Newseum Opening Day 2008. Credit to some of these photos goes to Harrison Keely.

I purchased a $10 Newseum ticket on Groupon a long time ago because: 1. the Newseum is my favorite D.C. museum; 2. a normal ticket costs $21; 3. do I need any more reasons?  I didn’t have a visit planned for the foreseeable future when I purchased it, but I figured I would think of a reason eventually. Of course, when I got the “Remember to use your Groupon” email, I had forgotten to use my Groupon. So, having Mondays free, I rallied this past Monday and headed into D.C. to USE MY GROUPON.

HUGE museum!

I justified this by thinking I would read on the metro and then at the museum when I tired of exhibits, so I got some schoolwork done as well. Yeah, that didn’t happen. I immediately got caught up in the museum and, next thing I knew, it was closing time. Typical Katherine museum experience.

Newseum Opening Day 2008 on the Pennsylvania Terrace--amazing view, right? (HK)

Opening Day 2008, me, Jessica, Ashley, and Jez with the Berlin Wall. (HK)

I have a special connection with the Newseum. If you’ve been reading, you know that I have a background in journalism. It was one of my majors in undergrad, and it led me to freelancing for several newspapers, traveling to South Africa to write stories on poverty/AIDS, co-managing my college newspaper, and interning for a semester in D.C. For a while, I thought journalism was “it” but, as I began applying to journalism grad schools, I was majorly dragging my feet and I realized why: I didn’t want to do it anymore. I was frustrated, fed up, and just plain tired of journalism, and I hadn’t even graduated with my Bachelor’s! I figured this was probably not a good sign, so I switched paths.

Compare the emptiness of the Pulitzer Prize Exhibit in 2008 when we got in early to... (HK)

...the not so emptiness of it earlier this week.

But, this blog is not about that. Let’s talk about Opening Day at the Newseum, 2008, as I had the good fortune of being in D.C. the spring the Newseum had its grand opening. Our teachers gave us a free day and my whole program (all 9 of us) trekked to the Newseum to experience it. We were met with an OVERWHELMING crowd on Pennsylvania Avenue. After waiting in line for a bit, we learned that one of the guys had gotten an early admission by saying he was a journalist, as they had been letting in journalists since 6 a.m. Since we were technically journalists, we tried our hand at doing this and succeeded! The museum employee totally knew she probably shouldn’t let us in, but gave us a one over, shook her head, and said “You all seem like good kids. Just this once.”

The Newseum's huge glass elevators. (HK)

The Pennsylvania Terrace again.

So that’s how I was able to experience the Newseum almost totally empty and silent for the first 30 minutes before it opened to the public. I think this is why I love the Pulitzer Prize winning photos exhibit so much, because I experienced it before the flocks descended. Plus, we saw white-suit wearing, legen-DARY Tom Wolfe! It was fantastic.

Since then, I’ve been back to the museums three times—two of them this week, as my ticket was good for two days and I wasn’t going to waste that.

So here are 15 reasons why you should add the Newseum to your D.C. experience:

1. It’s ENORMOUS. You could literally spend an entire day there.

2. It has a variety of exhibitis that make it family-friendly and people-friendly in general. You can wander from the Berlin Wall exhibit to the interactive reporter experience to the “History of Journalism” floor, where you’ll find old newspaper clippings, the famous Watergate door, and more.

Freedom of Press map.

3. A few of the exhibits change regularly, providing a new exhibit almost every visit. For example, when I went there over the summer, the top-floor exhibit was dedicated to Hurricane Katrina. This time around, it was “Every Four Years,” an exhibit dedicated to presidential races that had bowling pins signed by Obama and SNL memorabilia from the 2008 campaign.

WEEKEND UPDATE STUFF! I only wish Tina Fey and Amy Poehler had actually been there....

4. PHOTOGRAPHS AND VIDEOS. Oh my goodness, I love this in museums. The Pulitzer Prize winning photographs are amazing and a must-see. They also have a large screen set up on one floor that screens clips from Jon Stewart, Stephen Colbert, and SNL’S Weekend Update. Any museum that makes me laugh is A-OK with me.

5. The 9/11 exhibit. No matter how many times you visit this part or how many years pass, it will still make you cry. Trust me: when you watch the video feature they play non-stop, your eyes will at least tear up. This exhibit also features newspaper clippings from 9/12/01, a timeline of the day’s events, and the crushed remains of the North Tower’s antenna—which a kid, this last time, asked his mom if it was a “rocket ship.”

A must-see in the Newseum.

6. SO MANY EXHIBITS! You won’t believe it. And they have an incredibly impressive collection of artifacts, ranging from the aforementioned things to news helicopters, presidential memorabilia, possessions of well-known journalists, to the Uni-Bomber’s cabin. That’s right! It’s crazy. It’s not disappointing, like the CIA Museum.

Presidential stuff! Obama bowling pin, Hillary's red jacket, and other stuff.

7. An awesome gift shop. I know this will interest some people. Me included.

8. Amazing views from the two available balconies—the top one provides a clear picture of the Capitol and features a timeline of events that have taken place on Pennsylvania Avenue. The lower balcony has chairs and tables and makes a perfect reading spot—thus the reason I returned a second day.

I love this patio. A must-see part in warm weather visits.

9. Plenty of staff members.

10. Today’s front newspaper pages, featuring the front pages from a newspaper in every state and various countries around the world. I looked at Memphis’s this last time: both days, the top story was about something drug related. AWESOME.

The patio again with museum in background.

11. The museum is enormous, and can be confusing if you don’t follow the “Begin here” signs and do your own thing—which, let’s be honest, is what I always do, not because I’m super rebellious, I just have a problem with signs. But, if you really do “Begin here,” the tour starts on the lower floor, then takes you to the top floor before winding all the way back down, and it makes PERFECT SENSE.

Another shot of the group I studied with and miss dearly! (HK)

12. HUGE CAFETERIA. I’ve never eaten there, but I know that must be a bonus for some people.

13. The museum will totally confirm your faith in journalists, if only for the foreseeable future. Since you’re able to see journalism’s long history, and the good it has done in the past, you’ll almost forgive some of those channels and shows today that call themselves journalists. I’m sorry, but Nancy Grace??

The walk to the Newseum.

14. It provides what a museum dedicated to news SHOULD provide—the history of news, journalism, and journalists.

15. It’s an incredible learning experience that doesn’t feel like a typical museum or a classroom. That’s how I would sum up the Newseum overall, and what makes it so much fun. You may spend an entire afternoon there, but you won’t leave drained of energy, or feeling as if your brain is fried from reading too many tiny plaques on museum walls.

There you have it, folks. Don’t let the $21 ticket scare you away, or the hoards of school groups that are flooding D.C. this spring for the routine “7th Grade Trip to the Capital” field trip. Just do it, you’ll thank yourself later.

Tired of seeing this message.

This is the story of the little Roku box that couldn’t.

You see, I bought this handy little box back last August because I was excited about all the media possibilities that it would make available for me. Netflix? Hulu? Pandora? Other stuff? And all from the same place!?!?!? I was pumped.

But then I ran into my first road bump: the UMD internet. Turns out, when you have a secondary device like this one, you have to register it online. No big deal, right? Except, for some reason, the university IT wasn’t recognizing me as an on-campus resident. Awesome, right?

NO. This little hiccup began the biggest headache of my life. Okay, that’s an exaggeration, but it was annoying for sure. I needed to be recognized as a university resident to even complete step one on this process, which meant I had to call the IT Department for their assistance. And that right there poses a problem.

The only way I can currently get my ethernet cable to reach the Roku....

I hate, HATE, making phone calls, especially to annoying departments with people I don’t know who make you stay on the line for sometimes up to 30 minutes and then get frustrated with you within the first 10 seconds as if YOU were the one keeping them on hold for 30 minutes.

Not that that has been my personal experience, or anything.

The first few times I tried to coordinate with IT to fix my problem, the process always failed, or the IT person never followed through. So I went through one semester without being able to use my little Roku box. And I had pretty nearly forgot about him until….

Last time I found a creepy crawler in my apartment...nice surprise right? I wasn't even scared after the initial shock of opening my drawer and founding him there, just curious as to how he got there in the first place.

Rahul subtly brought it up in conversation, motivating me to finally follow through with IT. They finally recognized my resident status, and I was finally able to register my computer and Roku box. And then….

MY ROKU BOX STILL DIDN’T WORK.

So now I don’t know what to do. I guess it’s Netflix on my computer for the time being. But if anyone knows why, when I plug an Ethernet into my Roku box and the Roku completes all the set-up before telling me “Try again,” then please, please help me. Rahul is going to try helping me too, and he’s a pretty big genius when it comes to matter of technology. But if I keep getting the failure message, this might happen.

In other news, I have some kind of scary bug-mouse-uncertain-what-it-is living in my radiator. AWESOME.

Ebenezer's.

On Monday, I had big plans to visit a new coffee shop in D.C. that a friend in my program recommended, Big Bear Café. But I had to make an unplanned visit to the Verizon store to get my phone replaced (fun times) and, when I left 30 minutes later with a phone that still wasn’t working, I decided to skip navigating a new part of the city on my own, as I’m terrible with directions (East, North, West, South, what??), and went back to one of my favorites, Ebenezer’s near Union Station.

Ebenezer's.

I’ve mentioned Ebenezer’s before, but I’ll spend more time on it this time. I was introduced to Ebenezer’s in spring 2008 while studying at the Washington Journalism Center. Our teachers took us there for coffee every Friday, which proved the positives to having a regular spot to continually return to (the “Friends” cast really was on to something). We spent our Friday afternoons talking about our internships, journalism classes, and our lives in general, before jetting off to free taco night at the National Press Club—damn, I miss that semester long pass.

I come back here from time to time because it’s familiar and they make a delicious toffee nut latte. Plus, they have lots of space (two floors), different kinds of seating, and FREE STICKERS. Oh, and free wi-fi.

Where the yummy stuff is made.

I claimed a cozy chair that looked out on 2^nd street and got a little writing and reading done—you know, the good ol’ stuff. After I left, I walked up 2^ndstreet by the building where I used to intern before

My cozy spot.

making the short journey back to Union Station. At first, I was preoccupied with playing with my replacement phone (I finally got it working) until I remembered something the main speaker at this Student Affairs conference I attended last Friday said. I usually try not to name drop, or make cheesy connections like this, but I like something this guy, Kevin Carroll, had to say: that we are the generation that pays more attention to our electronics when walking then the rest of the world.

The walk back, who would want to miss this?

Union Station under construction? And with a Potbelly? Two very exciting things to learn.

Oh, man, I am so bad at this. Don’t get me wrong—when I’m just walking, sans electronics, I am guilty of wanting to know everything that’s going on around me. But when I’m tuned into my phone, or iPOD, I risk the chance of missing things like this, or Pete the Homeless Guy, who lived on the street corner just up from Ebenezer’s back in 2008, and would always tell us how many days there were till the weekend, or “No skinny dipping”—which we never really got to the bottom of in terms of understanding his message. But, point is, since a big part of going to D.C. for me is the whole D.C. part, I put my phone down and just enjoyed my walk.

Would have missed this sunset on campus after D.C. if I hadn't noticed this man taking a picture of it.

Valentine's for the PSK's, just like elementary school!

House Mom love.

In other news, VALENTINE’S DAY! This is holiday everyone should enjoy, no matter if you’re in a relationship or not. Everyone has someone they love, even if it’s not romantic love. I don’t see this as the holiday to get all pessimistic over your life. In fact, I have a small theory that the only reason people react that way if they’re single is because  Hollywood has conditioned us to react that way…I know, deep, right? Anyway, I love sending out Valentine’s love to the people important to me in life, and getting a little love back in return. Plus, like Carrie has the day that will forever be known as “the day I got arrested for smoking a doobie,” this day will forever be known as the day my wonderful boyfriend sent me VALENTINE’S CUPCAKES FROM SPRINKLES and then Sprinkles messed up and delivered the order twice. That’s right, folks. TWENTY-FOUR CUPCAKES.

CUPCAKE LOVE. You can obviously tell which ones I have been eating. And my three week old flowers from Rahul are still looking good!

Life is good.

For this post, I looked through my pictures and picked random photos from times when I've really enjoyed my life. So, the time I went to South Africa.

Yesterday, I finally got to do three things I’ve been waiting to do all week: vacuum my apartment, read “Newsweek,” and go to Target.

I know these are all extremely simple things, but they were also things I had been waiting to do since Monday. Why? Because the spring 2012 semester snuck up on me like an trenchcoated villain and demanded all my time before I even had the chance to turn around and see him hiding in the dark shadows.

The time I lived in D.C. in undergrad and learned lots of important life lessons, such as how to enjoy your life.

Okay, so maybe not that dramatic, but something close to it. I got tricked by the long break before the start up of the spring semester, to the point that on my first day of classes, I didn’t even have all my books ordered—which has never happened. This wasn’t aided by the fact that I put in the completely wrong address on my Half.com order. Not just the wrong address, but an address that doesn’t even exist.

So, I just completed my second full week of my second semester of my MFA and something occurred to me—I’ve almost gotten to the point where I don’t let myself enjoy school anymore.

The time I went to Italy with my family and we met lots of fun people and our bus driver, Libario aka Mr. Shiny Pants, dressed like an Italian model.

Let me explain—I love school. I love the program I’m in. I mean, I get to read and write for a degree (and obviously also because it’s what I love to do). I feel like reading and writing are two things people take time off work in movies to do, and I’m in an opportunity where I get to do those things everyday.

But something frightening has been happening to my brain—I’ve let the “Must read this for school” component take over the “This is actually enjoyable” one and now I live in a world where I’m stressed all the time.

The time I lived in Missouri and had some of the most amazing friends I will ever, ever have.

There are other factors that contribute to this too.  But the main point is that I’ve begun to treat my two favorite activities as chores.

The time Rahul and I went to D.C. for his sister's wedding.

Maybe this is because I’ve been in school for nearly 20 years. Maybe it’s because I’m hyper-organized to the degree that sometimes I panic even when I forget something as small as writing “Go to Target “ in my planner. Or maybe it’s simply because I’ve forgotten how to enjoy doing the things I love, letting myself live in a world where I’m “too stressed” or “too busy” to do anything else or enjoy my free time. And those excuses right there are things I hate, hate to hear out of other people’s mouths—so why am I letting myself say them?

The time my grandmother came to visit me in Missouri for the first time and I turned 24 and placed first in a 5k in my age group all in the same weekend.

So, in the spirit of February Resolutions (forget New Year’s), I’m going to try and do all the things in my everyday week that I always think I’m too busy to do. When, in reality, it’s because I’ve made myself too busy. If I want them to happen, I can. So here goes:

1. Write more and enjoy it. Write without a purpose. Just write.

2. Stop fretting over every, tiny, insignificant detail. I have a tendency to over-worry and OVERREACT (think Nicolas Cage, National Treasure 2).

The time we had the Great Kipp East Coast Adventure where we visited six cities in under two weeks.

3. Enjoy my class reading. I get to read novels. That shouldn’t be hard, except sometimes I let my “stupid brain” take over—you know, the brain that functions when you’re so focused on soaking up every single word you read you actually do the complete opposite.

The time I went to New Orleans with friends and wondered around on my own why they went to a conference and I had a baller time, even when I got shooed out of an art gallery for taking a picture.

4. In the same strain, talk in class! I usually don’t speak in class because, you know, the stupid brain syndrome (SBS).  I get scared, thinking I don’t have anything of quality to say, which is just silly. Even if I did say something off-based, I doubt my classmates would remember for longer than a day. But side note, the exception to that rule:  the guy I had class with over a year ago that kept referring to the “Llama” in class about a book we had read. Come to find out, he wasn’t talking about the furry animal at all, but, in fact, the Dalai Lama—because, you know, “everyone calls him Lama.”

The time I went to INDIA. I chose this picture because I just wrote a story based there and looked at this picture to remind myself what Old Delhi was like.

5. Live in my current moments, whatever they may be. Stop letting my brain obsess and wonder and thing about all the other things I could be doing. I’m especially bad at doing this when I end up in an unplanned conversation with someone and then I miss the enjoyment of the conversation because I’m thinking of the things I need to do. If I make the choice to have the conversation, then actually have the conversation.

The time Rahul and I went to Pangong Lake and learned how to pronounce the name of the lake and fell lots more in love.

6. Furthermore, listen to people! I’m so bad at this. You know those kids in class that get excited about something they want to say to the class, so they essentially miss everything else because they’re waiting to include their thought. Yep, I was that kid, and still am.

7. Stop making excuses for not exercising.

8. Take time to do the little things that always get pushed to the side. The big things—talking to Rahul, my friends, my parents, watching my current TV obsession (right now How I Met Your Mother), writing this blog, etc.—always happen. But

The time Rahul SURPRISED me for the Christmas holidays.

the other things—reading my magazine subscriptions, buying groceries, keeping in touch with old friends—tend to get pushed to the side and it frustrates me. Thus why, yesterday, I took an hour and read my Newsweek. And now I know stuff about the Mexican drug cartel.

9. Improve my attitude. Not that I have a bad attitude. But sometimes I let it be bad, and I have no one to blame for this but myself—even though it’s easy to blame other things.

The time PSK moved in and our eyes are all nearly closed in every picture because it was so bright outside.

10. Enjoy where I am in life right now! I don’t want to look back on my MFA and think “Oh, yeah, I did that. Stuff happened.” I want to look back and think “Yeah, that DID happen, and it was awesome.” That’s how I look back on my two years in Missouri, and I want to be able to do the same for this time. I mean, when else will I: 1) Be surrounded by such an incredibly supportive writing community that gives me the chance to grow my writing everyday, 2) Live near my FAVORITE American city, 3) Hang out with undergrads all the time as a fraternity House Mom? After the next few years, probably never again (except for the writing community thing).

So, as Barney Stinson says, I need to SUIT UP and enjoy this time in my life before it’s gone.

Even though I constantly get asked if I’m a Titans fan just because I’m from Tennessee, I don’t really get the whole football thing. If you think about, its really just a bunch of big dudes in padding throwing themselves at each other. To me, it just looks like a shit show. A big pile of confusingness with a football involved.

We went to lots of Nats games when I lived in D.C. as an undergrad because 1) the stadium opened that spring 2) the games were fun in groups and 3) the tickets were FIVE DOLLARS. One of my favorite pictures.

My dad claims the reason I’m not a football fan is because he didn’t have enough conversations with me as I was growing up about sports. I dare to believe that even if we had talked about sports everyday, I still would think that the whole idea of sports is sometimes silly. Oftentimes so. I know I’m stepping on dangerous grounds making these assertions, but let me just give you an idea of how well I understand sports:

• I thought the AL was a team, until I was informed it stands for the American League.
• I then had to ask what the American League was.
• On my church league basketball team, I received the award for “Most Spirited.” Just the nice way of saying “We would rather have you cheer than be on the court.”
• I often get the terminology mixed up. Oh, you’ve never heard of a basketball field? Or a football court?
• My hand-eye coordination sucks. I’m also notorious for falling up stairs. Yes, UP.
• I didn’t attend a SINGLE sporting event while at Southeast Missouri State University. I also didn’t know that Patriots player Dan Connelly went to SEMO until yesterday.
• I still have no idea what’s going on during a football game. I muted the Super Bowl during the game and turned the volume on during commercials. Plus, it’s long! Did you know how long it is? Someone should take care of that.
  

  I brought DeShawn out of his box just for this picture. The other one lives with Rahul.

• Basketball is the most fun game to watch in my mind. At least that’s simple.
• Hockey=fights. The guys in my house are determined to turn me into a hockey fan. I just laugh.
• I won 2 (2!) DeShawn Stevenson booblehead at a work White Elephant exchange. I told Rahul I thought they were broken because the hand was in two pieces. He then informed me it’s because that player likes to wave his hand in front of his face after he does well in a game. Who knew.

There are plenty more of these, but I’ll stop. Attending a large state school has at least provided the opportunity to attend large games, such as the UMD v. UNC men’s basketball game on Saturday. But that’s just cause it’s free. And, as I mentioned above, I like basketball best.

Anyway, back to my original point. I was thinking about it, and I think one of the biggest things that makes the Super Bowl a big deal is the “Cool Club” factor. Think about it: other than New Year’s Eve and Mardi Gras and St. Patrick’s Day and Halloween and Independence Day (and the others I forgot), this is one of the biggest nights where it’s guaranteed thousands of parties are being held. Everyone is watching the Super Bowl, even if they don’t enjoy it. Why? Because it’s a “thing.” It’s a party. And, as you grow older, it becomes a sign of your social status.

I went to a Cardinals game once. Annnnd was the only person not wearing a Cardinals shirt....

I know that last sentence sounds like a college kid talking, but just wait. If you asked around, you would surely find at least five of your friends who were holding a Super Bowl party. And that’s just holding! Then you add in all the friends who attended one and it gets exhausting. The real question is who’s holding what party? And where do you go to watch the big event?

Growing up, I always attended a church party or family event, which is why I remember so clearly when Janet Jackson had her little slip up, as my dad and one of our neighbors both yelled “Did I just see what I thought I just saw?” and ran into the living room to confirm that yes, they did just see what they thought they just saw. But, my family having parties is not unusual. I grew up with Miss America Pageant Parties (so fun), New Year’s Eve bashes, 4th of July family celebrations. We get together a lot.

Rahul and I at a Caps game. We were excited but...

Which is maybe why, as I got older, it became less important to me where I watched the Super Bowl, as I had already had my fair share of gathering together just to watch guys prance around with footballs in their hands. This may also explain why I literally can’t remember what I did last Super Bowl, or if I even watched the game. This shows you just how important this football showdown is to me. But, if you think about it, the Super Bowl can potentially turn into a sign of your friendships instead of your commitment to football. If you don’t get invited to a party, what does that mean? That the Super Bowl is too cool for you?

...not as excited as this guy.

I’m more inclined to think it means nothing. Or that all your friends are uninterested in football. Either way, while it could be perceived as a big deal, it’s just like any other weekend night—you either find something to do or you don’t.

To stop me before I ramble, I’ll mention I watched the first part of the game by myself while also doing homework. I bought one slot in the guy’s bet-score-thing, but I also had to look on TV Guide for what channel the game was even on. Carmen, our chef, had left out food for us, and the guys had ordered pizza, so we were set on that front. I could hear them in the chapter room watching the game, but I only went out a few times before visiting a few other friends/girls I work with to watch the halftime show and second half (quarter?). You see, the terminology.

And, after a few hours, the thing was all over. The night moves on. I had a happy belly full of seven-layer dip and ice cream and enough socializing to make me feel cool enough for the Super Bowl. I’ll catch it around next year. I guess. At least I have my Dad to interrogate me beforehand if I know what teams are playing and where they’re from. He keeps me on my game.

PUN INTENDED.

Oh, and just saying, best commercial ever.

Proof that I have gone to a UMD football game (and my mom too, which is also a miracle).

Before my half. The race started on my undergrad campus, thus the picture with the bell tower (thanks, Dad!).

Now, that’s definitely not something that’s on my horizon for the foreseeable future, but integrating exercising into my daily schedule again is. Let me do say that right before I started writing this, I was eating out of the gigantic bucket of cheese balls a friend gave me but, regardless, I’ve still been doing good so far (as in the past two weeks) in making exercise part of my life again.

My favorite is running. It’s the best way to relieve stress, enjoy the weather, and work out the legs. There are definitely runs that make me hate my life but, usually, I find them to be the best parts of my day.

So, to encourage all you other runners or new exercisers out there, enjoy.

10 Songs You Should Add to Your Running Playlist:

Run, Forrest, Run! (Jackson Marathon & 1/2 Marathon)

1. “Party Rock Anthem” by LMFAO: I don’t care how old or overplayed this song is. Every time I hear this song, I think of the hamsters dancing in the KIA commercial and it motivates me to keep running, no matter how tired I am. It also motivates me to start shuffling, which I usually have to save for after the run. Let’s call that my cool down.

2. “Transformers Look at Me Now Dubstep” by Ember Waves: I don’t know if there’s really an official song title for this mix. But it takes a song I have a guilty pleasure for, Chris Brown’s “Look at Me Now,” and turns it into a badass song to run to. And just to listen to in general, as the fact that it also incorporates “Here’s Johnny” from The Shining and David after Dentist saying “Is this real life?” make for a good laugh. And if you like laughing, watch this literal paint version of “Look at Me Now.” Seriously. Do it now. You’ll thank me later.

3. “We Found Love” by Rihanna: If I have to convince you to run to this song, than you obviously haven’t listened to it yet. Also, any Rihanna song in general. “S&M,” “Hard,” “Only Girl (In the World),” “Disturbia,” and “You Da One” are excellent as well.

Spotted: My weapon-of-a-ponytail in the crowd of runners.

4. “Something Good Can Work (The Twelves Remix)” by Two Door Cinema Club: I’m so obsessed with this song lately. It’s kind of ridiculous. And worthy of the running playlist.

5. “Good Feeling” by Flo Rida: The random dupstep toward the end of the song is kind of a downer, but the rest of the song makes you want to kick up your feet. And also sing out loud.

6. “Wonderman” by Tinie Tempah: I don’t really know anything about this song other than that Rahul recommended it to me as a good running song. Oh, and that it’s AWESOME. Seriously. I run to this song nearly every time I run because it picks up in just the right times.

7. “Sleepyhead” by Passion Pit: I will always love this song. If you haven’t heard it yet, shame on you. It serves multiple purposes, by waking you up in the morning, energizing a long drive, or perking you up while running. And just for being badass in general.

Rachel and I after a 5 mile race this past October.

8. “Stereo Love” by Edward Maya & Vika Jigulina: I can’t describe it, but the first time I heard this song I knew I wanted it on my running playlist. You know, like when something other than yourself moves inside of you. Okay, so maybe not that romantic but still—follow your instincts. It has not let me down since.

9. “Sprawl II” by Arcade Fire: This is just an absolutely beautiful song to run to, especially outside on a really nice day. In the countryside. When the weather is PERFECT. Hint: the song reaches its amazing peak at 2:57. Almost makes you want to cry.

10. “Festival” by Sugar Ros: EXCELLENT song if you need to slow down for a few minutes during your run, as the first 4:38 of the song is slow, melodic, and relaxing. After 4:38, the beat literally makes you want to jump higher than the sky, especially if you’ve seen 127 Hours.

Runner Ups:

“Give Me Everything” by Pitbull: I love this song, not just because “Kodak” is rhymed with “Kodak,” but because it makes life fun. And speeds up your run.

“Hey Daddy” by Usher: Need I say more? Perfect running beat. I thank Rahul for introducing me to this one.

The entire Slumdog Millionaire soundtrack. Seriously, all of it. I jammed this soundtrack so many times when I picked up running again in 2009. Sometimes it was the only way I could convince myself to make it through. Of course, it probably also had something to do with the fact that I was running inside on a gross treadmill all the time. I’ve linked the first song on the soundtrack for you to check out.

Enjoy. This is just a sampling, as my running playlist reached 300 songs today (I’m all about the even numbers), but they’re some of the best, in my opinion. As the weather warms—I’m beginning to think we’re never getting a winter, it was 66 degrees here today—add these to your iPOD and rock out while enjoying a little run in the great outdoors.

Disclaimer: I did enjoy the party I attended last night, and most other parties in the recent past. If we know each other, please continue to invite me to events so I can write things like this.

15 Things You Will Always Find at a House Party:

1. The “drunk” girl with a “super low tolerance”. You know, the one that screeches at everything, than excuses it away by saying “I’m so drunk!” She hugs everyone and also has a beer in her hand that stays mysteriously at the 1/3rds left point the whole night, swinging it around at times like a weapon.

2. Guys wearing plaid shirts.

3. The house pet that everyone fawns over, becoming consistently more popular as the night wears on. A cat should never be called a “pussy,” no matter how drunk you are. And, for God’s sake, stop taunting it with a string. How would you like it if someone did that to you all night?

4. The “loose cannon.” The one man/woman you can set your watch to in the sense that will definitely do something completely unpredictable before the night is over. These are the people that take shots of disgusting liquor just to show off, insult their closest friends, and try to start some sort of game that usually doesn’t meet success.

Not at a house party, but one of my favorite pictures of some of my favorite people in New Orleans last year.

5. The person who is an expert at whatever game you are playing. Last time I checked, you can’t put “Beer Pong Champion, University of Wisconsin, class of 2010” on your resume. And if you do, prepare to be living on mother’s couch for many years to come.

6. Jello shots because “they’re delicious!” Which, in fact, they are.

7. A girl wearing something completely ridiculous. Either she ends up looking like she started dressing for the office and then changed her mind halfway through, or she mistook the house party for a New York City nightclub.

8. The person who is taking “time off” from work.

9. The boring people. You know, the ones that require you to carry the conversation by asking all the interesting questions. You’re usually exhausted at the end of these conversations and have made it through double the amount of drinks you normally would.

10. Someone that, no matter who you are or where your from, wants to make some kind of connection with you. Ok, I’ve been guilty of doing this, I admit, especially if the conversation is increasingly awkward. But sometimes it can just be annoying. A friend of mine started answering with, “Oh yeah, everyone in Iowa gets together for weekly bonfires to catch up” because she was so tired of people assuming she would know their friend from Iowa just because she was from Iowa as well. I guess Iowa is one of those states that people really don’t know anything about (I certainly don’t).

11. The attention grabbers. These people will go to any lengths to steal the show. Refer to number 1 for examples.

A fun picture from a recent outing (thanks Emily G.).

12. The annoying couple. You know, the one that refers to themselves as “we” constantly and don’t separate the whole night, so you’re forced to always talk to both of them.

13. The picture takers! I am totally guilty of this. You usually end up with good pictures. Plus, like Jim Halpert says in “The Office,” taking a picture is the best way to prove you were there if you need to make a quick getaway.

14. The clumps of “nerdy kids” v. “cool kids.” It’s like the high school cafeteria all over again.

15. The person who insists on making you the “special party drink”—which, don’t get me wrong, are usually quite delicious. Especially compared to my own drink concoctions, which taste like cleaner fluid (trust me, ask Rahul).

So there you have it, folks. And to end, enjoy Wikipedia’s definition of a house party.

Usually I don’t like to make my posts so “me” focused, but sometimes that’s inevitable. And this week is one I want to write about.

If you’ve been reading, you know that for a few weeks, I was torn up over the fact that the fraternity I worked for and lived with, Pi Kappa Alpha, lost recognition from the university. Not only was I upset, but this was going to mark a big change in my life as well, as I was going to have to move. I was also not going to be able to work with a fraternity for a semester, which is essentially the biggest part of this job. Needless to say, I was upset. Lots.

But then something good happened! As luck would have it, the chance opened up for a few different organizations to have first pick at the house, if they had all their documents ready. Only one did, Phi Sigma Kappa, and this is the organization I now live with.

So here’s how my week went:

Sunday: The last of the Pikes moved out and I ordered Jimmy John’s for the second time that weekend. Oh, and the GEESE!

Monday: Went to the Hyundai dealership at 8 AM to do one of my least favorite things ever: get my car serviced. Then rushed to the President’s retreat at the university to introduce myself as a member of Greek life staff. Oh, and the biggest thing: cleaning crews scrubbing the entire house to prepare the facility for the transition to PSK, which they only had two days to do. Oh, and this is also the day I realized the books that still hadn’t been delivered to me had been addressed to the completely wrong address. Way to go, Katherine….

My beautiful planner. Now I can keep track of things again (as I am notorious for writing to-do lists on little slips of paper and immediately losing them.

Delicious! And all free!

Tuesday: More cleaning. Washing machine company came and removed the machines. Awesome 5-mile run that was much needed. My beautiful planner that I can’t stop looking at finally came in the mail. Then met the PSKs for the first time at their chapter meeting! This was exciting. Plus, the Sweet Green that was just built in the city offered free lunch to faculty and staff, which proved itself to be insanely delicious. This is definitely going to be a favorite spot of mine from now.

The cupcakes one of the member's girlfriends made for them on their move-in day!

Wednesday: Phi Sigma Kappa move-in day! Considering I thought this was house was going to be empty for a semester, this is remarkable. Plus, the fraternity is EXTREMELY excited to be housed on the row and just wondered through the house in utter awe. Their excitement excites me! The fraternity just recently moved out of colony status, and so now also having a house is a big deal for them. Plus, now I don’t have to move and I get to be a House Mom still. Oh, and this was also my first day of spring classes. NBD. And signed up to turn in a story for fiction workshop this weekend (as in, tomorrow.) Again, NBD.

Fresh flowers + Rahul = two of my favorite things.

Thursday: Got flowers from Rahul in the mail! He’s totally smile-inducing, all the time. Went to hear a prospective MFA faculty member read and then sat down with she and other MFAers and had a talk about the MFA program. Lately, I’ve started to realize more and more why and how I ended up here. The obvious answer is that I wanted to attend a writing program and get a Masters for something I already love doing. The one that has revealed itself to me after a semester here is that I love this program and these people. I’ve never before been surrounded by all writers who all love doing the same thing I do. I need to remember not to take these years for granted, as they will surely shape my writing life in a way I don’t truly see yet today. Plus, the people in it are fun, which always helps. I was also super tired this day, because a very confused, intoxicated student banged on the doors of the house for around two hours early Thursday morning. I lived with a pretty loud group last semester, yet they never woke me up, so the fact that this kid woke me up banging on the door was pretty remarkable. I guess school really is back in session…

Friday: Many, many meetings. More PSKs moving in, and 60 degree weather! I actually got confused at one point and thought it was spring time.

Let me also mention that Rahul and I are newly addicted to Homeland and have been moving our way through the show throughout the week.

This may not seem like many things but, for someone who likes to plan out her days and weeks days in advance, the fact that so many unexpected things happened this week and I’m still makin’ it by Friday speaks for a lot! Plus, this new PSK move has inspired me to clean up my apartment, which led me to finding many things I have needed, like my reading glasses, missing Tupperware containers, misplaced chocolates, magnetic strips to hang my bobby pins on, etc. I’ve almost completely finished a piece that I started less than 15 days ago, and I created tons of documents and formulated ideas for approaching House Mommery this spring.

So it’s like my dad said: sometimes things happen for a reason. And this time, something bad had to happen for something good to come out of it.

GEESE!

As you may have guessed if you’ve been reading, I’m a fan of all things weird and unusual in terms of the nuances of day-to-day life. I’m usually not the one doing the weird or unusual things, as I am a bit of a planner/over-organizer, but I enjoy witnessing the unusual around me. So that’s why yesterday I got overly excited when I noticed a flock of geese had landed on the field in the middle of the row where I live.

At first, it was around 36 geese but eventually grew to over 50 in number (yes I counted). For hours, geese were flying to and from the field, just chilling and flapping their wings and making noises at each other. I’ve seen geese at the lake near my house, but seeing them flock to a field is not as normal as seeing them on a lake, which seems more like their natural habitat. But I suppose this field was also once their natural habitat, before the university took it over. Sorry, geese.

Just to give you an idea of how close they were—this was taken from my window without a zoom. With my own bronze goose/duck in the windowsill. Yes, I know, I got way too excited over this.

Apparently the geese do this often too—they seek out the grassy spot amid the snow and ice. My friend Cassie finds them gross, but I think they’re cute! That is, as long as you don’t get too close and freak them out. Then that would be gross. And since I wrote this, the geese have come back again today, but they’re instead hanging down further away from my house, which is not as exciting.

So in the spirit of the geese, Rahul and I watched Fly Away Home last night. I remember loving this movie as a kid. This was Anna Paquin before she became a vampire in True Blood. Also before she filmed a sex scene in The Squid and the Whale with the man who plays HER FATHER in Fly Away Home (Jeff Daniels). Regardless. I was watching mostly for the geese anyway. I think I have this secret desire to open a zoo, so I’m constantly keeping track of animals that I think Rahul and I should adopt.

Plus, when it’s cold and dreary outside, what better way to cheer you up than looking at videos of cute animals? Or seeing them right outside your window within a 50 yard radius?

But, regardless, after the movie, Rahul and I got to talking about all the well-known people from the past we would like to meet like Gil does. For him, hanging with the likes of Ernest Hemmingway, F. Scott Fitzgerald, and Gertrude Stein in 1920s Paris spurred his creative thoughts and allowed him to communicate with some of the literature greats. And sure, those guys are great, but for me, I have a bit of a different list, including Flannery O’Connor, Eleanor Roosevelt, John Steinbeck, Anne Frank, and more.

The middle building housed Anne Frank's annex.

The closest I’ve come to meeting any of the following were through visits to the John Steinbeck museum in California, a Roosevelt vacation home somewhere in Florida (I think) and the Anne Frank museum in Amsterdam. I want to write about the last one because, for me, visiting the Anne Frank museum was literally a dream can true. And I know that may sound weird, but let me explain.

The copy of her diary that I have now, purchased at the museum.

I read Anne Frank’s diary constantly growing up. I also went through a period where I was obsessed with learning about her. I checked out virtually every book about her in the library, watched documentaries and movies—anything that was available to research and learn more about Anne Frank, you name it, I did it. Other things on the docket around the same time were the Titanic, the Holocaust, and Leonardo DiCaprio.

Me and Anne Frank! (Or is it Anne Frank and I?) Either way.

But something about Anne’s story got me—it was like when I read her words, I connected to her. She inspired me to keep years of journals. What I loved about her diary was that, even though she was writing while in hiding (even though she had the diary for a month before), what we were experiencing at age 13 was not all that different. We both wrote about clothes, boys, make-up, family issues. Things we liked or didn’t like. That’s what I loved the most—that she was able to find the beauty in life when she was literally unsure about what the next day would bring.

She mentions the bells from this church in her diary.

Visiting where she and the other seven were in hiding had been a lifelong goal of mine for a while, and I was disappointed when I had two layovers in Amsterdam during my South Africa trip where we were confined to the airport for fear of not having enough time to make it back for our next flight. However, when I visited Amsterdam with my family on the end of our Italy trip, I found this fear was totally ridiculous because leaving the Amsterdam airport is literally one of the easiest things to do, ever.

A bit of Amsterdam.

But anyway. My family and I only had 24 hours in Amsterdam so, of course, we had to move fast. We visited the Red Light District and an H&M the night we arrived, saving Anne Frank’s house for the next morning. In typical Kipp vacation style, we arrived to the museum early to ensure an early spot in the line. Works every time.

Unfortunately, I don’t have any pictures from inside, but it doesn’t matter. It was incredibly chilling walking up the stairs that led to the bookshelf disguised as a doorway, then up the stairs to the annex. We walked through all the rooms, taking in the black covered windows, the photos of celebrities still taped on Anne’s wall (something I also did myself), the heights of the three children still marked. It was, to put it simply, incredible. After so many years of reading and learning about Anne Frank, someone I felt like I knew, it was surreal to see the last place she lived.

Some more of Amsterdam (and a girl texting with BOTH HANDS while texting, that's skill).

One of my favorite parts was her diary on display. I literally jumped in excitement and then bonded with a few British schoolgirls who were also taking in the red-checked diary in awe. That very moment truly spoke to the effect of her diary—that a girl from Tennessee and two girls from the UK could come together over words written in a diary by a young teenager over 50 years ago. Even though Anne was an aspiring writer, I doubt she ever dreamed her words would become so famous.

Even though my list and Gil’s are totally different, I still swooned just as much walking through Anne Frank’s annex as he did meeting the literary greats in Paris.