With football season well underway, I bet I can guess how a lot of your Saturdays pan out:

7 a.m.: Wake up. Still drunk from the bar last night? Mayyyybe.

9 a.m.: Arrive at the football stadium; crack your first beer.

9 a.m.-Noon: Tailgate your face off. Tailgating activities may or may not include: Beer pong, funneling, shotgunning, and general raging.

Noon: Kickoff. You’re highly buzzed, but still careful not to spill your overpriced stadium beer as you shake your foam finger at the other team.

7 p.m.: You pass out. Hey, it was a long day, man.

Now that’s what I call a waste of a Saturday night. I know that rallying for almost 12 hours straight can take its toll. Especially when you’re running on a few hours of sleep after a killer Friday night. But if you pace yourself, and plan your evening effectively, there’s no reason that you can’t take in both the football game and a killer kegger (or two). Read More »

Wow, so how about Medium last Monday night, huh?

The premiere episode was just OK, but with this one I could tell that Glenn Gordon Caron and the writers have really shot straight back up to the level of tension, mystery, and all-around awesomeness they had reached at the peak of last season.

I loved seeing more about Ariel, especially now that she’s blossoming into the snide teenager that everyone hates. After that episode, I’m beginning to think she should have been born in the ’70s, because the huge hair and earrings the size of small yachts really suited her.

I’m still not sure about Ameritips Woman, though (what the hell is her name, anyway? Cynthia or something old-ladyish like that?). Anjelica Huston is a great actress, no doubt, but whenever I look at her, all I can think about is how strongly she resembles a horse. Read More »

Days as a Freshman: 113
Mood: Smiling

“There’s a bench back here.”

I pushed the last couple of bare branches out of my way and walked into a man-made clearing in the back of the campus woods. Justin was sitting in the middle of the small space, sitting on the bench, his eyes on the stars.

The way his sweatshirt was pulled around his head, the way his mouth was slightly open in concentration, the way his eyes traced the clear night skyline above us, made it easy to see what he must have looked like as a boy. Skinny and sweet, adorable because he didn’t know it, innocent for longer than most other kids. Maybe I was making it all up, maybe the dark was making me seen things that weren’t there, but in the moment before he looked at me, I really thought I had seen all I needed to know about Justin.

“Come on over.” He smiled. “The stars are awesome.” Read More »

Days as a Freshman: 111
Mood: Cold and happy

“I didn’t know you knew Sammy.”

Justin and I walked away from the dorms, down a side path on the outskirts of campus, our breath grey against the dark shadows of the woods.

“I didn’t know you knew her.” The cold night air was scratching at my hands. I stuffed them into my pockets and gripped the fabric, flexing the ice out of my fingers. “You could have told me.”

“It never came up.” Justin pulled his sweatshirt hood over his head, jumping onto a small wooden bridge that led into the woods. “Wanna go down here for a bit? It might snow.”

“You sure nothing wild will eat me?” I joined him on the bridge. “I have finals tomorrow.”

“There’s nothing wild in these woods, kid. Believe me.”

Justin disappeared into the tall pines and I followed close behind, wishing I at least had a hat, and wondering just when I was going to go over my notes for the big English final on Monday.

Justin had knocked on Sammy’s door just to say hi, stopping dead in the doorway when he saw Rebecca and I. His eyes slid around the room, bouncing off our faces, his mouth trying to decide what exactly should come out first. Feeling the air pulling tight around everyone, I decided to do something I don’t normally do and spoke up. Read More »

Days as a Freshman: 95
Mood: Stuffed

“So…” I clicked the old flashlight onto a brighter option and pulled my hat farther down onto my face. “How was Thanksgiving at your aunt’s?”

Even though I had secretly wished he had forgotten, Daniel B. had arrived at my house a few minutes after 7 on Thanksgiving night, a giant blue coat around his skinny frame and a round plate covered in tinfoil in his hands. I had prepared my parents and my two sets of aunts and uncles for his possible arrival, but as soon as I saw his twitching face behind our glass door, I knew all the preparation in the world couldn’t save this night from becoming extremely awkward.

After an hour of good-natured attempts at questions around our large wooden table, I had suggested Daniel B. and I take my old dog Spud out for a walk. My dad’s bushy white eyebrows went up at that suggestion, and I did my best to shoot him a “don’t get any stupid ideas” look.

Usually, you invite a guy to take a walk at night because you want to make things romantic. This invitation had nothing to do with romance, and everything to do with alleviating some of the unwieldy tension in the air.

Once we were outside, our boots crunching against a tiny layer of snow that had fallen on the quiet street, my body started to relax and I could breathe normally again. I mean, I loved my parents, but my mom and dad were both older, around 65, and often didn’t comprehend me as well as I wanted them to. I don’t think they understood that I had I invited Daniel B. over out of politeness. I think they actually thought I liked him. Read More »

Days as a Freshman: 71
Mood: Wanting to be blank

“Grace? Are you listening? I’ve been screaming your name for like 5 minutes.”

Stacey’s reflection stared at me from the mirror, her eyes heavy with pink glitter. Her whole body was heavy with pink glitter, actually. If I didn’t know any better, I would think my roommate was dressing up as one of those marshmallow birds that take over drugstores in the Spring. Peeps. That’s what they were called, and that’s exactly what Stacey looked like.

“Sorry, I was reading.” Pulling my scarf tighter around my neck, I leaned back in my chair and gave Stacey my full attention. She’d never shut up if I didn’t. “What are you supposed to be again?”

“I’m Jem. Isn’t it obvious? This hair is great, huh?” Straightening a short fuchsia wig on her head, Stacey looked back into her own eyes.

“Oh. Jem. 80’s cartoon. I get it.” I closed my history book and rubbed my face. The words had been jumbling together for the last 30 minutes. I couldn’t concentrate.

“Aren’t you coming out tonight?” Stacey popped her pink gum and applied more pink blush. “You can’t spend Halloween inside, Grace.”

“Rebecca and I might walk around for a little while later.”

“Rebecca?” Stacey’s expression went sour. “How can you stand to hang out with that girl? She’s so weird.”

“I don’t think she’s weird.” Read More »

Days as a Freshman: 40
Mood: Been better

“What’s up?”

Laughing, Sasha let Naima lead him over to Crystal and I. The speakers were booming, people were shouting, and my head was swimming. Everyone around me was drunk. Everyone around me was having a fantastic time at the first dance of the year.

But I was stone cold sober. And panicking. And inches away from the boy I was in love with.

“Grace seriously has something to tell you.” Naima laughed, looking at me and winking the most obvious wink anyone has ever seen in their life. “She would have called you over here herself but she’s too shy!”

Wiping a patch of sweaty hair from his forehead, Sasha looked at me and smiled. The way his eyes landed lazily on my face made it pretty obvious that he was in the same condition as my friends. “What’s up, Grace? You’re shy?”

“No! Naima is just grabbing anyone she can!” I yelled over the rumbling bass and did my best to mimic the sloshing movements of everyone else around me. Just because I wasn’t drunk didn’t mean I couldn’t pretend.

“She is?” Sasha tried to turn to find her, but Naima and Crystal were back next to the wall a few feet away, covertly sharing Crystal’s flak. “That’s pretty weird, huh?” Read More »