An annotated to-do list.

1. Read chapters I-XIX of "The Emperor's Tomb" by Joseph Roth, and Chapter Six of "Budapest 1900" by John Lukacs for my class titled: "Coffehouses, Catastrophe, and Culture: East Central Europe in a Century of Upheaval." It's a pretty interesting course with a fabulous name. The professor is a bit difficult to follow at times, and there's a lot of reading but I like taking a class in something I really don't know much about. Maybe that's why I have a hard time with the readings. The history we're learning about is so complex, and I have no context for it. In a few weeks I'll have to synthesize all this information I've been trying to grasp into a paper, and I don't know how I'll do that. It just feels like all these tidbits right now. Ah well, at least the Roth book has a cover that will surely make me look sexy when I inevitably retreat to a coffee shop to make myself read it. Holy Moses I am such a tool sometimes.

2. Keep looking for paid summer internships, write cover letters for them. I hate writing cover letters. Them and resumes are probably the only form of writing that I honestly don't enjoy. Their sole purpose is to make it easier for someone else to judge my worth. But at least I'm flexible in what I'll be doing. I just want to find an organization that has a mission I'm passionate about, so I can get coffee and sweep floors for a small stipend and still feel good about myself. My current number one choice is being a Print Intern at StoryCorps. Their offices are in Brooklyn, so it would be a bit of a hike from where I live, but I so love what they do. As a Print Intern I would get to work closely with the stories they collect, and even pick ones to be featured in the books and CDs. Talk about inspiration for a writer. Plus, they'd give me a stipend to cover food, Metrocards, and train tickets.

3. CLEAN MY ROOM. Oh Lord, this is important. I think that once I get this done everything else will fall into place. Right now, there is a pile of clothes on my chair that is taller than my bed; my desk and dresser are receptacles for otherwise homeless objects. The funny thing is, I'd probably clean my room if it wasn't so messy. It's just overwhelming now. If I had a roommate, she'd probably have a blog about how messy I am, and keep posting pictures of my side of the room.

That was cathartic. I'm sure if I wracked my brain some more I could think of more shit I need to do, but I'll spare everyone. I will say though, that I was listening to Sigur Ros while writing that list, and it made it a lot less stressful than it could have been. They sure do make beautiful music to do everything to. Except have sex. I don't think I could ever have sex to Sigur Ros. All that soaring falsetto would make things a bit awkward.

Peace, Love, and Semicolons,
Lisa