My documentary.

To the small amount of people (if anyone) that reads this blog, here is the documentary I worked on last semester with two classmates about a small dairy here in Oxford, MS.

"The Atlantic was born today, and I'll tell you how."

Figured a blog post is due now that I've been successfully residing in Mississippi for a little under a month.

The move itself went very well. Packed up the Focus, the Escalade, and the Budget moving truck and shipped out of Acworth on the morning of August 5th, with Drake, my brother, my best friend since middle school, my mom, and my grandma all in one giant caravan moving across two states. Arrived in Oxford around 3:00 and had successfully unloaded everything in a matter of hours. The clan stayed until Friday morning, helping me unpack and hang things (huge help). The apartment looks great and feels like home because of them. After they took off, I had about two weeks to get acquainted with my new town before school started.

My laptop died about a week after being here (I just got it back this past Friday). As a result and in order to keep from being bored nonstop, Drake and I wound up exploring a lot. We walked in Lamar Park almost every night (still do); the minimal human interaction there saved me from going crazy my first two weeks here, I'm almost positive. Last weekend, I decided to take us on a hiking adventure in Holly Springs National Forest. Somewhere along the trail, like a dumbass, I got us lost, and we were picked up by a couple out hunting for deer approximately twelve miles away from my car. Sorry Mom. Needless to say, don't think we will be trying that one again anytime soon.

I have caught up on my movie watching. I joined Blockbuster Online, and the Oxford library has a surprisingly great selection of movies and documentaries. I also finally grew balls and discovered the joy of going to see a movie alone. The comprehensive list is as follows:

• Sicko
• Bowling for Columbine
• Streetcar Named Desire
• The Long, Hot Summer
• Confederate States of America
• This Film Is Not Yet Rated R
  
• Searching for the Wrong-Eyed Jesus
• O Brother, Where Art Thou?
• Into the Wild
  
• Bonnie & Clyde
  
• I Love You, Man
• Public Enemies
• Inglourious Basterds (twice - it is that good)

School is going very well. I really enjoy my classes, and the people in my program could not be more awesome. It is so refreshing to be around like-minded and motivated individuals after being out of an academic setting for over a year. Maybe I'm speaking too soon, but I feel like I am falling back into the swing of things fairly quickly, much easier than I had expected. So far, it is everything I have been dreaming about for two years, and I couldn't be happier.

At our welcome party last Friday night, one professor busted out a harmonica and a kick drum. Last week in class another discussed the South's potrayal in True Blood as being a sign of the postmodern condition. The classroom that 2 out of 3 of my classes are in is filled with original black and white prints of Faulkner, while the other classroom has a huge screenprint of Elvis hanging on the back wall. Yea, I could get used to this.

Wednesday immediately after class I am leaving to go back to Atlanta for Labor Day weekend. I can't wait. The Focus is finally getting painted (I scratched the right side of it up pretty badly two years ago and never had the resources to get it fixed), my best friend from high school will be in town, I'm going to my final Braves game of the season...so basically, all the makings of an amazing weekend at home.

A couple of pictures of the move:






On a final note, I have been to the farmer's market in the cool little neighboring town of Taylor a couple of times, and each time this contraption caught my eye.

It's a daybed that someone has wired to hang from your porch as a swinging bed, for lack of a better term, and HOLY CRAP, it is so comfortable. Seriously, one day I will measure the success of my life in terms of how many of these I own and use on a daily basis. My first paycheck from a real job is going to one of these, even if it breaks the bank. Sallie Mae, be damned, this is more important!

Last blog post from GA.

The day that I have been waiting for for a little over two years has finally come. This time tomorrow I will be chillin' in my new apartment in Oxford! Cannot wait to finally have a place that actually feels like it is mine. Not the basement apartment of someone's house. Not a boyfriend's apartment. Not my parent's house. MINE. ALL MINE.

Course materials for Southern Studies Seminar.

Needless to say, I cannot wait.

Ideal Sunday: Walk Drake up to Belly General Store w/BT. Sit outside, Drake in his own chair, while eating a fresh bagel & delicious OJ. Smile, make small talk with people passing by. Come home, lay askew on the bed with the Ninja Turtle blanket for an hour. Rise, eat a bowl of my latest obsession. Go to Target, get household supplies. Go to Old Navy, get tattoo-hiding-friendly Easter outfit. Run into Cheri & Christy. Go to Publix, get groceries & subs. Eat aforementioned subs, drink grape soda, watch Religulous. Call the family, talk about our week. Shamelessly watch Rock of Love. Sleep.

Today was an ideal Sunday...although it could be a little sunnier and maybe ten degrees warmer. While I truly am happy the drought is "officially" over...this kid wants some 75 degree, not a cloud in the sky, no chance of rain, days.

As far as grad school news go...I haven't registered yet, but it looks like I will be in the following courses:

• Southern Studies Graduate Seminar I (required for first-year students)
• Special Topics: The Global South
• Documentary Photography & Oral History

Um, stoked. Classes Mon, Tue, & Wed only. 1 - 3:30 on Monday, 4 - 6:30 on Tue/Wed. Hopefully I will be able to get a job on campus to soften the blow of the $25,000 of tuition alone for the next two years.

Getting really excited to move. Three and a half months left, roughly. Kind of sad, mainly happy. Ready for change. Don't regret taking a year off, but ready to achieve what I know I was meant to.

Finally! Something worth blogging about.

As I was leaving for work this morning, I checked the mail on a whim. A Victoria's Secret catalog, Brian's Sports Illustrated, some bills, and bam. There it sat. A scarily-thin envelope with a return address from the Center for the Study of Southern Culture at University of Mississippi. I managed to make it down the staircase and into my car where I called Brian and read him aloud the letter:

"I am pleased to inform you that the Southern Studies Graduate Committee has recommended your admission to our master of arts program. You have an outstanding record, and we are pleased to recognize your achievements."

I promptly burst into tears. In a good way, mind you. But yes, it is official. My dream for the past two years just became a reality. I am headed to Oxford, MS in a little over four months. I was just in the town two weeks ago to look at apartments and will be living at Lexington Pointe. Move in day is Friday, July 31st. As of right now, it will just be Drake & I headed westward, but if BT can find a job, he will be joining.

The only shitty thing: the program doesn't have adequate funding for me to have an assistantship. This means I need to cover roughly $6200/semester in tuition & fees on top of off-campus living expenses. Owch. At least I was lucky enough to graduate from college debt-free.

As a result of this as well, the search for my dream car, a Jeep Grand Cherokee, has been thwarted for the moment. No tuition waiver + no living stipend = major loans, which a car payment definitely does not need to be added to. Looks like the Focus will have to be my partner in crime for a couple more years. One day, Laredo, one day.

This day is really what I have been waiting for for a little over two months now. I feel so relieved. Nothing else has seemed to be of any importance, hence the lack of blog-age.

Well, I should probably take that back. I did see Billy Joel & Elton John last weekend with my dad, and it was amazing. I will never get over the way I feel when I hear him play live while sitting next to my dad. It's like being five again, riding around in the Saab in Raleigh. Definitely was worth the money, and I would see them again in a heartbeat. On the other hand, $40 for a shirt was not so amazing. If there was anything I learned that night, it is when one has a prominent Billy Joel tattoo, that much money for a tshirt with his face on it seems ridiculous.

Speaking of ink, I think I may go get my anchor tattoo tomorrow. I wanted to wait until I got my acceptance letter, since the tattoo will serve as my reminder to stay grounded during my time in Mississippi and to not forget where I came from. Just like the horseshoe will be my good luck charm as I go it alone in a new town. And let's be honest, I love traditional tattos.

I just want to be here. Now.

Longer update when I've finally completed this damn statement of purpose.

Set in motion.

Aah! It really is happening. Application, check. GRE scores, check. Transcript sent, check. Now time for letters of recommendation, writing sample, & 500-word statement of purpose...

This film from Lomography makes me think twice about selling my film Canon EOS. They sell it at Camera Doctor, so this kid might have to be making a little trip post-Christmas.

Chronic back pain rules. Except not.

December.

I hate leaving my house, much less venturing out into Atlanta, this time of year. People obsessing over what they are going to give (but really what they are going to get) for Christmas, driving like they should never have been giving a license, cramped parking lots, packed stores. I can't even go into WalMart to get freakin' contact solution and razors without having to wait behind someone with their carts filled to the brim with toys their kids won't play with in a year. Oh, American consumerism, you never fail me.

That said, I am glad my family isn't "doing" Christmas this year. The tree is still up & decorated at my parents' house, and I still will go home to visit & eat that day, but it's nice to not have to stress over the whole gift situation. The things I want this year aren't tangible (an acceptance letter and an assistantship paying my tuition, much?), and I have hardly any extra money to spend on gifts. Luckily for me, my parents (and boyfriend) aren't big on material things lately. I guess that comes with getting older, although I could argue against it for some 50-somethings I see...

Financial situation is stressful as ever. Hours have been majorly cut at work yet again, and literally 60% of my monthly income is going to rent when it should be something like 30%. I desperately need to pay off my credit card & save for grad school, and I'm not seeing it happening right now. I have a couple of options (really, just one - but it's a doozy) for moving, and I'm trying to weigh them out. Still have seven months before I move to Mississippi, so wherever I go until then has to be permanent.

I think my little brother is joining the Coast Guard. At first, I kind of freaked because it was out of the blue & it obviously still is considered themilitary, but after reading about it, it sounds like something he'd be really good at. He has to go to two months of basic training in NJ where our only contact with him is letters, which will be hard - we have never gone two months without talking. After he graduates from boot camp, he has five days of leave then gets stationed somewhere. I think he wants to be in Miami ("chasing drug lords & modern day pirates on the high seas" - his words, not mine). Dad knows, but Mom doesn't...yet. That's the Leonard children for you...always throwing Mom for a loop.

January brings the big guns out - AHC internship interview, grad school application being completed, the start of what will be the most stressful & exciting year of my life - and I can't wait.

Ok, and maybe I lied. There is something I would like for Christmas: