Dear M4 bus,

On our way to Milwaukee, and on to Minneapolis, there is a point where the route backtracks past the point where you enter the highway from my house. It's always a little weird that I just drove that distance. The backtracking feels so wrong.


love,
Hannah

Dear barnacles,

I've taken the train into the city several times in the last week, and there's one apartment building, relatively short, that's caught my attention on the north side.  The L gives you an excellent view on to people's back porches, stairways and windows.  (And if you're having a very lucky day, like I did today, you will spot a friend you haven't spoken to in many years playing violin on one of those back porches.)  The building that has my attention can't hold much more than eight apartments, but there are more than eight satellite dishes attached to the back of the house; they all face south, and they are all on northwest corner of the building.  The other day as I passed this building I was struck by the way the satellite dishes reminded me of barnacles stuck to a whale.  Satellite dishes for tv are a common sight from the L but I was struck by these in particular.  I wanted to try and take a picture, but it's never easy to capture visions from the L.  It's better to let them pass and look out for them the next time you're on the L. 

This is my 200th post!


love,
hannah

Dear dead brain,

In the month of August I wrote two posts on this blog about August 27.  Can you tell that I was excited for August 27? Mostly cause of Doctor Who.  But really, I wasn't going to try and repeat everything.  And now I have.  I have failed as a blogger. 

But, frankly, the excitement was entirely deserved.  "Let's Kill Hitler" instantly became one of my favorite episodes of Doctor Who ever. 

In the meantime, setting up a new computer can take a while.  All those passwords and programs you use but forgot you use? Yeah, all of that.  My return to Minnesota is fast approaching.


love,
hannah

Dear August 27,

You're a big day.  Congratulations.  

One- You are the return of the sixth season of Doctor Who.  I have been waiting for two months for your return! I have even written about your return on the blog before.  Let's Kill Hitler, I thought, that's a dubious title.  However, you might have instantly become one of my favorite episodes of Doctor Who ever.  And even besides that, you drew upon a conversation from one of my classes last year about how people treat painful histories that aren't theirs.  Our conversation dealt specifically with American dealings with WWII and how we use other people's pain for entertainment and that's not how it works in Europe; but apparently not! Moffat will mock the Third Reich all he wants.  And it made me very happy.  My professor LDN and I can discuss it later. 

Two- My brother moves into his first dorm tomorrow.  He will no longer be a resident in our home.  To be entirely fair, he's not moving that far, although I'm sure it's going to feel like another planet (at least for a while).  We've had his last dinners and tomorrow will be his last nagging wake up call before he heads downtown.  We will spend tomorrow moving him in, dragging his things up the stairs.  I will probably spend much of tomorrow (quietly) comparing his first move-in experience to my own.  

Three- My computer is currently being evaluated/repaired, so I'm using my home computer where the keyboard makes much more noise, so I'm typing much more vigorously than I would otherwise.  

I've had so much to think about today, and enough physical labor ahead of me tomorrow that I will be distracted, at least for a little while.  Really, I've been thinking lighting fast today.  Those are fun days.  Ugh, time to rest, I've got a long August 28 ahead of me.  

love,

hannah

Dear One Day,

WARNING: Major SPOILERS ahead for One Day (both the book and the movie.)

You've been warned.  I'm gonna spoil everything.  Every last detail. 


Last summer I read One Day by David Nicholls, and I was really excited.  I searched the book down, at one point I even found that there was a preview of the book on the Barnes and Noble website and briefly contemplated reading the entire book in tiny barely legible font on my laptop because I wanted to read it so badly.  Thankfully, my mother bought a copy for me and I was able to read the book like a normal person. 

I really enjoyed it.  I loved the device of seeing them every July 15 even though it was totally improbable.  And then comes the ending.  She gets hit while riding her bike? Are you fucking kidding with me? I think I sobbed and sat on the couch and read the rest of the book straight through because if I had put it down I would have been too angry to ever pick it up again.  So, overall I like the book, but anyone who has read it will tell you that it has a shit ending. 

Immediately, I thought: What an interesting movie this would make! Not even a month later I find that it is going to be a movie, with Anne Hathaway.  And then, a year in a advance, I make plans to go see this movie with a friend. 

Today we went to go see the movie.  (I knew it wasn't going to be great, the trailer made sure of that.  Also: Anne Hathaway's accent?) And I was really curious whether they would change the ending.  Traditionally that would be book-to-movie-adaptation sacrilege, but here I thought I would find it a welcome change (as would other readers). 

Well friends, they do not change the ending.  And not only do they not change the ending, they make it the most jarring, gasp-inducing, cringe-worthy car crash.  And then they fade out with a shot of Anne Hathaway on the ground, with only one shoe and a bloody foot.  Oy. 

The general consensus among my crowd (four readers, one who knew the ending, and two who had no clue what they were getting themselves into) all agreed that the crash was too much.  My suggestion? (Also, my brother's) All you need to do is cut to black with the sound of the crash, then when you cut the tragic shot of him laying in bed crying, we all can know exactly what happened. 

See? I should be making movies. 

(Apparently, when I write long posts, I use lots of parentheses.  Strange.)


love,
hannah

Dear Chris Traeger,

You are a most ridiculous character.  (I've been watching Parks and Recreation.) His positivity is magnificently hilarious. 

Just so everyone knows, I'm going to read a book soon.  I mean it, ultimate lazy week is over.  Also, I have two plays in my inbox! Two plays, written by my friends.  Exciting reading ahead. 


love,
hannah

Dear mangoes,

Clearly, I am obsessed with you.  Yesterday I ate mango bubble tea (delicious!) and I watched a woman peel mangoes, and it was glorious. 

Last night I dreamt that I was on a crazy trip.  I think there was a play, and then everyone involved in the show/in the audience got on a plane and we had to land really quickly at this small stop where I was bummed except I discovered a giant juice box of mango juice.  A giant juice box! I don't think I even waited to pay for the juice box before I started drinking. 

I love mangoes. 


love,
hannah

Dear August 27th,

Come faster.  I have questions.  And I can't keep gawking at pretty tumblrs recycling Doctor Who imagery. 

love,
hannah

Dear Monday morning pancakes,

You're a change.  I've been eating toasted bagels and cereal for the last four weeks, shoving apples and snack bars into my bag.  But today, I woke up at 9, two hours late, laid in bed, debating what to do, and then decided that I wanted pancakes.  It's weird not being in a drama class right now.  The last show is tonight and then I'm done, I can return to lazy summer life.  Strange. 


love,
hannah