Jenna's House of Idiosyncrasies Version 10.0 [Focus.]

A House Christmas Eve Tradition. Read More »

Top 10 things that will not endear me to your Myspace profile, my new Holgaroid, TV on DVD

Jack and Diet Cokes; Union Bombs; the whimsical speak of the shights; letting drunk friends crash on my floor; drinking to forget; lots and lots of flirting; my new camera

I just got a new digital camera.

I believe I'm engaging in shopping as therapy.

My phone crashed today. In order to uncrash it, I had to take the battery out.

I lost all my graphics, all my games, but most importantly, all my numbers.

Yes, tech savvy Jenna Tollerson was relying on her phone memory instead of her SIM card to keep her address book, and is now disconnected from the universe.

So, when you read this, give me a brief call and let me know who you are so I can resave you.

K?

This morning I woke up the first time my alarm went off.

This never happens.

I'm fairly certain it worked this time because I've replaced the squawk! squawk! squawk! of my clock radio with my new mobile phone alarm, playing my Love in an Elevator ringtone.

I climbed out of bed, did the morning thing. I had time to make French bread pizza for breakfast, take a lot of vitamins to combat the cold I am suffering from, and give some clear thought to my goals for the day. I wasn't feeling terribly chipper about going to class, but I was making good time, and if I booked it I'd only be about a minute late.

I pulled on my lucky hat, started up the iPod and bounded down the stairs.

At the second floor landing I nearly ran into a guy coming out of the hall right off the stairs. In a gentlemanly move he motioned me past him. I smiled and rushed down the steps.

I ended up going a little faster than I cared to.

I'm not sure what the liquid on the stairs was. It looked like water, but it could have been anything. Whatever it was, it was grimy and oily. I remember thinking—in the moment just before I stepped right into it, gliding across it, losing my footing and sliding down half a flight of stairs at a high speed—that I should maybe try to avoid the splotches of liquid, a trail leading down decorating a dozen steps.

The world swirled for a moment while I was airborne, and then I was swept back to reality by the pain. The lovely pain. I do know now that, despite habitual binge drinking, all my nerve endings are still working.

The young man who had ushered me past (and in light of this, I must say I feel especially terrible that I can't conjure up his face in my head for the life of me) came down the stairs and genuinely expressed concern.

“Are you okay?”

Gasp. Squint. “No—” I strained through gritted teeth, “—definitely not.”

I was still sitting where I had landed, contemplating what it was going to feel like to stand. He stood there in front of me, looking half-worried and half-obligated, and offered to stay there for a moment, presumably in case I couldn't get up on my own.

I insisted this was not necessary. “No—go ahead.” I spoke with a tightened chest and short, abbreviated breaths. I think I was trying not to cry.

The gentlemen left. I sat there for a moment, pondering blowing off class, walking back upstairs, laying down on the couch and sobbing for awhile. However, at this point, it seemed much less painful to go down stairs than climb back upstairs, so I took a deep breathe and stood.

It hurt even more than I thought it would.

Where I stood, I face a wall where someone had scrawled a too-late warning.

“Be Safe”

The final verdict? I twisted my shoulder when I grabbed for the rail, my right wrist is still throbbing from when I landed on it, and there are a few ungrateful spots on my back and spine that came into violent contact with the stairs when I flipped backwards. I'm a mess.

“Plus,” I told Neil later, “I probably have a bruise on my ass the size of Texas.”

being addressed as baby doll and blue eyes, getting various aspects of the life under control, the thought of not having a cold anymore, getting a C on my Anthro test without studying at all (that's what I was aiming for), flickr, del.icio.us, my new mobile phone (it's got a camera and two color screens, the phone is the sex), being potentially excited again about doing more unpaid design for family members (why?!? Why do I do that?!? :) )

guests holed up with us during the ice “storm”, being told with alarming frequency that I look like I've lost weight, talking to Abie (because she makes me feel important), being able to drive again (got the busted window fixed finally), remembering once again what it's like to be broke and not minding as much as I should, finally any music I want to hear at any given time, all the time

I want this camera.

What I need in the meantime.

My next MP3 player.

Perfect cell phone accessory.

Everyone needs one of these.

I wonder if this really works.

And finally, I have seen the future.

Stop acting like you've never seen a geek before.