi're going to hang up on me now. Unnecessary.

2. People who don't pick up, but whose answering machines sound like they are. "Hi, long enough pause for me to start talking, we aren't home right now. And we wouldn't give you money anyway." Thanks, really.

3. People who are downright rude. I'm sorry if your husband's name is the one we have because he writes the checks and I don't know your name even though you're the BU alum. I apologize, really. We'll fix it in our database, but you don't need to be a bitch about it. And you should probably still give us money. And please, don't be mean to me. I'm trying to be as nice as possible while uncomfortably asking your for money when everyone is poor, so lighten up, okay?

4. Picking up your phone when you're actually one foot out the door. See above with picking up the phone during dinner. I'll call back, really. I do want your money, after all.

5. People who ask awkward questions. Last semester, a guy asked me who I was voting for. He continued (after I had told him I wasn't going to tell him who I voted for) to tell me that I had just voted to raise his taxes but, because he wasn't an SOB (his words, not mine) he'd still donate money. Excruciatingly uncomfortable. Really, are you that bored?

6. People who cut you off. Talking on the phone is just like driving - I don't want to be cut off in the middle of it. Fine if you don't want to donate money, but at least let me finish speaking first. I'm plenty comfortable with the rejection, just don't make me feel like an idiot by cutting me off midsentence. Please.

Even though people can be ridiculous, I do enjoy working in development. Three almost painless hours of calling and asking people for money, while relaxing in the office and hanging out with some friends. Not too terrible. Although today the person I was calling was dead. Incredibly uncomfortable, especially because I felt so terrible about it. But sometimes the calls are good and sometimes they're bad. With today's economy, a lot of the people I call actually do want to donate, but can't because they've been out of a job for the past nine months. And that's really hard to hear, and even tougher to imagine. It's the same thing I tell people who ask me how the fundraising's going - it's got its ups and its down, some better and worse than others.

On the bright side, things I like today about work:

1. Talking to nice people on the phone, especially those who want your advice. And then give donations. And parents of my friends who give donations on credit cards. Fabulous.

2. Rachel's (not me) Pandora playlist - featuring old music, once dearly loved.

3. Entertaining answering machines.

4. Big hitting nights: $569 in one night!

5. People who actually like being called. Yea, that's right.

Even though it was a successful night, I do still kind of miss the old Manhattanites I used to call. If they picked up, they donated big. And if not, they had awesome answering machines!

7 Deadly Sins

So last night my friends and I attempted going to a 7 Deadly Sins party. It failed epically. Walking into a smoggy, sweaty house was incredibly unpleasant and we realized probably a minute after the fact that we didn't want to be there anymore. Tragic, really, because we were really excited about it. We even looked up the 7 deadly sins online, because nice Jewish girls like us just didn't know them. In case anyone was curious, they are:

1. Lust
2. Gluttony
3. Greed
4. Sloth
5. Wrath
6. Envy
7. Pride

I was greed, clearly. Even though that party was a failure, we went on to have a good night and to meet some pretty cool people elsewhere. Today, upon discussing last night's experiences with some people at a Superbowl party, I was informed that there are 7 new deadly sins, as declared by the new pope. Why not make it 8 new ones while he's at it? Like the way this year's Real World has 8 instead of 7. Because he didn't, I guess that would bring the grand total up to 14. Eek, that's a lot to look out for. The new ones (the 7 social sins, as it were) are:

1. Bioethical violations (ie. birth control)
2. "Morally dubious" experiments (ie. stem cell research)
3. Drug abuse
4. Polluting the environment
5. Contributing to widening divide between rich and poor
6. Excessive wealth
7. Creating poverty

Questioning these kind of brings me back to junior high (elementary school? I can't remember) when Spiceworld was all the rage and the Spice Girls got in trouble for rhetorically asking whether or not the Pope was a Catholic. Way to go, girls. Anyway, to me these seem slightly ridiculous. Yes, those are what some people may see as issues in today's world (although I personally support birth control, have no problem with stem cell research, and really wouldn't mind possessing excessive wealth), but deadly sins, really? They even lack the single word character that makes the original set so memorable. I don't think anyone's going to have a new 7 deadly sins party. But if they did, what would I dress up as? A choking earth or a crack addict?