Where'd I Leave Off

Ignoring all the school stuff and my personal life crap, I decided to update my readers on the actual important things about me that have changed since my last post:

1. I have a new blog!! tvstalker.blogspot.com. Come read my thoughts about TV shows. My friend Meggan and I will be sharing posting responsibilities.

2. I "wooo". This voluntary declaration of joy is my new favorite thing. As my friend Barney said "A woo can be elicited many different ways-- from a certain song coming on the jukebox, to half-priced shots, from a ride on a mechanical bull, to...well, pretty much anything." And I do pretty much "wooo" for anything, such as: coverbands playing Britney Spears, hearing "Gangsta Paradise" at a discoteca, scoring above failing on an exam, getting out of class early, finding out that Sprinkles sells gluten-free cupcakes and the list goes on...

3. Gluten Free. A lot of celebrities seem to be gluten free and it sounded like a really fun time, so I decided to join. That and the pain in my stomach after consuming (and by consuming, I mean shoveling food down my throat as fast as humanly possible) any wheat product became too much to bare.

4. I cook. After taking a week off from life to mourn gluten, I picked myself back up and decided to start cooking instead of glaring at the delicious bakery items at Whole Foods and asking the help if I could just hold the cupcake again. Just for a second. I think I also started creeping out my friends by asking if they could please describe to me how that sourdough bread tastes in as much detail as possible. So instead, now I cook.

5. Sleeping. If you don't know about my love of sleeping then you probably don't know me. I have hit some pretty big milestones in the sleep department lately. There was the time I slept for 15 hours (waking up once to wizz and eat string cheese). And most nights before a big test, while all my follow colleagues are cramming, I try to be in bed by 7pm. Unless Amazing Race is on, then I extend to 8pm. But no later.
6. The 7-9am block. While most people I know are sleeping during this time period, I am enjoying my favorite part of the day. Since I do enjoy going to bed early (preferably before it is even dark out), I am generally wake before 7am. Since my class and l abwork don't begin until 9, that gives a good 2 hours to "start the day off right." I usually start with a little Chelsea Lately and then get most of the way through whatever Vh1/E!/MTV/Bravo show aired the night before that I missed because the show airs in the no bueno "double digits" time period (anything after 10).

7. Showtime. Since I don't really enjoy participating in activities that force me to wear pants, adding another channel to my cable lineup seemed like a logical idea. I am now catching up on United States of Tara, Nurse Jackie, The Tudors, and Tracey Ullman while watching amazing films like The World is Not Enough and Charlie Bartlett. Worth every penny.

Embracing Texas

Since I am going to be a Dallasite (Dallasinian? Dallasan?) soon, I decided to stop complaining (okay not really) and embrace my new home state. I have taken to the interweb and made some great discoveries about my new home...

Dallas is the birthplace of some great celebs, including Aaron Spelling, Demi Lovato (not sure who she is but she is famous and thus important), Jesse Plemons (Landry from Friday Night Lights), Josh Henderson (don't pretend like you don't know who that is), Lacey from Rock of Love (awesome!!), Lane Garrison (who know...the guy from Prison Break who killed someone), Meat Loaf (I always thought he was British...probably because he ran around a castle with a cape on), Peter Ostrum (Charlie form the original Willy Wonka), Tara Conner (did you hear MTV might bring back Singled Out with her in the Jenny McCarthy/Carmen Electra role?), and Vanilla Ice ("no...there's was da da da dada don don and my beat is da da dadada don don"). Also, Kourtney Kardashian went to college in Dallas. And Jessica Simpson and President Bush live there.

And not only is Dallas home to celebs, some excellent movies and TV shows have been filmed there, including Debbie Does Dallas (duh), RoboCop, Barney & Friends (who knew?), Wishbone, Batman & Robin, Boys Don't Cry, and Office Space.

The record high is only 112 degrees.

The Dallas County Sheriff is a lesbian.

The Ritz-Carlton in Dallas was named 2009 Best US Hotel and restaurant inside was named 2009 Best US Hotel Restaurant. Thanks Zagat!

Dallas is home to 15 billionaires, placing it 9th worldwide among cities with the most billionaires.

I will be living 5.8 miles from the nearest Waffle House and 2.2 miles form the nearest Whole Food.

Dallas...I am on my way.

I Shouldn't Be Allowed to Shop Online

I figured that since I will be spending most of my life in a lab, I needed clothing that shows how much I love science, especially evolution. So maybe I bought these shirts off Etsy this weekend:

Steven Does Dallas

After exciting trips to UT Southwestern, University of Texas, UC Davis and University of Utah I have finally made my decision. And it was not an easy decision. Dallas was great because I got to see my brother Matt and his wife Meagan and the world headquaters for Chuck E. Cheese. It is down the street from where they live.

Davis was also a great visit. The best part of the trip was seeing my family and friends. My sister and Dad came down one morning to have brunch and it turns out my 15-year-old sister and I have the same sense of style because we were wearing almost identical sweaters. At one point someone even stopped us and asked if we had coordinated our outfits. And yes, she is taller than me. And yes, we are looking at rescue dogs at a Farmer's Market.

To help with this decision-making process, I made the largest pro-con list ever. However this list was only in my head because I did not want this list to get out and thus be judged according to my priorities. (So what if proximity to a Target Supercenter was a big factor?) But anywho...looks like I will be moving to Dallas this summer to start at UT Southwestern!

Why April Will Be The Greatest Month Ever:

4/3: Premiere of 4 Fast 4 Furious. New model. Original Parts.

4/8: Lily Allen concert
4/8 New season of Real World/Road Rules Challenge: The Dual II
4/9 The Ting Tings concert
4/14- Britney Spears Concert
4/15 Dooce's book signing
4/15 Lupe Faisco concert
4/21 Franz Ferdinand concert
4/22 Earth Day and release of the movie Earth. I almost cried in the trailer.


I can't wait!

"Quit laughing at me or I'll kill you"

Well, 1 down...3 to go. In my neverending quest to finally leave Provo (seriously...I think I have left for good like 5 times now), I had my first interview for a PhD program at the Universiy of Texas at Austin. And I use the term "interview" loosely because my three interviews with faculty members consisted of chats about Mad Magazine, divorces, and beer.

But overall I really liked the city and the school. I especially liked my day with my buddy Danielle, the Tex-Mex food we shared, and Dualing Piano Bar. But mostly, I like the activities that Austinites participate in. Their time is spent either sitting and listening to music, sitting and watching movies, sitting and eating, or sitting and talking about "life" (music, food, movies, art). And if there is anything I excel at in this life it is: sitting, listening, watching, eating, and talking. So I feel that I could really fit in with Austinians.

However, I have a few complaints. First, I understand how much you love the University. It is a great campus. However, I think it is time ya'll stopped buying all your clothes at the athletic shop on campus. By the end of my three-day trip, I was really to kill the next person I saw wearing a orange shirt with longhorns.


Second, this might not be so much Austin's fault as just a problem with bars and restaurants in general, but can we please just call the bathrooms Men's or Women's? At this one bar, I saw only one bathroom door and it was labeled "Does." I really had to think for second if I was a doe because doe sounds like dude. Turns out, I was a buck. At another bar, I almost walked into "Gulls" because it sounded like guys...but turns out I am a Buoy.

My exciting tuh-rip ended with an outrageous flight home. I settled into my seat and opened up my magazine to read about how fat Jessica Simpson is (Two belts? Mom jeans? Really?). At this point almost everyone had boarded and all the overhead bin space was full. This gentleman (who obviously had the same stylist Nick Nolte used for his mugshot) then boarded the plane and tried to find room in the overhead bin for his garbage bag.


The Utahn sitting across from me jokingly said maybe he should try putting his stuff on the wing. To which Crazytrain responded by saying, "Quit laughing at me or I'll kill you." Needless to say, Homeboy was escorted off the plane while yelling "Where are you taking me?" "What are you going to do with me?" and "Is this because of the ethnicity of my skin?" (he was white).

All I can say is, if all my trips are this exciting, I am in for 3 more awesome weekends.

What I've Been Doin' and Where I'm Goin'

During my Christmas break (which in my mind should extend to the week after MLKJ day, which is why I have abandoned my blog until now), besides taking a pyramid photo shoot with my siblings...
...my parents pulled me aside to ask when I would finally start getting a real paycheck. This encounter was almost as great as last Christmas' parental intervention when my mom offered the diamonds from her old wedding ring to me...if I should propose anytime soon.

So in my pursuit to finally get a PhD and finally get a real job, I will be spending four upcoming weekends touring some of this country's best campuses. One week from now I will be in Austin, TX...2 weeks from now Dallas, TX...4 weeks from now Davis, CA...and 5 weeks from now Salt Lake City (I am counting this as a trip because I am getting a hotel room). Not only are all the trips free (I am even getting reimbursed for my gas to the airport and parking expenses), but I also have people to visit in each city. Dani in Austin, my brother and sister-in-law in Dallas, my family and friends in Davis, and...okay SLC doesn't count for this one.

And on another note, what do I wear to these things? A suit and tie? Slacks and a button up? An Affliction tee with Ed Hardy jeans? A snuggie?