(a particularly pretty spring day in Chicago last week; on our way to dim sum...yum)
It's funny, but I saw an ad on my Facebook page mentioning something about a Pgh bucket list (I hate that Facebook spies on me, by the way, but here I am spouting to the world! Hello, world!). So, here's my list for before I leave this August (sniffle):Andy Warhol museumMattress FactoryPirates gameFalling WaterGettysburgbowling, againanother hot dog (or two) from Dee'swalk or two down the Strip
...because I've been so busy with graduate school.
I love living in Pittsburgh, although it's quite cold right now (not nearly as cold as Chicago, nor as cold as Vermont usually was, but my apartment...well...she makes me cry).
Since no one reads this blog except for me (hello, empty room!), I'm going to blog about how crummy I feel.
I am broke.
My eyes are twitching (yes, for real. The right one is kind of...twittering, on and off).I think this is from reading too much.
Yesterday, I cried in front of some of my grad-school 'friends'.
And I put friends in quotes because, well, they're not really friends.They're people I talk to in class.They are very nice, and very supportive, but I am still by myself in my apartment. With too much homework.
Going a little crazy.
I am waiting for the cable man because Comcast screwed up.
So what will make me feel better?
Boston Terriers. Any dog, really.
Fall, especially in Vermont.
Scarves.
Hot chocolate.
I feel slightly better already...
Lots of homework, these days, and schedule that keeps me up (and wakes me up!) at odd hours. I rarely have time to surf the web (tear) and keep up with blogs and readings I enjoy (mostly reading things I don't enjoy). A coworker at the library turned me on to this amazing site, and I had to look through it.
Pitt and several partners have collaborated to create digital archives of historic Western Pennsylvania. One archive in particular, the Smoke Control Lantern Slides, is absolutely breath-taking. Before 1941, at the height of industry, Pittsburgh (which basically sits in a bowl in the earth) had ridiculously terrible air-quality. Apparently men who worked downtown brought 2 shirts to work because by midday, the first show would be completely soiled. You can read about the legislation passed to clean the air on the site, and see shocking before and after pictures.
This one is my absolute favorite.
(photo Smoky Church, ca. 1940, creator unknown, via the Historic Pittsburgh Digital Library as cited above)Good night!
So far I'm really liking Pittsburgh. I had a chance to explore last weekend when my sister came out here with me, and then when E visited for a few days.
There are some really neat things to do and see:
*the strip district (this gritty, wonderful market area; fish, flowers, cheese, pasta, spices, you name it)*funicular trains (Pittsburghers take them to work up the mountain!)
*lots of yummy restaurants (Pho Minh, D'z, Primanti Bros.)
I had two days of orientation after E left; I'm excited about my program and the people in it. My particular concentration (school librarianship) has a wonderful set of women (yes, all women!) who seem perfectly suited for what we're doing. I think everyone is pretty dedicated to this, and I am, by far, the oldest person in the program. I'm a little worried about this whole writing papers thing.
All that said, I really miss Chicago. Odd, since I was having plenty of it the past year. I also miss E, and I know that this first month is going to be hard.
With that, I leave you with this amazing photograph that put a lump in my throat.
(via maplesyruponly's flickr photostream. thank you, it's beautiful)
