• complete a two page radio essay to submit to 848
• finish jamaica story draft
• write my teaching manual
• write an interview profile with a person
• write an observation of my workshop

• find out what you want to eat at: http://www.chicagomag.com/Chicago-Magazi...
• polenta frita from al primo canto
• golden cups from amarind's
• panna cotta from anteprima
• brisket sandwich from smoque
• sopes from los nopales
• thai bite sized salad from arun's
• tempura green beans from bin wine cafe
• mo mo dumplings from the curry hut
• fried chicken from chalkboard
• pumpkin tamale from el sueno
• deviled eggs from fulton's on the river
• apple fritters from hopleaf
• half and half from hot chocolate
• pheasant hot dog from hot doug's
• crab rangoon from always thai
• pork trio from jack's on halstead
• coffee and doughnuts from japonais
• kim bap te gim from jin ju
• carrot soup from kaze
• szechuan smoked tea duck from lao sze cha...

• cindy sherman
• nan goldin
• brassai
• richard avedon
• edward steichen
• helmut newton
• philip lorca dicorca
• i will add more soon

• baked chicken and stuffing
• mangoes and sticky rice
• spanish sauce
• caramel apple pie
• potato soup
• tacos and enchiladas
• braxton's favorite salad: spinach, strawberries, walnuts, bleu cheese, balsamic
• spaghetti and homemade meatballs
• chicken curry
• stir fry
• chicken wrapped in prosciutto with sage
• breakfast casserole
• coffee cake
• omelets

• jasmine
• raggedy ann
• cat
• belle
• zebra
• buffy the vampire slayer
• vampire
• prisoner
• medieval damsel
• go go dancer
• fairy

• its a wonderful life
• the great outdoors
• et
• back to the future
• the graduate
• a christmas story
• gone with the wind
• the king and i
• indiana jones
• jurassic park
• independence day
• all disney movies

• laughter
• food
• books
• being old or being a child
• a puppy
• good music
• wine
• great conversation
• teaching me something
• flowers
• dancing with me
• being excited, outgoing, adventure
• being sincere
• hugs
• encouragement
• smiles
• bare feet
• or you could just do what braxton did and talk a lot and make me eat pizza

• ashley and I's birthday weekend in wisconsin dells: the water park, the cheese factory, our amazing cabin, and all the moments with julie, ashley, nikki, and braxton
• being a fiction writing tutor
• nights at sangria
• my trip to florida to see jerrod, erin, and addy: picking out erin's wedding dress with her and helping plan their awesome jamaican wedding
• when braxton took me to chen's and we drank lychee martinis all night
• finding my beautiful apartment on berwyn with ashley and julie
• my interview with the chicago humanities festival to be an intern
• having my story explode on me in advanced fiction, being told by the teacher that this wouldn't be a short story
• valentine's day with braxton: a trip to t...

• about schmidt
• shoot the piano player
• jules et jim
• eternal sunshine of a spotless mind
• adaptation
• magnolia
• amelie
• paris, je'taime
• the second godfather
• brokeback mountain
• zodiac

• my sisters
• my parents
• braxton black
• anais nin
• cathy costello
• grandma and grandpa
• my prose forms teacher, lila
• william faulkner
• julie atty
• megan huddleston
• marilyn monroe

• dr. martens 1960 original boot

cherry

• planet earth dvd set
• lace unitard
• its always sunny on dvd
• frames for my movie posters
• the joy of cooking
• wool socks
• new patterned tights (mine have holes)
• new fleece
• a vacation down south or out west

• finish my bfa application
• get a new job
• give away old clothes
• quit smoking
• talk to the financial aid office
• get a hair cut
• buy my books
• start a savings account
• pay the bills this month
• pick up some tutees (tuesday mornings 11-1)
• take braxton out to dinner as thanks for supporting me
• spend more girl time
• read my teaching handbook, take notes

• phone
• ipod
• burt's bees chapstick
• journal
• a pen
• the book i'm reading
• loose change
• loose almonds
• crumpled receipts
• notes to myself
• coach wristlet with credit cards and money
• train pass
• keys
• sunglasses
• several lighters
• cigarettes if i"m smoking that week
• djarum cloves if i"m smoking that week
• gum

• the kinks
• alkaline trio
• the red house painters
• the arcade fire
• archer avenue
• the faint
• ol dirty bastard
• thin lizzy
• jon bon jovi (in the 80s)
• ace of base

• surprises
• notes
• flowers
• hand holds
• leg wrap around waist jump up in air hugs
• neck and cheek and lip kisses
• arms around waist
• boy clean laundry smell
• boy cologne
• cooked breakfasts, lunches, and dinners
• walks
• naps and nuggles
• tangling legs
• reading books to each other
• picnics
• tickle and wrestle
• long talks
• not being rushed
• listening
• laughing

• the rum diary
• henry and june
• on the road
• tropic of cancer
• on the roofs of paris
• a heartbreaking work of staggering genius
• a farewell to arms
• a rose for emily
• to the lighthouse
• lolita
• last exit to brooklyn
• writing from start to finish and wfstf: teacher's manual
• american psycho
• mystic river
• all the king's men
• noon wine
• bliss
• the rocking horse winner
• lady chatterly's lover

• the cheese factory
• pick me up cafe
• earwax
• andie's
• mama desta's
• reza's
• orange
• a little taste of heaven

• dam u ol (stephanie to shane in typical caturday style)
• we be bumpin (originally shane's roommate, now shane, stephanie, and me)
• i wanna party with you! (megan)
• shits cheap! goes down smooth so you can get fuucked up (ashley on cobra)
• hobos drink that shit, you sound like a hobo now (me to ashley on cobra)
• do you think they will have shampoo there? (julie and its only funny if you know julie)
• i hate manatees, if you don't like penguins i'm not your friend (nikki to me, captured on video, now on youtube)
• the list will continue

• orange
• a little taste of heaven
• ann sather's (cinnamon rolls as a side dish?)
• white palace
• the bed and breakfast in wisconsin
• eleven city diner
• my apartment when braxton brings me dunkin donuts
• caribou coffee
• pick me up cafe
• clarke's

• writer
• teacher (of writing)
• dolphin trainer
• program coordinator for nonprofit organization
• horse shelter director
• journalist
• bookstore worker/owner
• waitress
• mother
• chef
• judge on iron chef
• food critic

one of my goals of 2010 is to take better care of myself. here are some things i want to splurge on for myself.

• laura mercier foundation in warm ivory
• stila convertible color in lillium
• stila eye shadow in kitten
• nars nail polish in schiap, m. butterfly...
• dior diorshow mascara in chestnut
• kerastase bain oleo relax shampoo and co...
• skinceuticals night cream
• skinceuticals clay masque
• sephora fragrance sampler
• a hair cut at my salon
• get my jeans tailored

• horse back riding (take english lessons this time)
• photography, learning how to use a large format camera this time
• dance (tap)
• reading history books
• cooking and collecting recipes
• exploring neighborhoods on a whim

• anteprima
• marty's martini bar (stephanie, when i get a job we go bar hopping in my hood)
• great lake
• la fonda latino
• la tache
• in fine spirits
• jin ju
• pauline's
• swedish bakery
• svea
• piatto pronto
• jb's deli
• ole ole
• the coffee studio

• critical reading and writing: women writer's
• prose forms
• advanced fiction
• creative nonfiction
• scientific investigation
• fiction 1
• photo and darkroom 1
• practice teaching: tutor training
• culture, race, and media
• fiction 2
• newspaper and yearbook
• study hall
• history
• law education

• bradenton, florida, ringing in the y2k with my mother in my grandparent's house in a senior citizen park, the only ones awake. we ate grapes as the ball fell then ran outside and screamed into the dark and silence while everyone else slept
• pasadena, california, in a friend of the family's house who has since passed away, talking to my sister erin on the phone and wishing she was there with the rest of the family
• chicago, illinois for the last two years and the best two new years ever. going to the lakefront to watch the fireworks with a bottle of disarrono, drinking it gone and then writing our wishes for the new year and stuffing them inside, throwing it into lake michigan.
• chicago, illinois, part two. staying at a house in lincoln park and pretending to be rich and ritzy with braxton. meeting m...

• mayo
• corned beef
• sauerkraut
• thousand island
• ranch
• sweet pickles
• almost anything creamy
• canned ham or sausages
• fried livers and gizzards
• baloney

• whole wheat bread (soft, not with the seeds)
• mangoes
• juicy juice
• plums
• hagen daz ice cream in the following flavors: banana split, raspberry sorbet, strawberry, rocky road, mango sorbet)
• swiss cheese
• rice
• skim milk
• yogi green tea
• almonds
• bananas
• turkey breast, shaved thin
• dried cherries
• special k cereal with strawberries
• honey
• peanut butter
• frozen pizza for braxton
• salmon

• summer sunshine
• waking up without being tired
• braxton making me breakfast
• riding to the beach on my bike in my floppy white hat with ashley
• reading a book and napping on the beach
• eating sushi and thai food
• a bottle of wine
• bah bah bah
• talking and staying up late with these people: julie, ashley, nikki, braxton, starkey, megan, shane, claire, alison, stephanie, erin, jerrod, and sam
• falling asleep talking and laying next to braxton

• indiana
• illinois
• maine
• florida
• kentucky
• alabama
• tennessee
• georgia
• new york
• vermont
• new hampshire
• washington d.c. (that counts, right?)
• maryland
• virginia
• west virginia
• pennsylvania
• ohio
• california
• texas
• nebraska
• wisconsin

• braxton black
• jason lee
• mark ruffalo
• marcello mastroianni (dead, but still)
• christian bale
• matt skiba
• justin theroux
• tom delonge
• ewan mcgregor
• richard from margot