Back home in lancaster and "life feels different here," as the slogan goes from an old "visit lancaster county" commercial.

At first it was nice to kick back and relax and sleep 9 hours a night and watch any lifetime special I felt like. Yeah, that lasted about a day.

Christmas was boring, im not gonna lie. The whole Kleinman family was stuck in the house (cause it was raining so I couldnt even break the monotony with a jog), watching football, and not celebrating anything.

Hanukkah is here, but for our house that simply means we eat fried foods and light a new candle every night. Nothing too special.

I guess I am being a little pessismistic: I did get to hang out with my high school friends, I did get to go shopping with my mom (and I got an awesome little cow-boy boot inspired ensemble), and I even used the holiday down time to do some work around the house that I have been putting off. Oh and I also saw the greatest movie ever, the Red Violin. If you havent seen it, you should, cause you are missing out.

So I have had some fun times at home, but enough is enough already. I am sooooooo ready to go back to school. Just can we forget about the classes part?

From the girl who misses the cloudy skies of Pittsburgh...

so im twenty now. yeah it happened. my birthday got off to a slow start yesterday. i have to admit i was a little sad that none of my friends from school called to wish me a happy bday, but i cant be mad because they went out of their way to surprise me this year.

luckily, my hometown friends came through in the most surprising way. all i can say is best random mexican dance birthday party ever.

today i have a very full schedule - eating, sleeping, shopping, getting a hair cut (oh, its time, my friends), and maybe cracking open a bok. afterall, i did lug those things all the way here anyway.

heading back to pittsburgh tomorrow, but i cant say im not ready to go back.

oh xanga, i haven't forgotten about ye. its just that after awhile i feel like i should post something awesome to make up for the fact that i havent posted in forever, and then i don't have anything awesome to say, so i wait longer, making the task seem even more astronomical...

but then i realized that in two days i will be 20 years old and no longer a teenager. i am not sure if non-teenagers should use xanga. its kind of a teen age thing to do, isnt it? well, blogs are certainly in vogue right now, so maybe i can stick with it or create a live journal or something. at any rate, i better make use of the precious time that we have left together, dear xanga.

the semester is nearly over at school, and i feel pretty good about  my classes. this semester has been easy compared to those that preceded it, and so i have found myself with something new: free time. dont worry kids, julie doesnt just sit around her apartment while bothering her roommates by watching sex and the city re-runs. oh wait, yes she does, but she also uses her time to accomplish stuff.

so yeah i brought teach kids peace week to pittsburgh, i organized the honors college social, halloween party, and a great pot-luck. i surprised numerous friends with birthday events, i attended pitt arts stuff, got lots of free food, got to know the weinsteins at chabad house better, and found a study abroad program for the summer (watch out ecuador, cause we will be partying it up in june, july, and august). i planned a trip to tennessee after finals to visit laura and a trip to paris over spring break to visit tara. i joined numerous engineering related groups like Pe^x, Eta Kappa Nu, Ieaste (ok this one i quit quickly after), and i still am preceptoring for the freshmen. during the rest of my time i search for the right guy to take me on long walks and tell me about the stars.

now i am for turkey times and birthday rhymes. it is wonderful to see my friends and just spend hours on end at the haldeman house. its fun to go to park city and cvs, to eat mom's hamburger pie, to bicker with my brother (haha ok we do that pitt too), and most of all i love sleeping in my own bed. my room at home is so much darker than my room at school, and for some reason here i can just sleep and sleep. at school i can't think of a time i have slept past 9, and usually i am awake and alive at 8. Here i slept until 10, and i took another nap. ahhh, its very relaxing.

i have a lot i hope to do over break, but if that doesn't happen, it wont be the end of the world. this is a time to devote to family and friends and sleeping, and i am enjoying it.

signed, a girl who is mourning her teenage years

I stole this from Tabby, who apparently stole this from someone else...

I guess you check all that you have done:

(x) smoked a cigarette
( ) smoked a cigar
(x) crashed a friend's car (I am counting burning Ebro's clutch as crashing the car...lol
( ) stolen a car
( ) been dumped
(x ) shoplifted (i stole a package of gum from k-mart in 4th grade, my mom caught me)
( ) been fired
( ) been in a fist fight
(x) had feelings for someone who didnt have them for you
( ) been arrested.
( ) gone on a blind date
( x) had a crush on a teacher
(x) skipped school (i am in college, skipping class is normal!)
( ) seen someone die
() been to Canada
(x) Been to Europe
( ) been to Mexico
(x) Been to the U.S. (wtf)  
(x) been on a plane
(x) eaten Sushi
( ) been snowboarding
( ) been moshing at a concert
( ) been in an abusive relationship
() Taken pain killers
(x) love someone or miss someone right now
(x) laid on your back and watched cloud shapes go by
(x ) made a snow angel

() made a sand angel
(x) had a tea party (dude, third grade= best valentines day tea party ever)
(x) flown a kite
(x) built a sand castle
(x) gone puddle jumping
(x) jumped into a pile of leaves
(x ) gone sledding
(x) cheated while playing a game
(x) been lonely
(x) fallen asleep at work/school
( ) used a fake id
(x) watched the sun set
( ) felt an earthquake 7.0 on the Richter
(x) touched a snake
(x) slept beneath the stars
(x) been tickled
( ) been robbed
(x) been misunderstood
(x) won a contest
( x) run a red light
( ) been suspended from school
( x) been in a car accident
(x ) had braces
(x) felt like an outcast
() eaten a whole pint of ice cream in one night
(x) had déjà vu
(x) danced in the moonlight
(x) hated the way you look
( ) witnessed a crime
(x ) questioned your heart
(x) Liked Post It notes
(x) squished barefoot through the mud
(x) been lost
(x) been to the opposite side of the country
(x) swam in the ocean
( x) felt like dying
( x) cried yourself to sleep
( x) played cops and robbers
(x)recently colored with crayons/colored pencils/markers ( i work at a day camp!)
( x) sung karaoke
(x) paid for a meal with only coins .
(x) done something you told yourself you wouldn't
(x) made prank phone calls
(x) laughed until some kind of beverage came out of your mouth
(x) caught a snowflake on your tongue
(x) danced in the rain
() written a letter to Santa Claus
( ) been kissed (this one is pathetic)
( ) watched the sun set with some one you cared about
(x) blown bubbles
(x ) made a bonfire
(x) crashed a party
(x) gone rollerskating/blading
(x) had a wish come true
(x) worn pearls
( ) jumped off a bridge
( ) ate dog/cat food
( ) told a complete stranger you loved them
(x) sang in the shower
(x) had a dream that you married someone
() glued your hand to something

(x ) got your tongue stuck to something cold
(x) worn the opposite sex's clothes
( ) been a cheerleader
(x) sat on a roof top
(x) screamed at the top of your lungs
( ) done a one-handed cartwheel
( ) talked on the phone for more than 6 hours
(x) stayed up all night
( ) didn't take a shower for a week
( ) picked and ate an apple right off the tree
(x) climbed a tree
( ) had a tree house
(x) are scared to watch scary movies alone
(x) have more then 30 pairs of shoes (not even close to questiong whether to x this one)
( ) worn a really ugly outfit to school just to see what others say
( ) gone streaking
() played ding-dong-ditch
() been pushed into a pool with all your clothes on
(x) been told you're hot by a complete stranger

( ) broken a bone
(x) been easily amused
(x )caught a fish then ate it
(x) caught a butterfly
(x) laughed so hard you cried
( ) Cried so hard you laughed
(x) forgotten someones name
() French braided someones hair
( ) been kicked out of your house