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Tuesday, May 11th, 2010
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12:14 pm
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Oh my goodness it has been a long time since I posted here.
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| Monday, February 4th, 2008
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6:46 pm
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FUN FACT: Checking your email every three minutes will not increase the likelihood of receiving email. It will, however, increase the likelihood of oh god I'm never going to finish this paper.
current mood:  frustrated
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| Wednesday, December 19th, 2007
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10:23 pm
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My exams are finally over! My computer survived just long enough for me to get the requisite studying done but just barely: after crashing several times several of the keys on my keyboard no longer work! I can no longer use commas or periods so instead I am writing dreadful run-on sentences and ending them with exclamation points! I'm sorry if this makes me seem really hyper - I'm not; I just lack punctuation!
I think my French history exam went pretty well all things considered! Also this morning I recieved the assignat that I had purchased from some Italian guy on eBay a while ago! I took this as a good omen for my upcoming exam (the way my studying has been going I need all the luck I can get)!
I realize this is probably fairly painful to read and my brain is pretty fried anyway so I'm not really up for a whole lot of writing! Instead I'll post some shitty cell phone pictures of my shiny new assignat!
( LJ cuts are difficult without punctuation but I manageCollapse )
Tomorrow I head out to Ottawa where I will hopefully spend the next two weeks watching TV in my parents' basement and taking a much-needed break from being an adult! As long as my mom doesn't nag me about my fashion choices or try to make me eat anything low fat I expect this to be truly awesome!
current mood:  burned out
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| Wednesday, December 5th, 2007
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9:57 pm
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ATTN: UNIVERSITY OF TORONTO HISTORY DEPARTMENT
I have recently been informed that my spot in HIS457H1S (which I only obtained after an agonizing month on the waitlist) is not secure. Please be informed that if you do decide to arbitrarily remove me from this course, I will hunt down everyone responsible, burn down their houses and kill their entire families.
You may think that I'm joking. Keep in mind that it's the end of term and I've just finished writing two research papers and studying for three exams. I no longer have a sense of humour. When I say that I will defend my place in that seminar to the death I am dead fucking serious.
Yours truly,
Brett
current mood: grumpy
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| Sunday, November 25th, 2007
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4:24 pm - Bored with essays
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| Friday, November 9th, 2007
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1:17 am
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You know what's really awesome? THE FUCKING WEAKERTHANS. OMG. YOU HAVE NO IDEA. THIS IS LIKE THE THIRD TIME I'VE SEEN THEM AND THEY JUST GET MORE AWESOME. (Even though they only played one song from their first album. And that was just weird more than anything, because they played pretty much their whole second album, and the last two obviously so I have no idea why Fallow was so neglected. But omg awesome.)
You know what's not awesome? Finding out that the new note-taker in my translation class is some random person I slept with WHO DOESN'T EVEN GO TO U OF T. Seriously do these things happen to other people? Because I just don't know anymore.
Also not awesome: recieving phone calls at 1AM from people I don't even know, who don't seem to speak English and keep calling back no matter how many times I tell them it's a wrong number / don't pick up the phone.
However, the Weakerthans? AWESOME. I bought a shirt and everything. (It has Bigfoot on it! And it says The Weakerthans! Could it be more awesome? I think not.) And apparently John K. Samson is really into curling?
current mood:  high
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| Friday, November 2nd, 2007
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11:30 pm - L'état c'est moi, motherfucker
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One night last week (or maybe this week? I forget) I dreamt that I was directing a movie in which Samuel L. Jackson was playing Louis XIV.
On one hand, I have no idea what the hell is going on with my subconscious anymore. On the other hand, I think I need to get in touch with a film studio because omg best idea ever.
Why don't I have a Louis XIV icon?
current mood:  amused
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| Saturday, October 20th, 2007
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7:52 pm
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| Thursday, October 11th, 2007
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1:25 am
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So. For those of you not in Ontario, today was the day of provincial elections and stuff. I have to say I'm pretty disgusted with myself, because earlier today I seriously considered not voting. I changed my mind eventually (and, I mean, they had it all set up in my building and everything, so really) but still, I'm pretty sure this makes me the worst person ever.
In other news, the following programs now cause my computer to crash:
Azureus
Adobe Acrobat Reader
The Sims 2
iTunes (seriously wtf what kind of computer can't run iTunes)
PowerDVD
Photoshop
Epic fail. However, you know what doesn't crash my computer? WRITING PAPERS. Unfortunately I haven't actually been doing any of that. You'd think I'd have a whole lot to say about monarchist clubs and the pamphlet debate over political legitimacy in the early years of the French Revolution, but apparently not. Again, EPIC FAIL.
current mood:  bored
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| Wednesday, September 19th, 2007
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10:11 pm
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So. Textbooks on amazon.ca cost about half as much as the ones at the UT bookstore. However, it appears that the free shipping is free because it is completely useless.
According to the website, my books arrived in Mississauga on September 13th. MISSISSAUGA. I COULD GO TO MISSISSAUGA AND GET THEM. IT WOULD TAKE ABOUT TWO HOURS. WHY ARE THEY NOT HERE YET.
Also, please stop telling me that my books will arrive on September 18th. THAT WAS YESTERDAY. SERIOUSLY AMAZON YOU'RE NOT HELPING. OH AND THANKS FOR TOTALLY DISRUPTING MY STUDY SCHEDULE AND STRESSING ME THE FUCK OUT IN THE SECOND WEEK OF CLASSES I REALLY NEEDED THAT.
In other news, I'm going to Montreal for the Claire's birthday. Yay! Please don't attempt to contact me.
current mood:  distressed
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| Tuesday, September 4th, 2007
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1:47 pm
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For some reason, FIVE (5) of the people previously enrolled in HIS354 (Men, Gender & Power in Early Modern Europe) have decided to drop it in the last 24 hours and I AM NO LONGER ON THE WAITLIST. OMSB!*
This means that if TWO (2) people drop HIS387 (France 1610-1848) and ONE (1) person drops HIS457 (French Revolution) I WILL ACTUALLY GET ALL THE CLASSES I WANTED THIS SEMESTER.
Well, except France After 1848. But I can take that next year, and I've found another course to replace it with.
This year may not suck so much after all. I love you, U of T.
*Oh My Supreme Being
current mood: CAPSLOCK OF JOY
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11:38 am - Montreal!
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Okay, I've waited this long to post about Montreal, and I honestly don't know if I really have that much to say. I mean, yes, it was awesome, but I was only there for three days. I'll do my best.
If nothing else I should thank  neevil07, waldoindiesel, pretentiousgit, polocrunch and jes_sic_a for all your suggestions. Without them I probably would have spent a lot of time wandering around aimelessly, wondering where the hell I was. As it was I did a lot of wandering, but it wasn't entirely aimless. Anyway, thanks.
I ended up staying with my sister the whole time. I don't know if she was all that happy about it - she'd just moved in, so her social life wasn't quite as exciting as it had been. I hope I wasn't keeping her from socializing with the other froshies. She seems to be doing a decent job of it now that I'm gone, anyway.
I guess I could have stayed in a hostel, but I saved myself $20 a night. Which, on my salary, is quite a lot.
I didn't do the whole bar thing much. Or at all. Just didn't have the energy, really, and didn't have anyone to go with. I guess I could have gone on my own (and probably will, next time I'm there), but honestly I mostly felt like drinking coffee and reading.
I managed not to do any shopping, mostly due to the fact that I only brought my purse, so I wouldn't have had anywhere to carry the stuff I'd bought, if I'd bought stuff. Most of my money went on food and coffee, basically. On Steph's reccommendation (thanks Steph!) I went to Juliette et Chocolat, in the Latin Quarter (and honestly, I know they want to be all European and stuff, but I seriously doubt that the students at the Université de Montreal have ever spoken Latin). It was beyond amazing, pretty much. I had this fondant au chocolat thing, which made me feel pretty sick afterwards but was so completely beyond worth it. AND they had French cider, for $12 a 750ml bottle, which isn't much more than you'd pay at the liquor store. Conclusion: win. So much win.
While I was there I found myself switching back and forth between French and English pretty much at random. It mostly worked out pretty well, except when I found myself speaking English to someone whose English was clearly not as good as my French. Only happened a couple of times, but it made me feel kind of ridiculous. I'm a bit awkward with the whole language thing because my French is so bad, but I don't want anyone to know that I'm an Anglophone, so I end up saying as little as possible to anyone. If I ever do end up moving to Montreal, I'm sure I'll get over that within a week anyway. It made me strangely happy every time I saw something like "drinks sans alcool" on a menu. Franglais is my native language, after all, and it also seems to be the official language in Montreal.
Anyway. I walked up and down St. Laurent about a thousand times and drank some really good lattes.Awesome. Went to see Stardust, also awesome. I wasn't too impressed by the book when I read it, but the movie was great. The trailer for The Golden Compass may still have been the best part, though. Partly because I was rereading the book at the time, after seven years, and it is just as awesome as it was when I was 13 (if not more so). Even if the movie sucks it's going to be awesome. There's just no way around it.
I finished reading Northern Lights/The Golden Compass while sitting in the Parc Mont-Royal on Tuesday morning. It was a bit of a hike to get there, though for some reason didn't take me that long to get back. I don't know why. Must have been the route I took. I also spent a lot of time (especially on Sunday, after getting in at 6AM on the overnight bus) hanging around the McGill campus and library (which I thought was adequate, but not terribly impressive). Again, sitting around reading. That's something I haven't done enough of in the past couple of years. I've forgotten how much fun it is.
There were these three kids on campus selling t-shirts that said Harvard: America's McGill. As much as it annoys me how smug these McGill kids are, those were pretty awesome. If I ever go to Harvard I'll get one of those, just to be obnoxious.
Anyway, I would have stayed longer, but I ran out of money and felt I'd kind of worn out my welcome in Claire's residence. May have been all the comments I made about how shitty it was - I mean, seriously, my res in first year was awesome, and hers is this tiny soulless cement-block room. She could get, like, a three-bedroom apartment all to herself for what she's paying. It's just not right.
Anyway. Overall, worth the obscene amount of money I spent on a bus ticket. I didn't realize just how much I needed to get out of Toronto until I finally did get out. I was kind of emo some of the time - you know, alone in a strange city, blah blah blah - but even then it was absolutely worthwhile. It was also the first chance I got to see Montreal on my own terms, and from what I can tell it would be a pretty awesome place to live. Not to mention that there are SO MANY apartments for rent. Can you imagine, if you decide you want to live in a certain neighbourhood, you actually can. Madness!
And tomorrow, I'm headed to Stratford with my dad. Just for a couple of days, but we're trying to fit in as much theatre as we possibly can. Yeah, I pretty much forgot to have fun this summer, so I've been trying to fit in as much as I can before school starts. So far, it's worked out pretty well.
current mood: cheerful
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| Saturday, September 1st, 2007
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9:07 pm - WHERE THE FUCK IS MY MOTHERFUCKING DEBIT CARD
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MY DEBIT CARD
WHERE IS IT
current mood: oh shit
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| Wednesday, August 29th, 2007
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5:32 pm
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Baby hedgehogs are the weirdest looking creatures ever to walk the earth. Seriously. They look like they belong in the ocean. Or maybe space.
In other news, I'm back from Montreal, it was pretty awesome, and as soon as I feel like it I will write a huge, epic update about all of my adventures. Well, as epic as a blog entry about a weekend trip can be.
current mood: cheerful
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| Friday, August 24th, 2007
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12:47 am
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I seem to have survived the two weeks from hell, and my work schedule looks like it's going to be a bit more manageable from now on. Still haven't gotten into any of the classes I actually want to take, but whatever. That history stuff is for lamers anyway, right? It's not like it's the only thing that justifies my pathetic useless life or anything.
But that's not the point. The point is, I have four days off starting Sunday and in order to preserve what's left of my sanity I've decided to spend those days in Montreal. I've saved enough money living off pasta and stale muffins that I can even afford to go there! The trouble is, I don't actually know anything about the city.
So, people who know Montreal better than I do (basically, everyone), how should I spend my long weekend? Please to be suggesting things that require little or no money, since the U of T keeps asking me for tuition and I think I may eventually have to give it to them. I plan to spend most of my time drinking coffee and reading books and avoiding eye contact with people anyway, but it would be nice to do a few moderately touristy and/or scenesterish things as well.
So. Yes. Any advice would be greatly appreciated. I really have no idea what I'm going to do.
current mood: optimistic
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| Tuesday, August 14th, 2007
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11:56 pm
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I JUST WORKED SIX DAYS IN A ROW MAKING COFFEE FOR PEOPLE AND CLEANING WITH BLEACH AND DOING OTHER THINGS THAT I DO NOT ENJOY. I HATE EVERYONE EVER. ESPECIALLY PEOPLE WITH CREDIT CARDS WTF WHO PAYS FOR COFFEE WITH A CREDIT CARD.
I AM TRYING TO KNIT A ROBOT OUT OF YARN IT IS NOT GOING WELL. ALSO I THINK MAYBE THE YARN IS THE WRONG COLOUR.
I WANT TO GET THE KIND OF JOB WHERE I DON'T HAVE TO LEAVE THE HOUSE OR TALK TO OTHER PEOPLE. MAYBE ONCE I GET A DEGREE. I HOPE I CAN STILL GET A DEGREE WITH THIS KIND OF BRAIN DAMAGE.
current mood: CAPSLOCK OF BARISTA RAGE
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| Wednesday, August 8th, 2007
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11:36 am
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Well, I seem to have fully recovered from Saturday night (though I nearly collapsed at work yesterday because for some reason I still had no energy at all) and I've got another day off before I start a six-day work week. Should be fun. My shifts tend to be fairly short, so it will probably be tolerable, and will give me an excuse to avoid my family when they come to town this weekend. Everybody wins!
I'm also going to a wedding on Saturday, which I am becoming increasingly depressed about. First it was mostly just anxiety at the prospect of a) hearing my mother say "Is that what you're wearing?" over and over and OVER AND OVER OH DEAR GOD and b) being forced to interact with my extended family who I either have never spoken to, or have spent the past three years actively avoiding.
Then I talked to Jacky about it, and she asked me who I was going with, since apparently people usually bring guests to weddings. Which I'm not doing, obviously, because I have no friends. And now that I think about it, Jacky is always getting invited to weddings. She uses people for money and manipulates everyone around her and she still gets invited to weddings. And me? Not so much.
Moving right along. So, at work we have this daily trivia question thing, you know, where if you get it right you get a free coffee? On Saturday my boss asked me to write the question, so I came up with one about what was the name of the earliest known city in the world, which I thought was pretty clever but not horribly difficult. Except no one actually got it. And then this one guy comes in being INCREDIBLY INCREDIBLY smug and says that the answer is Çatal Höyük. UM, NO. (The correct answer is Uruk, by the way. And he knew that one too, and was even more smug about it.)
So when I got home I looked it up in my archaeology textbook and determined that Çatal Höyük was not a city at all, because it didn't have any sort of formal social hierarchy, or any buildings that can be identified as manufacturing centres, and HA I'M RIGHT TAKE THAT ARCHAEOLOGY GUY. And then I realized that I'm deeply emotionally disturbed.
Also, this one customer on Saturday ordered something called a latte breve (?), which apparently is a latte made with half & half cream instead of milk. I'm not sure if this is the best or the worst thing ever. I'm afraid to try it because if I like it then I'll die of heart disease, and if I don't like it I'll have wasted all that espresso and cream for nothing.
current mood: tired
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| Saturday, July 21st, 2007
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12:26 am - Oh, for fuck's sake, people
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I just got home from work. Normally, the coffee shop where I work closes at nine. However, it is across the street from a bookstore. I've taken what could possibly be a dangerous amount of pain medication, and I'm still angry.
Yesterday, I was mildly annoyed but mostly kind of amused at how many otherwise very reasonable adults would buy into a big marketing ploy. Now, I want to kill everyone in the world. Especially people who drink hot chocolate, pay for drinks with credit cards, and dress up as characters from shitty books.
I've just informed my sister that I will never speak to her again. Honestly, Claire, I expected better of you.
current mood: needlessly misanthropic
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| Friday, July 20th, 2007
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1:26 am
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I am no longer banned from online banking! Also, getting a paycheck tomorrow. Currently have no money, but lots of subway tokens. And my throat seemed like it was getting worse for a couple of days (lots of swelling, very unpleasant) but it's now almost completely healed. I can eat solid food and everything.
Will probably be avoiding the internet (and the outside world) for the next few days due to the fact that if I hear a single person talk about Harry Potter I may start setting people on fire. So I'll be in my apartment, away from the computer, reading good books, thanks.
Right. Didn't mean for that to sound quite so bitchy, but there you go.
Also? My LJ icon can beat up your LJ icon. But only if you snap your fingers. (However, this may actually be the single greatest icon in existence, and I'm horribly tempted to steal it.)
current mood: sleepy
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| Monday, July 16th, 2007
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11:37 am
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I didn't get into any of the classes I wanted.
Okay, not true. I got into two of them. Didn't get into any of the early modern European history classes though. I'm waitlisted for HIS387H (Early Modern France) and HIS354Y (Men, Gender & Power in Early Modern Europe), meaning that I won't get in unless I kill 15 or so people for each class. Maybe worth it for a full-year course, but definitely too much effort for a half-credit. And I'm only making minimum wage, so it's not like I could hire someone to do it.
I've been kept out of HIS457H (French Revolution), HIS425H (Historiography), and some random first-year science credit, for no apparent reason. Apparently I don't fit into any enrolment category? Funny, since as far as I knew to enrol in these classes you just have to be a U of T student. I think I'm one of those. I mean, if there's some crazy prerequisite for the classes I want to take it would be nice if they'd let me know at some point, you know? All it said on the course calendar was that I needed 3 full history credits, WHICH I HAVE.
I don't know. I guess there's a chance I could get into the courses I'm waitlisted for, then maybe talk my way into those other ones. Seems unlikely, though. And I was really looking forward to this year.
current mood: disappointed
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nerdy
