more good stuff + things I long for

Good stuff:

I remember reading about this and shuddering. I read somewhere else that mining is no longer considered the most dangerous occupation, but I still think it's a job sent directly from hell.

A model blog filled with . . . model-y stuff. You know, clothes and travel.

What the hell is this? I don't know, but it's kind of entertaining.

A blog, mainly about details and vintage things.

Here are my options at TU Delft. I'm leaning toward Architectural Engineering.

I need to get back with studying Japanese. (Well, and studying Spanish. Dammit, how is it that Elizabeth Gilbert was able to achieve fluency in four months?)

This makes me feel so confident. Barcelona is #1 on the list of places to get pickpocketed. On the up side, Madrid is #3 and Paris is #4, and for the most part I have been doing okay there.

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Things I am longing for.

1. Driving myself on a highway with none too many people with country music on the radio.

2. Oyakodon at the 500 yen place.

3. Naoshima outdoor art.

4. The Christian Science Center plaza.

5. Family Mart [my favorite convenience store in Japan] pastries, noodles, and chicken.

6. Newbury Street.

7. The back alley behind Fenway.

8. The vet clinic, particularly the alley behind it.

9. An English-language public library.

10. Being able to put stuff on my walls.

11. B*Goods, the Shaws on Boylston, the Whole Foods behind Fenway.

12. Making the loop around the Fens, passing by the MFA, and thinking that I could go in any time I felt like it, really.

13. Baking. (Mom, we are going to have to do some negotiation about this when I get back.)

14. Cheese curds. (This one is all Mary Beth's fault.)

15. The Boylston Street Borders and H&M.

I can't really describe my desire for the people I love as a longing at this point. Maybe because I know I can call them up if I really need them. Sure, I crave physical contact like nobody's business, and face-to-face conversation where neither my partner nor I are scrambling for words. But when I miss a place, I can't just call up my favorite street on my cell phone and say, "Hey, how's it going? Can you give me some details about what it feels like to be where you are, just so I don't miss you too much?"