:(

it was still a good game.

we played really well.

and it was great for us to even get into the tournament.

there's always next year...

okay, soooo uh, we can still do this...

that AU is playing AMAZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZING!

KEEP IT UP BOYS!!!!!

this would be so awesome if we could keep going!!!

ah, so cool, check it out!:

At American, a Little Guy Plays Bigger

By JOHN BRANCH
Published: March 18, 2009


Derrick Mercer averaged 11.5 points, 4.4 assists and 4.3 rebounds this season.

PHILADELPHIA — The smallest man on the court has been making the biggest impression. And he does not need a loud mouth or a flashy game to get anyone’s attention.

American University’s Derrick Mercer, the Patriot League player of the year, is listed as 5 feet 9 inches. He is not that tall.

“I’m 5-foot-7,” he said Wednesday in a back hallway of the Wachovia Center, where 14th-seeded American will play No. 3 Villanova on Thursday evening. “I’m proud of my height. God blessed me to be 5-foot-7, healthy, with a nice athletic, strong body. It’s no problem with me.”

It is a problem for opponents, who might underestimate Mercer until they struggle to keep pace with him. A four-year starter for American, Mercer averaged 11.5 points and 4.4 assists a game this season. Somehow, he captured 4.3 rebounds a game, too. Against Villanova, he will be matched against the likes of the high-scoring guard Scottie Reynolds, considered rather small by major-college basketball standards, but seven inches taller than Mercer.

Mercer increases American’s stature in other ways. At St. Anthony High in Jersey City, he played for a former point guard in Bob Hurley, the legendary coach and the father of the former Duke point guard Bobby Hurley.

“The point-guard position, it’s intangibles,” Bob Hurley said in a telephone interview. “I tell coaches at clinics, ‘It’s from the neck up, not the neck down.’ ”

He called Mercer “a tough little nut,” a “physical phenom” on defense and a “reluctant scorer” on offense.

Now Mercer plays for American Coach Jeff Jones, the point guard at Virginia in the early 1980s who established the program’s career assist record largely by feeding the ball to Ralph Sampson.

“Derrick’s kind of a throwback, which maybe isn’t a surprise,” Jones said. “He’s got all the necessary skills, but he doesn’t do the flashy stuff. He makes the play that needs to be made. And he is extremely competitive. That, I think, is his biggest strength.”

Mercer gets that from his upbringing in Jersey City, where he had a relatively comfortable childhood. His father, Derrick Mercer Sr., works as a security guard at the public grade school where Hurley’s wife teaches. The father also coached and refereed youth teams in the city and worked nights for the recreation department, all to help pay for the private-school tuition at St. Anthony. The Mercers were part of Adrian Wojnarowski’s 2005 book about Hurley’s powerhouse program, “The Miracle of St. Anthony.”

“My dad used to have me out at the park late at night while everyone’s sleeping, trying to make that dream,” Mercer said. “Whatever my son wants, I want to do the same.”

His son, Julius Isaiah, named for two basketball legends, will turn 3 on Saturday. The boy lives with Mercer’s ex-girlfriend in Jersey City, Mercer said. He will not be surprised if his father brings his son to the game Thursday.

Like its point guard, American will be underestimated, particularly after the misfortune of being matched against Villanova in the Wildcats’ hometown. But American (24-7, 13-1 in the Patriot League) starts five seniors, and they have been this way before. Last year, the Eagles reached the N.C.A.A. tournament for the first time in the program’s 41-year history. They gave second-seeded Tennessee a scare before succumbing in the final five minutes.

On the surface, the game with Villanova (26-7, 13-5) is a case of strength versus strength — American has the nation’s eighth-ranked defense (allowing 58.5 points a game); Villanova led the Big East in scoring, averaging 79.5 points during conference play.

This tournament appearance does not carry the novelty of a year ago. But it is being heralded in Washington, where the basketball fortunes of the area’s more recognized programs — Georgetown, George Washington and George Mason among them — have dipped by recent standards.

It is enough for Mercer to be thankful that he never left. As a freshman starter on a team that finished 12-17, Mercer pondered transferring. Having played for Hurley, he was not used to losing games. But the birth of his son helped Mercer realize that dreams and priorities change over time. He stayed at American, helping the program grow while he blossomed from a shy, introverted teenager — his quiet personality fit his pass-first basketball style — into a low-key, self-assured adult.

In May, Mercer will be the first member of his family to graduate from college, earning a degree in audio production. He dreams now of a record label and a small recording studio with his teammate Frank Borden. Mercer writes songs, but, fittingly, will leave the star turns to other people.

“I don’t have time to perform,” Mercer said. “The only time I perform is when I’m on the court.”

For now, that is where he makes his biggest impression.

-norman bates, psycho.

ah, so i'm done with one final...four more to go....no finals tomorrow though, it's a study day. which is good. i feel like i ate some gluten. which is definitely possible. my eating has been out of control lately. i feel like i've gained five pounds in the past two days. my spending has been even more out of control. i don't know why i'm so stressed for finals. i'm totally prepared. i went to all my classes, i did all my work, i read the books...i don't know, these are just my first finals and it's kind of stressful...and i have to worry about moving out and all that...aaaah. i can't wait to go home. i miss my little buddy. i wish i could talk to him right now. i bet he misses me, too. ah, i'm so excited to see riley and sammy...they're the best. well, time for bed...:)

thanks to everyone who made it possible! i had a really great time! it was great to see everyone and we had so much fun!!!! (even in zion told me i'm fat, but whatever, he's 8...)

i'm thankful for...
...BEING HOME!
...MY FAMILY!...all of them!
...getting to know so many new people this year!!!!
...RILEY!!!!!!!!
...SAMMY!!!!
...the cavs this year, they're doing great!!!!
...the awesome city of cleveland!
...the great gluten-free food my mom made!
...church!
...God and jesus (obviously!!!)
...my new friends at college!!!!!!!!!
...gossip girl, because i swear, it keeps me sane.
...this year's election, and it's results!
...everything else i've been blessed with...
...and the movie office space, because i'm watching it right now, and seriously, this movie is really good, one of the funniest of all time...

hope you all had a great thanksgiving!!!!!!!!!!!! enjoy the rest of the break, and if you're braving the world of shopping tomorrow (you know i am!) good luck!!!

<3<3<3

-megan

to go home for thanksgiving.

and see the entire family.

and play with riley.

in the SNOW!

oh, i love winter....

...in ohio....:(

maybe if i got out more i wouldn't be so depressed...

but i don't have TIME to get out more....

maybe i do.

maybe i just budget my time really badly.

but "going out" to me means going shopping...

and what good is that going to do me...

i'll just spend more money...

and feel bad about that...

because i'm always spending money...

hmph.

dary!!!!!!!

seriously, this week is going to be awesome! why?

well, first of all, because i'm in a good mood since i came home! it was so awesome to see my family and some of my friends! and i got to hang out with RILEY AND SAMMY! yay! and i ate peppermint thai, which is seriously THE BEST thai food in the worrrrrld!!!!! and i went to american tavern (gotta love it!) and saw grandma and grandpa, and got a job at toys r us for winter break, which come on, is the greatest holiday job ever!!! helping people christmas shop for toys, that's killaaaah!!!!

what else this week???

monday:
4:30 pm (dinner) gluten-free pasta bake in tdr!!!
8:30 pm new episode of how i met your mother...a highlight of every week. (edit: no new episode, but still, it's on!)
11 pm psycho with free popcorn in the tavern.

tuesday:
6-8 pm pep band fund raiser at z burger...a great reason for me to go to z burger, cuz you know i love the pep band!!!!
8 pm cavs vs. celtics...beginning of the season! so this means lotsssss more sasha!, lots more posts, and fun fun fun on the message boards!!!! and yeah, we're totally going to win!!!!!!
10 pm northside rha halloween dance party in mcdowell formal lounge! it's going to be so cool you even have to go through a haunted house to get there!!!
11 pm the dark knight in ward 1!

wednesday:
6:30 pm free jay-z concert in cleveland hosted by lebron james...not that i'm going but i want to hear all about it from marshall, because he's going, since my mom stood in line for two in half hours to get the tickets, ah love it!
7 pm wizards (ew, but whatever) home opener and college night, also a halloween costume contest!
7-9 pm halloween party in the tavern.
11 pm the goonies in ward 1...love that movie!!!

thursday:
7 pm cavs vs. bobcats...yeah, we've totally got that one.
8-11 pm trick or treating for unicef, headquarters at mcdowell...yeah, i can't go cuz i have class, but i'll be there in spirit!!!
midnight rocky horror picture show in the tavern...okay, this would be awesome, but we're going to have to see if i can stay awake...which is doubtful.

friday:
2-4 pm trick or treating at mgc 200 corridor.
2-5 pm trick or treating on embassy row!!!!!
5 pm unicef trick or treating with women's initiative, meeting in la quad

saturday:
7 pm metro station in the tavern!!!!!!!!!!!!

my favorite month. there are just some things that are so...october, you know?

so i think i'm going to do a series of things that remind me of october...starting with, my favorite "october" movies. some of these movies have nothing to do with the actual month of october, they just feel like october to me.

october sky.

of course, this is because it has october in the title, and also because it just feels like october to me, probably because it's called october sky...hard to tell if it's just because of the title or not, but it's a great story, and you know i love history and the 1950s...and it's so sad! and homer is hot, jake gyllenhaal all the way!

national treasure.

i always felt like this movie took place in the fall, especially the scene where they're shopping at urban outfitters...they pick out very fall clothes. and this is just one of my favorite movies of all time.

twitches.

I LOVE THIS MOVIE! it's so much fun! and it's october all around! i mean, it obviously takes place in october so the awesome halloween funness and scenery is just spectacular! and i've always loved tia and tamera! i remember when this movie came out in october 05, one of my favorite octobers ever!

twitches too.

of course. it's just as much...if not more...fun than the first! and just as cute too!

hocus pocus.

when i was little, i was so afraid of this movie! but then, when i was like 7, i was like omg hocus pocus rocks! and it really does! it is probably one of the most fun halloween movies of all time! i love the whole salem with trials/historical aspect of it, and max is totally hot in that 90s way, and thackary is kind of hot in that 1600s way....

sleepy hollow.

this movie is so typically tim burton. so creepy, yet so good. i love the imagery...the entire town of sleepy hollow is just so like creepy and stark but i totally love it. this movie IS october. and i love christina ricci, as we all know....and yes, johnny depp is in it as well :).

the hollow.

i'm gonna go out on a limb here and say that most people have never seen this movie...let alone heard of it. it's with nick carter (yeah, i know...), kaley cuoco (one of my fave girls), and kevin zegers (so hot!). it's another take on sleepy hollow in like a fun teen thriller really not scary but kind of trying to be sort of way. it's about kids that live in the town of sleepy hollow, which is like still obsessed with the legend and then kevin zegers finds out that he's a descendent of icabod crane. it's super fun.

breakfast at tiffany's.

ah, what a lovely, glamorous movie. that does, indeed, take place in the fall, in october i think, because when they're stealing things at the store there are halloween masks! ah, this is just such a good movie! it makes me feel happy and nice! and i love the soundtrack, moon river forever!!!!!

children of the corn.

i don't know why, but this movie is like my all time guilty pleasure. i just love it. it's so lame, but it's hilarious, the kids are just so crazy! isaac and malachai, hahahahahaha. and i just love the part where the girl is in the room listening to "runaway" by del shannon....i love that song!!!!!! and it just holds a special place in my heard because mr. hastings used to call our class his little children of the corn in 11th grade english :).

casper.

retro christina ricci! i love her as kat! this is suuuuuch a fun movie!!!!! so cute! and i always though that vic and real life casper were kind of cute! and that's not weird because this movie came out when i was five!!!!!!!

casper meets wendy.

retro hilary duff! katie and i loved this movie when i was like 8! i remember my grandma getting it for us at rite aid after my after school french class one day...the best! this movie is pretty crappy, but it's like even more fun than the first!

harry potter and the sorcerer's stone.

i know this movie spans over an entire school year, but this is an october movie all the way. does anyone else LOVE the scene in the dining hall during halloween when the jack-o-lanterns are like floating in the air??? and the food always looks so good, especially in that scene! that alone made me want to go to hogwarts!!!!

the covenant.

yeah, okay, so maybe this is a crappy movie, but come on, how bad is it really? great fall setting in new england...creepy story of witchcraft...lots of places that make you jump...good music (white zombie <3<3<3)...and um, HOT GUYS! chace crawford, taylor kitsch, steven strait, tobey hemingway...yuuuum!

urban legend.

kind of creepy, but totally fun in that scary, teen thriller kind of way. and um, joshua jackson and jared leto are totally hot. and idk, there's just something about a college campus that says fall.

teen witch.

classic disney at it's best. with blake lively's older sis! i love how this was originally a sequel to teen wolf...ha. i love this movie though! i heard they might remake it, with ashley tisdale!

marie antoinette.

maybe it's the macabre aspect of the young french queen...or the fall woods where she's transformed from a young austrian girl into marie antoinette...or maybe it's that there's a sex scene set to bauhaus...idk, i just really like this movie...visually. like i could watch it on mute or just have it play in the background of a party or something...but it has good music, too. i just love the costumes, the scenery, the decadance...

halloweentown.

the original. not the second. hated it. halloweentown high was okay, not as bad as kalabar's revenge, but still not the original. i refused to see return to halloweentown because they replaced the original marnie with sara paxton, but now that it's october! i might reconsider just because i'm in the mood to watch any and all halloween movies. but anyway i love this movie. that's like my dream...to live in a town where it's always halloween. and after i saw this, i was just like waiting to find out i'm really a witch!

corpse bride.

sometimes i feel like no one else liked this movie. true, i didn't like it as much as the nightmare before christmas, but it's still fun and i loooove the music!

the little vampire.

such a lame, yet such a good halloween movie. so fifth grade for me! that was one of my favorite octobers, the first one in our new neighborhood, classic autumn!!!! anyway, i love like the scottish setting and the old costumes and stuff....and jonathan lipnicki was so cute!

the nightmare before christmas.

of course. a classic. one of my favorite halloween and christmas movies. i love the story, and the songs, and it's just so good!

monster house.

i love watching this movie while babysitting. it's so cute. and it has some grown up elements in it too. some of it's really dumb, but overall i was pleasantly surprised by this movie.

the scream team.

no, not the cavs hip hop squad...the terribly underrated disney channel original movie, with kat dennings!!!! omg, i love this movie, i wish that they would show this more often!

mom's got a date with a vampire.

i probably just like caroline rhea because i'm fat, but whatever, imo, this is another great dcom halloween flick! i love the random rockabilly club that they go to, and you know i love vampires. i remember watching this on a friday night in fifth grade before a swim meet the next day. that was the first night i ever had chipotle. weird, i know, but i remember it.

phantom of the megaplex.

dcoms rule when it comes to halloween. you know i love the movies so this has always been fun for me...plus mickey rooney is great!!!! and when i was younger i thought the kid was cute!

under wraps.

this dcom is never on, but i remember seeing it at my old house when it first came out...i remember going on a walk in daisy hill that day and kim from down the street was babysitting us...it's a fun movie.

tower of terror.

i love this movie, because it's got the whole retro-glamour-historical side, with the swing music and all, and i also love kirsten dunst..and morgan from boy meets world!

interview with the vampire.

so good. the historical costumes and sets are fabulous, and kirsten dunst is great as mini-vampire claudia...oh, and brad pitt is the sexiest vampire ever.

the haunted mansion.

love the movie as much as i love the ride (when it's not broken, which it seems to be quite often these days....). but this movie is just so cute and fun! i remember seeing it with my cousin when i was in 8th grade and actually being kind of like woah! at some parts, and i enjoyed it so much that i saw it again with my dad, and i saw my math teacher there, like with his five year old son, and i remember thinking wow i'm too old for this movie but i totally love it...yeah....

just like heaven.

for some reason this is absolutely a fall movie. maybe it's like fall when she's in the garden at the beginning, idk, but it just seems fallish to me...and because it's all supernatural and stuff! and it's riley's favorite movie!!!! i miss you little buddy!!!

beetlejuice.

sometimes i'm like wow i hate this movie it's so lame, but other times i'm like omg i love it...and sometimes i'm like okay, i love it for this one reason: my whole life is a dark room. one. big. dark. room.

the addams family.

gotta love a creepy family...especially one with a mom named morticia...i love that name :).

the craft.

this movie is soooooo crazy. but i kind of love it....in a weird way. like it's a pretty terrible movie, but it's just so wonderfully creepy!

halloween: h20.

for some reason i really like THIS halloween the best...maybe it's because it's like modern and i can actually remember when it came out...and josh hartnett's in it and he's not like completely terrible!!!! i mean it totally beats the halloween before it (the curse of michael meyers) because they totally messed everything up from 4 and 5 because they didn't recast danielle harris. i actually like 4 and 5, too, because i like jamie, and a guy from my church wrote one of them, i think it was 5. of course the original is good, but 2 and 3, especially, suck...and then there's resurrection...with tyra banks. ha. best part of that movie: busta rhymes- "trick or treat...motherfucker." HAHAHAHAHAHA! yeah but h20 is the best...and don't even get me started about rob zombie's remake, as far as i'm concerned that is NOT part of the series.

scream 2.

definitely the BEST of the series!!!! i love how they're at colege...as i've said before, college campuses are just soooo fall!!!! and this one has the best cast for sure, with sarah michelle gellar (total scream queen), jerry o'connell, rebecca gayheart (she's so underrated), joshua jackson, omar epps, neve campbell (who just gets better with age), jada pinkett smith, tori spelling, luke wilson, heather graham, portia de rossi, and of course jamie kennedy (who, btw, is teaching a film class at kent). i also love how matthew lillard makes a cameo at a party...when his character totally died in the first movie!!!! love it...so much better than the third which is totally overly corny. scream 3 definitely could've been good because it's when everything kind of comes together and the whole mystery is revealed but courteney cox's hair looks crazy and parker posey just makes the whole thing lame...but i do love patrick dempsey, jenny mccarthy, jay and silent bob, and kelly rutherford. but yeah, love the sorority house scene with smg...it's such a nice house! it makes me wish that we had sorority houses here, but we don't because of dc brothel laws...true story.

a cinderella story.

one of my favorite movies ever...sooo cute! i love hilary duff! and chad michael murray is SO HOT! and yeah, loooove the halloween homecoming dance! her dress is sooooo GORGEOUS! and regina king and jennifer coolidge are great in this movie too!

it's raining outside. like really hard. so i'm inside. in my dorm room. which is incredibly messy, thanks in large part to the fact that i've been eating sesame seed bagels...and the seeds are like everrrrrrrywhere. but whatever. i'll clean it evenutally todya. newt gingrich is coming to campus to speak in like an hour...i would go, just because it's something to do...but it's raining...so no. i'm watching how i met your mother. and drinking sprite. i know, right? sprite? since when does megan drink sprite? since now. ha. i love this show.

so it's been forever since i've posted....but uh, yeah, i'm doing well, classes started today, still trying to get used to all that..but yeah, things have been going pretty well...i'm going to try to start posting again soon, but it's sooo nice outside and i'm in dc and there's SO MUCH to do so i feel silly sitting on my computer! i'm just tired right now. so yeah, i'll try to post more...let ya know what's goin on in my life....i'll try.

peace for now!

-megannnnn!

hey everyone, sorry for going so long without posting, but i was sooo busy MOVING INTO MY DORM ROOM! which is where i am now!!!!!!! pics definitely soon to come!!!!!

i don't really have too much to say, other than, YAY! PHELPS DID IT!!!! EIGHT GOLD MEDALS!!!! wow, that's seriously amazing, congrats to him!

that race two nights ago, the 100m fly, was seriously insane...we got to the hotel just in time to see that and i still can't believe he won, that was the most intense race ever, but i swam for years and i don't know how many times they told us to make sure we hit the touch pad hard, don't just glide in, and i'm sure coaches are going to use that race as an example for years to come! it really sucks for that guy though, but i'm totally happy for michael!!!

so i'm having looooots of fun here so far! i went out to breakfast with my parents earlier this morning, and now they're on their way home. i've already seen some people from orientation here, and i had dinner last night with a really nice girl named kelsey who i met at orientation, also. and my roommate jess is really nice, too. so far everyone i've met here is really nice. i'm having lots of fun.

i think i'm gonna go read now, it's a really pretty day and i think i'll go outside, but i just wanted to do a quick post to let y'all know that i'm alive!

peace out!

soooo...been a long time since a personal post.

i know, i'm getting more celeb-obsessed by the second. and the truth of the matter is, i don't even give a fuck about any of that shit. it's just an easy way to escape. something else to think about. i've done a really good job of not thinking about what i don't want to be thinking about since i got home. the thoughts creep up sometimes...but i've been trying to avoid them. i've been trying to avoid everything. everything that requires real emotion. and it's just so easy to sit down here with the tv on and my laptop open and read stupid things about stupid people. look at all the colorful pictures of the pretty people...it's better than watching the real news...or even law and order svu for that matter. sorry if this isn't making sense. i'm just trying to explain why my blog has shifted focus incredibly lately and become so crazily lame. but whatever. the real reason i even created this site was to talk about my love of sasha pavlovic, but there's nothing to talk about in the off season! i'm a terrible stalker! i don't even know if he's in the country!!!! but whatever....

i went to daphne's funeral today. if i didn't mention that daphne died, i guess i am now. i was trying not to think about it. but then i got there and heard her sister wailing and i just started really realizing that daphne would never be at our house again. and then i went through the line to see her in the casket and i just started crying because i knew that would be the last time i'd ever see her again. i've known her since i was was born. and it just started to sink in. so i guess i succeeded in not thinking about it for the last week, and really for the last month since she's been in a coma...such a tragedy. it was a great funeral though. i guess it's the happiest funeral i've ever been to. it wasn't so much focused on the loss, but the fact that she's in heaven and those that believe will see her again and then it basically turned into a revival service. it was a baptist church and there were only like four other white people there, but i actually felt really spiritually connected during the service, so there's definitely something to be said for that kind of worship.

ah, i don't like going to funerals. i'd start to get sad and then i'd be like okay megan don't get sad look around and see what everyone's wearing, and then i'd start critiquing people's outfits and then i'd get mad at myself and be like seriously megan stop it this is not the time nor the place, so then i'd get focused again and get too sad so then i'd distract...it was a vicious cycle of inner conflict. i just don't like to feel any sort of pain. i try to be numb all the time. sometimes it works out, and i fill my head with stupid things and obsess over stupid people and ideas and stuff, but then sometimes it fails miserably....whatever.

in case you were wondering, which i doubt you were, my grandmother's still sick. they have yet to figure out what's wrong with her.

and then of course, i'm getting ready to leave this place, that i've so long felt was a prison of bad memories...the rooms he walked through and degraded me in...the room where i was attacked...where everything bad happened...

but i'm going to miss things, too. i've lived here my whole life. not this house, but this city. cleveland....pepper pike. i'm going to miss the familiarity. i'm going to miss my family...especially sammy and riley. but then i remember how much i really need to get away...every time i drive by eton collection, or here the wrong word, or smell the wrong smell, i know i have to get away...and not just that...i'm not running, away from him and away from the bad memories, i'm leaving for myself...so that i can go to the school i want to, and learn the things i want to learn, and do the things i want to do, and make new friends, real friends hopefully, and just to begin the next chapter of megan....

such a strange time....

you know what i love most about this song? the sigh at the very end. it's perfect.

i know, i know, it's been (gasp!) almost three days since i last posted and that's forrrrever to go without me, right? i'm sure you're all going through withdrawal, but don't worry, you're pain and suffering is over, because i'm back! okay, i'm going to keep this short because i'm tired and we all know when i'm tired i tend to get even lamer than usual....anyway, i was at orientation and my laptop was with my mom so i didn't have internet access so i couldn't update...not that i tried that hard to find a computer because i was super busy with all of the orientation activities. it was really fun, by the way. i'm really excited to go to american now. not that i wasn't before. well, i was kind of nervous before. but now i'm like, more excited than nervous. the drive there was fine, not as pretty as it was when we drove to vermont because we were mostly on the pennsylvania turnpike the entire time, which is kind of blech, but i just sat in the back seat and watched gossip girl on my laptop while my mom drove and listened to her book on tape (i know, she's lame...just kidding). we got there at like seven on wednesday and tried to check into our hotel but my mom had made the reservations for the wrong nights and i was like freaking out because they said they didn't have any rooms, but apparently if you just keep asking, they'll eventually give you a room so everything was fine. i had to get up super early thursday morning to go to orientation and of course we got lost driving there, but we got there eventually and weren't late or anything. they had like a little introduction and stuff and then we broke into smaller groups with our orientation leaders. my orientation leader was matt and he was really cool, and everyone in my group was really cool, too. there was another girl, stephanie, from ohio and lots of other people from really interesting places. a lot, like deborah, dave, david, and logan, were from new jersey and new york. and julie and dan were from new england. and there were a few from the midwest like me, stephanie and melissa from minnesota. and jazmyne was from seattle (that's so cool!). and then a few went to school in really interesting places, like sean was in belgium and christina was from south africa and the other stephanie lived in australia. and then there was this kid joey, who was from around dc, and he kept disappearing all the time. anyway. we did like a bunch of getting to know you games and then had some lectures and then lunch and then some more lectures and activities then dinner then we had another lecture, about diversity, and then we went off with our group to talk about the lecture and um, it kind of got off topic (i feel really bad about this, btw) because we were supposed to describe ourselves and i started talking about how i'm really obsessive and i was like yeah, there's this basketball player, sasha pavlovic, and i guess i kind of stalk him? and i started talking about the time i followed him home and how i have a blog dedicated to tracking sasha's whereabouts (because that really is the purpose of this blog, it's just branched out over time, but it was strictly sasha/cavs when i began...but now the season is over, so i just talk about other stuff) and basically it just turned from like a serious discussion to everyone cracking up and i handed out my calling cards to people and stuff and this one kid in my group, dan, even wrote sasha's name in russian for me, which is really really cool! i guess it just got worse when they asked me what it is that makes me like sasha so much and i was like uuuum his widow's peak! i know that's kind of a weird attraction, but guys with shaved heads and widows peaks are like my thing, idk, it's weird....anyway, everyone knew then how much of a creeper i am and it was kind of embarrassing, but whatever, it was pretty funny. around this time we also all kind of realized that joey was missing and we hadn't really seen him since lunch and we were like uuum, where's joey? and we were all laughing about that and saying that maybe he was in columbia heights because it seemed like he got kind of mad when matt said that was an area you wouldn't want to be alone in at night. anyway. the rest of the night was pretty fun, too, we watched this improv group and a video the orientation leaders made and then went to this karaoke/dance party thing, but a bunch of us left because it was too loud and we just went back and talked in the lounge at the residence hall we were staying at and it was really fun. we just sat in there and talked and at one point we looked out in the hall and we saw joey and we were like ummm joey where have you been??? you've been missing for like seven hours! and he was like oh i was just walking around. it was very strange but incredibly funny because we'd all been joking all night about where joey could be. anyway. i got to sleep really late. then today, i woke up late, so i had to like rush to get ready, then grab some breakfast and meet up with my group. we had meetings with our individual schools and academic advisors and it was good just to meet some more people in my school and finally meet my academic advisor in person. then we had lunch and then an activities fair, then there was a slideshow (which i missed because my mom and i went to look at a sample dorm room in my residence hall...it's going to be really crowded because i'm in a triple, like most of the freshman class), and then we got back together with our group to do evaluations and then it was over. the drive home was fine. i just sat in the back again and listened to music and read the a list because my mother was still listening to her book on tape. overall, it was a really great experience and i'm so glad that i went! oh, and we've decided that when school begins we're going to post "joey sightings" because we all had a feeling that he'd be going awol a lot, ha. anyway. i'm glad to be home now because i'm really tired. and i missed riley and sammy, who are sitting right next to me right now. they're so cute! okay, well, i'm going to go to bed now.....byyyyye.

oh, riley, what did you eat now????? we went to the park for a picnic and a walk but he wasn't feeling well and then he barfed so i'm like um, you weirdo dog, what the hell did you eat?!?!?!?! seriously, he eats ridiculous things....mulch, leaves, pine needles, garbage, etc....so i have no idea what it is that he ate now....sigh....that walk would've been nice if he were feeling better! it's such a nice day outside! and orange park is actually a really nice place...well, it's pretty nice...i was just thinking, it's actually really clean, but it just isn't the same as the places in vermont...there's just this feeling i get in vermont like the whole state is incredibly cleanly....i swear i never even saw one single piece of little the entire time we were hiking there...but that doesn't matter now. i'm not there anymore, i'm home, in pepper pike, ohio, so i must get used to the way things are here...again. i saw josie and shawna at the park. there was one other car there and it didn't even register with me that it was josie's car until i saw her and shawna getting into it...go figure...i see people everywhere in this town!!!! also, this town is really weird. i'd forgotten how annoying people are around here. i went to peppermint thai to pick up my lunch (i'm pretty sure they lowered their prices, btw) and i saw some old guys in suits leaving and they were wearing like gucci sunglasses. that's so pepper pike. ah, i'm glad i'm leaving. that's one good thing about get smart...a lot of it took place in dc and i was like omg i'm so excited to go there it's so gorgeous!!!!! i don't know what i'm going to do for the rest of the day...maybe read...but i'd feel funny laying outside because there's like a ton of people here working on random things around the house....there's nothing going on around town tonight, i checked cleveland.com....maybe the family will go see kit kittredge, i really, really want to see that! maybe i'll make dinner again! i made dinner last night...it was grilled tilapia and marinated vegetables with corn chips and bean salsa and a spinach salad with vanilla ice cream and black berries for dessert....i got all the stuff at whole foods...i love that store!!!! and i'm actually surprisingly good at cooking....lol....i think i'm going to work out and watch summerland now....ttyl.

i'm so excited! i just got the new pretty little liars book!!!! so obviously, i'm off to read it! but not without a little update first...

i turned in my senior project paper, yay! but i still have to do my presentation for the fair and turn that in on thursday and then the fair is on friday...ugh, i can never escape that school!

i spent most of the morning at various doctor's appointments, blech, for all of my "summer checkups," and it's really annoying because i'm going back to basically all of them in august because they want to see me before i go off to school....

after all of the appointments, my mother and i had lunch at the american tavern, yum, except that i choked on a tortilla chip and it was really embarrassing because i couldn't get it out of my throat for like five minutes..yeah...

anyway, i'm really excited to go read now!!!! byyyyyyyyyyyyyye!

but according to perez...all the action and drama could be going down right around me next year!!!!

from the great ph:

The Hills East Coast???
Filed under: Reality Television
Word on the street is that MTV is said to be testing out the waters and developing a Hills-like "reality" show based in Washington, D.C.

Goodbye Hollywood - hello politics!

Thoughts????

not at all. i'm actually wondering if my grandparents are on something because that was the most coherent and rational they've been in a crazy long time....and i'm also wondering if my grandmother got a hearing aid because she really didn't miss a thing!

so anyway, sorry for the weird last post, but i was just super pissed about being forced to hang out with my grandparents (who i'm usualy not very big fans of, to be honest) on a friday night...my mom was so mad that i was writing about that...ha, she didn't want me talking about my family on here, but i don't really say anything revealing or anything, so i don't think it really matters....

soooo...today was my last day of project. :( :( :( i'm going to miss those kids soooooooooooooooooooo much! i just love them! but i'm definitely going back to visit them over the summer when i'm in town!!!! we had a much less dramatic lunch at red lobster today, lol. i haven't been there in forever but it was actually rather delicious.

after project i came home and worked on some college stuff and watched some tv and then was forced to go out to dinner. after dinner, my mother and i went to kohl's because they're having a big sale for memorial day weekend. at first i was getting pissed because i wasn't finding anything in the vera wang collection but then i found a bunch of stuff, surprisingly, in the new daisy fuentes collection...so yeah, i got some really cute stuff. i love shopping.

now, i'm in the basement watching holes because this movie is aaaaaaaawesome!

okay, not really. but when you search "sasha pavlovic" on google, i'm on page 11!!!!!!!!! not half bad...i was thinking it'd be more like 325 or something, lol!!!! but that's cool!!!!! lol, i'm such a creeper, but whatev, whatev, it's all for fun. i love sasha, for real, i do, i just think he's awesome and totally underrated, and i love to love underrated people...i love to "discover" people's hotness/amazingness/whateverness. okay, you can tell i'm tired because i'm starting to not make sense. haaaaaaaaaaa.

the cavs will be playing tomorrow in dc, my future home!!!!!! rach and i are gonna watch the game, idk where though......

TWO MORE DAYS OF HIGH SCHOOL!!!!!! yay! just had to add that, because, for real, i hate high school! i've hated this whole experience! not because i hate my school or hate the people there necessarily, just think about all the shit i went through during the past four years....stomach issues, diagnosed with celiac disease, tumor!!!!!!!, two jaw surgeries, on and off meds like fifty million times causing major depression and anxiety!!!!!, and then like all the baaaaaaaad stuff! it's been terrible!!!! i wish it could've been better, because i don't hate orange like lots of people do, and i don't hate my friends, i actually like them, ha, surprise? hahahahaha, that's a funny thing to say "i don't hate my friends," lol, i just mean, i wish things had gone better in my own life so i would've had more time and felt better to do stuff with them and be more into things....i can't believe i'm actually admitting this....but never actually "getting into" high school will make it all the more easier to leave.

k, well, i have school in the morning, so i guess i should be off. byyyyyyez.

what if i started referring to myself in the plural? hahahahahaha.

okay anyway. i obviously didn't go to dc. so i'm at school...whatever. right after school we're going to columbus for kt's vball tournament. ha, i love staying in hotels. and we're going to polaris...shoppppppping!!!!!!!!! yeaaaaaaah! and i hear there's a movie theater nearby so i am totally gonna see prom night! and i want to see street kings....wooohooo, new movie friday! hopefully this weekend's movies will be better than last weekend's.....i'm still waiting for forgetting sarah marshall....ah, next week!!!!

hahahaha, okay i'm listening to "let's go to the mall" by robin sparkles....HAHAHAHA!!!! i love this song, it's so fucking funny:

Let's go to the mall, everybody!

Come on Jessica, come on Tori,
Let's go to the mall, you won't be sorry
Put on your jelly bracelets
And your cool graffiti coat
At the mall, having fun is what it's all aboot

I haven't done my homework yet (That's OK!)
And you know how my parents get (Whatever!)
Let's go to the mall today

There's this boy I like
Met him at the food court
He's got hair like Gretzky
And he does jumps on his skateboard
I hope he asks me out
Takes me to my favorite spot
It'll be just him and me
(But don't forget the robot)

Dad says I'm too young to date (Lame!)
But baby, I don't want to wait (Let's do it!)
That's OK, I'm going to rock your body anyway
I'm going to rock your body 'til Canada Day

Everybody come and play
Throw every last care away
Let's go to the mall today

I went to the mall with a couple of friends
I had a whole week's allowance to spend
I want hoop earrings and a Benetton shirt
We came here to shop and we came here to flirt
I turned around and who should I see
Prime Minister Brian Mulroney
He said, "Young lady, I don't approve."
So I had to get down and bust a crazy move
Hit it Fred, come on
Let's go to the mall

Let's go to the mall, everybody!
Everybody come and play
Throw every last care away
Let's go to the mall today

Everybody loves the mall!
Everybody come and play (Yeah!)
Throw every last care away (I love my hoop earrings!)
Let's go to the mall today