Pumpkins!

Halloween so of course what would I talk about but (not costumes) PUMPKINS! It absolutely shocks me how creative people are becoming these days. I saw someone cut out the Natty Boh face, a Baltimore Raven, and a Oriole's "O". I also had someone cut out the tree of life (every small branch). Another one I saw was an owl, cat, and bird. Then you have some people who kind of give up halfway through (it's actually such a difficult process), while others finish, but settle for the triangle eyes and curved mouth. It's interesting to see how much time people are willing to invest in certain things.

Eye of the Beholder

Going off the theme of a few days ago, I've been noticing the ideas of disrepair and worn-in and homey. I went to the Evergreen Museum a few days ago with my parents. I was admiring how the rooms looked like someone had lived in them, loved them, and felt comfortable in them. It looked like someone was just about to walk back in and sit down in the chair, kick their legs up, and relax. Nothing bothered me about the cracked leather seats with white stuffing spilling out, or the slightly peeling paint from the walls that was bubbling up. It looked real. My parents though,as soon as we got back in the car, mentioned how shocked they were about how in disrepair the whole museum was. I think this just goes to show, everything is in the eye of the beholder.

Animal Sounds

Something that I've been trying to pay attention to recently is sounds. There is an animal that lives by my building door and most nights when I go to go inside, the bushes next to me rustle (which is extremely disconcerting by the way). I've also been listening to crickets, and I find it so funny how they chirp, but when you're directly in front of them they stop. Then you walk a few steps and they start up again. You also can never see them. I think it's also interesting that you never hear bunnies. They just don't make sounds as they hop through the grass!

When to Repair?

How do we know when something needs to be fixed or it's just character? There's this one street I walk on and the sidewalks dip down or up, there's cracks running through them, and they're covered in spray paint. Along the way the houses paint is peeling, the stucco if chipping in strips from the steps, but there are flowers outside. I think it adds to the charm, yet it's certainly run-down and in need of repair. So when do you make that change?

Laughs

I think the way people laugh is actually quite funny (the reason some people laugh in fact). Some people bend over, gasping for air cause they're laughing go hard, other close both their eyes, some people laugh with one eye closed (guilty), and others laugh so hard they cry. Laughs themselves are funny. Some people's laughs sound like a great booming surprise, other's laughs sound like helium being let out of a balloon, while others "he he he". Some people also snort when they laugh, others jiggle up and down with their laughing. It's really fun to listen to all the different kinds.

Multiple Dimensions

I have a group text message with my friends and it’s interesting to see the multiple dimensions of a person. I want to believe that no person is completely flat. That everyone has different aspects, beliefs, and drives (or things that drive them). I almost started this saying that everyone has different parts to them, no one is completely flat, but then I could think of some people, but of course I don’t know them that well, so maybe if I did they wouldn’t be. But my friends at one point will be talking about how they want to go out and party and they talk about the stupid things they’ve done, and then the next day they’re talking about the tests they have, asking who wants to go study in the library, and asking if people want to join them on this academic adventure. It shows to me how Hopkins students can deal with the multiple scenarios thrown their way.

Frozen Animals

I was just walking back to my room when I passed a bunny. It stopped, frozen hoping I wouldn't see it. I've notice this tendency in many animals. The crickets stop chirping as you walk and then start up again. It's almost like, if you can't hear them you won't see them.

Life Styles

Today I've been noticing people's standards or view on things and how they differ from person to person. It's family weekend and my parents came out this year and my mother came with me to one of my classes (of course it's a 13 person literature section). It was interesting what she came away from the class with versus what I did. It has also been interesting to show my parents around and see what their thoughts are on the places I frequent. For example, I took them to Abbey Burger and they thought it was perfect, but then the way I treat my car isn't how they would. There are other examples, but it just reinforced for me that everyone has different styles and standards of living.

The Magic of Leaves

If you haven't notice from all of my posts yet, I am entranced by trees and leaves and the act of falling leaves. I wish I could write a poem that completely fills the reader with all the sense of wonder and beauty I get when I watch leaves fall. For one, it's a magical experience--because if you catch a falling leaf (which is actually really hard to do and you look like an idiot) your wish will come true! But watching falling leaves are not only beautiful because of the myriad of colors that make up one single leaf, but the way they dance and twirl in the air, and defy time to slowly float with no pattern down to the ground. So much can be seen by just looking at at tree.

Rain that Freezes

Today it rained again--big surprise it's Fall. But I thought it was so pretty, as I walked down the street fearlessly in my rain boots, how some of the leaves looked on the sidewalk. I know I've done something like this before, but that was after the rain, this is during the rain. While it was raining some of the leaves would curl up on their side, almost as if they were going into the fetal position or they were frozen in motion as they tried to flip and roll over. In there little lip they had gathered water and there were little pools. I just loved how they looked frozen, paused from every finishing the turn or curling up all the way.

Car Decorations

I work on Tuesdays and Thursdays down on 27th street and today as I walked there and back I tried to think of something to focus on. What I decided was to focus on the kinds of stickers people put on their cars. I think it shows commitment or a lack of care when people put stickers on their car. As I walked through down the sidewalk I noticed that for the most part there were only political stickers or school affiliations. There actually were not as many as I remember the cars back home have. My Grandpa's whole back mirror is covered in stickers from every university his grandchildren have attended. There were a few random stickers, one was a cat face, and another was a weird company.

Facial Features

I've started to watch people's faces more as they talk. It has in turn made me more cognizant of my own facial expressions. Now whenever I talk I consciously think of how my face must be looking. There is one person who I've talked to a couple times today and she rarely looks you in the eyes, laughs with her mouth open, and always say, "Oh, boy". When she does she usually has her hand on her forehead, her head is tilted back and she stares at the ceiling. There is another person who I've talked to a few times. He makes direct eye contact (it's unnerving) and his nostrils suck in when he breaths. He never smiles, and his nostril thing is very distracting. The two ends suck in and sometimes it's all I see (so bad, I know).

An Alternate Life

So I went pumpkin picking today around an hour outside of Baltimore. We drove through small towns on our way there instead of on a freeway. I always get very pensive on long rides (if you can't tell from my last few posts) and I started to notice the scenery change from tall buildings, no nature, and chain stores, to forests, winding roads, and spacious houses mixed with quant small town stores. My car started to talk about how nice it would be to have a house out in the middle of nowhere. And I noticed an elderly couple moving a plant along their porch, an abandoned tricyle in a driveway, and pumpkins in flower pots. All little signs that hinted at a life so different from ours that we could never experience, but only imagine about. At the pumpkin patch we were the only people our age. Everyone else was either extremely young or middle-age. So not only were our lives in completely different places, but we also dressed very differently. Whereas most of my group had on sunglasses and boots, all the other moms had jeans, tennis shoes, and were dressing more for comfort. It's weird to think that our lives right now are so different from how they're going to be in ten years, and soon we'll be in the tennis shoes.

The Imaginations of Rides

I'm not sure if this is everyone, but I love to take train or car rides and just watch the window. I love to see the little houses and imagine living there or the lives that are led there. I love to see the forests, the trees changing color (as a California girl I'll never get over that) and imagine walking or flying through the forest. As I was actually imagining that a deer got spooked by the moving train and took off into the forest and all I wanted to do was follow it!I also saw a skeleton of some animal, which was down all the way to the bones, completely white and intact, by the train tracks. I was completely shocked by it because it must have been there for a while. How could it not have been moved? I was all around shocked.

The Moment I Realized I Was Royalty

So I'm on the train to DC and I just saw the most beautiful thing. There are these plants, green stalks with big bushy white tops and the train isn't moving fast anymore because of some issue (of course). I'm looking out the window just loving how colorful the trees are in the fall when we roll past these plants. Since the train is moving forward, the plants turn with the wind from the train and the bushy tops and stalks one by one turn to my left and bow to the train. It was absolutely gorgeous watching them all move as one and bend as if the train and man was a ruler to the plant.

Pondering over Passerbys

Today I tried to focus on people as they walked by, kind of study them. This was surprisingly difficult because I kept making awkward eye contact with a lot of people. But I saw one man walk by, head straight up and proud, put together with an earring. Another person I saw walk by had a lot of flowy garments on, her cardigan kept slipping and she was covered in tattoos. She had a butterfly with a skull in the middle, a skull to the side of that, and then another very colorful one which I assumed had a skull but it was on the side of her leg and I couldn't see. I also saw a very small asian girl walk by, hands hugging her backpack straps at the top, eyes on the floor. It really made me realize how different we all are.

Reactions to Bad News

Bad news. I recently received some, well a group of us did and I started watching people's reactions. I myself started to cry, never having known the person who had passed away. I saw other's whose eyes, just got red, some remained strong and stoic, and more people who didn't know the person began to cry as well. Some people wanted to talk about it, remain as a group, other's closed off, drew into themselves, and other's just wanted to be alone. I think the severity and the proximity of bad news can affect people in different ways. I also have a tendency to laugh and smile in uncomfortable situations, which I did last night when I also received bad news. But I think the seriousness affects my reaction.

The Sounds of Sound

I think sound is such an interesting sense. Even as I sit here typing I hear the letter keys click and create their own music. I hear the buzzing of my electronics, the whooshing air from my air vent, the turnstiles clicking and the door opening and shutting outside my window. I hear footsteps on the stairs, knocks on doors and voices talking. We are never without sound. I think to be without it would be extremely scary and nerve-wracking.

Aggressive Aggresion

Today I had powderpuff, and let me tell you it was interesting to see how different people handle competition and stress. I was also cool to see how many different ways bodies could bend. I say one girl dive through someone's arms with one foot stretched out. I saw other girls doing the splits. I also saw those who acted fairly and those who let anger take over them. Some girls when they got angry would start swearing, while others remained stone faced, wouldn't talk to anyone and would just get mean. It was a very interesting lesson in how people handle themselves in an aggressive sitaution. And it really brought out people's true colors.

The Colors of Baltimore

I've noticed that Baltimore is a very colorful city. I was walking along 27th and every row house splits in half and has at least two different colors, usually with more trim. There are also, window boxes painted bright colors, and flowers in that. I appreciate how comfortable with color this city is. It's nice because it says a lot about the spirit of Baltimore and the people.

Which Walk do you Walk?

I think the way people walk can be funny. What really brought this to my mind is because one of my friends told me she has to consciously move her arms when she walks. Then I started to think of how awkward she would look if she didn't move her arms. Then I started watching people. People run to class, backpack bouncing, legs moving speedily underneath. Or they slowly meander, headphones in, looking at the phone in their hands as they text. Some walk quickly and with a purpose, others walk slowly and leisurely and chit chat with their friends. I found it interesting to think about the different types of walks you can have.

A Whole New World

Puddles are probably one of my favorite things to see as I walk. I love to look in them from afar and watch the world upside down, and somehow more magical, pass by. I think it's just more exciting because it has a shiny glow to it because of the water's reflection. I also feel like there are always trees when I walk by puddles. I think it's also interesting how the world shrinks down to fit into this new world inside the puddle where everything is tinnier and the opposite.

Tree Bark

One thing I've noticed, is that tree bark is almost like the clothes of trees. I guess, kind of anything that a tree puts on is like it's clothes. Whether it is ivy wrapping itself around, or a twisted branch that climbs up from the bottom. There is this one kind of bark that is wrinkled and lined like an old man. There is also a tree bark that is pealing brown, but the rest of the bark is white, grey (dark and light) and brown. It's nice to walk around and see what kind of outfits trees are wearing.

Air Circles of Perfection

I would like to know why air always forms bubbles. There is a bottle of hand sanitizer in front of me and it's gloppy liquid is interrupted from smoothness by little air bubbles. Some of them are tiny, like the top of a pin, and others are bigger, about one half of the size of a pen cap. But for the most part they are seemingly perfectly round. Are they true magical circles? Others are elongated into ovals. But why are those ones ovals and the others circles? I don't understand why air forms bubbles and not odd shapes, or why they don't just rise to the surface and disappear. It's pretty, but I don't understand the science behind it (and I'm sure there is some).

Light and Leaves

Light I've found is a very powerful tool. It actually creates the color that you will see. The absence of it hinders you from seeing any color and too much of it also hinders you from even being able to open your eyes. Without light (total darkness) you would even lose your ability to see. So in regards to the way it creates the color you see, just look into a tree on a sunny day. The part of the leaves that are hit by the sun glow almost neon and transparent. But the underside is dark, opaque, and takes on a sort of grey color--the direct opposite of the bright green leaf. I think that's one of the reasons leaves can be so pretty. They aren't just ever one color.

Handwriting is the key to Personality

Handwriting is interesting. I think it can almost say a lot about a person. My handwriting I would describe as almost flowy. Instead of making my letters straight lines, they curve and loop. I know other handwriting that is almost like a typewriter it is so straight and tiny. Another person I met would write almost illegibly, and all their handwriting coincided with their personality. I am more easygoing and okay with almost anything. The girl who had very small, straight handwriting, was very put together, hair never out of place, and always dressed well. The person whose handwriting didn't makes sense was very crazy and didn't care about anything. It's interesting to think that our handwriting is almost an outward description of our personality.

Prisoners vs. Capturers

Fall is officially here, I have decreed it. I was walking by the football field and there were some leaves, crunchy and brown, that had flown up and gotten caught in the black diamond fence. There were only a few of them and kind of spread out, and it reminded me of a prison. It looked almost like they had been sucked in and weren't allowed to leave. I then walked around the corner and saw a vine that had wrapped itself around the pole. This was very interesting because it gave me the other feeling, that it had captured the pole and would not let go.

Baltimore and the Case of the Bad Streets.

The sidewalks in Baltimore. All I can say is that I'm glad I'm not a blind person, because if I was I wouldn't be able to walk anywhere. I don't understand how any city can try to be beautiful and can ask for tourists to visit or move there, when people can't easily walk down the street. Although, to play devils advocate, it is sort of pretty to see a wave of up and down in front of you instead of an infinity of flatness. But i'm just so surprised by some of it's rundownness. It's dangerous. Sidewalk cracks are uneven, or there are huge chunks missing. There was one example where the dip to get up on the sidewalk from the street had this huge black tar growth and it was bubbly and sticky. I just don't get it Baltimore.