I absolutely <3 Halloween

Halloween is my favorite holiday out of the whole year, even better than my birthday and Christmas. I love the horror movies, the candy, and seeing everyone's costumes. This Halloween should be good, even though I didn't buy a real costume this year. I am going as a peacock, and I only had to buy some peacock feathers for $10. I already have a shirt with peacock feathers on it, feather earrings, and teal eyeshadow and shoes to wear, so the feathers for decoration were all I needed to complete the costume. It should be awesome, I've always wanted to go as a peacock sometime and now I can!

Another cool thing is that my little sister is coming up to visit for a Halloween party with my friends tonight. She should be here in an hour or so, then we are going to Cici's Pizza for dinner and then getting ready the rest of the night. I hope this party is really fun, because I stayed in last night instead of going out. It should be though, I am really excited for it.

Happy Halloween everyone!!

I passed!

I passed candidacy!! I am now a PhD. Candidate... boo yah!! The exam went really well, I wasn't too terribly stressed and once we got the ball rolling and they started asking me questions about my work, I settled in and felt really good about it. PLus they only deliberated for about 3 mins or so before letting me know I passed, so I think that means all three of them agreed that I did well. :-) I'm super proud of myself, and I think my parents are too, if the $100 check I just got in the mail is any indication!!!

Candidacy!

Well folks, tomorrow is the big day... the moment of truth. I have my candidacy exam, which basically means they will review my dissertation proposal and tell me whether I can continue on to the PhD., or if I have to leave with a Master's and go home. It doesn't seem to be too difficult to pass, because it's basically the earliest step of working on your dissertation, but I am still nervous. One of the guys who took it last year failed and left, so it does happen. I am trying to relax tonight though, going over my presentation and details of my proposal only a few times so I don't over-stress. This would all be so much easier if I didn't also have a cold/the flu at the same time!! Oy. Well, I'll let you all know how it goes tomorrow!

FINALLY cancelled my Sears Card

So I bit the bullet and finally got rid of my Sears card. It was the first "real" credit card I ever got, but I really just wasn't happy with it. I feel like they played games, always changing the due dates and then charging super high late fees. I haven't been using it for the last few years except maybe a small purchase once a year. So today was the day I decided to cancel. I'm most likely not going to need credit for the next few years... just bought my new car, DEFINITELY not going to buy a house, and I have four more guaranteed years of funding at school. So I feel like now was a good time to cancel the card, in case my credit score does take a hit. But overall I'm happy, because now my credit card count has gone down to 3, which is a much better number for someone my age.

Going to Minneso:ta! (sorry linguistics joke)

I just bought a plane ticket for Minnesota! The boyfriend is originally from there, and he invited me to come out and visit over New Years. When the semester's over, he's going to stay at my house for a bit before I take him to the airport, then I'll join him in MN on the 30th and stay for a week. I'm soooo excited to meet all his family, especially his little brothers, who are about 14 an 16 and sound like a lot of fun. Plus I'll meet all his friends at the New Years party. :-) I'm mildly nervous about the trip, but mostly just because it's going to be ridiculously freaking cold there. Thank God I bought good snow boots at the mall this weekend! Phew.

Cost-wise, the ticket was really cheap- only $229. Basically, it's a bargain... definitely the cheapest plane ticket I've ever bought (or boughten in MN speak- gotta start practicing :-P)!

Snow. Blah.

First off, I'd like to mention that it's snowing. IN OCTOBER. I think this is completely unacceptable... I can only imagine how bad this winter will be if we have our first snow already. We apparently broke a State College record even for the earliest snowfall... one that's been in place since 1901! Oy.

Speaking of winter, I'm going to need to shell out some precious cash and buy some snowboots. I don't own a single pair of waterproof shoes, and unfortunately the closest thing I have are leather boots with heels. I made due with those last year, but considering I'll probably be living here for the next four years, I figure I should make the investment. Does anyone know of some good but (very) inexpensive brands of snowboots?

Boyfriends are Expensive!!

I know that this is common knowledge to probably everyone, but it's been awhile since I've actually had a steady boyfriend, so just bear with me... having a boyfriend is expensive!!! We have been doing nothing but spending money the last few weeks-- going out for coffee (hot chocolate in my case), going out for ice cream, going out for dinner, going out for breakfast, etc. It's getting ridiculous-- I certainly can't keep this up much longer. Both because of money issues and because I am going to get fat! To be fair, we do spend a lot of our time hanging out at home, but the problem is that we also work together in the department (I know, I know, might not be the best idea) so it's always tempting to take a break and go out for lunch or some snacks. I can't keep acting like a high-roller though, so I'm definitely going to have to cut back a bit. I'll let him down gently of course... haha.