Core Finals: Day 1 + Mi Pelo + Regrets

Today was the first day of studying for finals! I didn't get there until the afternoon, but only Becca, Daniel and  Andrei were at Vicente's house. It was difficult to focus because we enjoy talking about other things too, but despite the fact that we went off onto many, many tangents, we got a lot accomplished, methinks. We discussed literature a bit, and then when Stephen came, we got more into history. Becca and Daniel left, and then Allen  - our resident philosopher - came. He is probably one of the deepest guys I know, so we got our philosophy on when he arrived. I love that he's so open to learning about other people's beliefs, even when they differ from his own. We can talk about our faiths (he's Muslim and I'm Christian) without the conversation turning into a heated debate, and we end up seeing a lot more of the similarities between our beliefs instead of the differences. I've actually seen that there are many more similarities between Islam and Christianity than there are anything else. Both religions have Abrahamic roots, just like Judaism, so it makes sense. It slips my mind so often, though, that it usually takes a person of another faith to remind me of how much we share. But I digress...

Throughout the afternoon, we went onto rabbit trails about culture, religion, philosophy, science...you wouldn't believe it unless you were there. After everybody else had left. Allen and Andrei even got into this deep discussion about what time really is, the definition of 3 dimensions, time travel, quantum physics, calculus...it was amazing. I thought it was over my head at first, and I remarked how dumb I felt, but they both encouraged me to just think about it in different ways. I did, and I actually comprehended it. It totally changed my attitude and view of physics (not my favorite science) and the practicality and application of mathematics (most especially algebra and calculus). I'm looking forward to math classes now. Or even just learning math on my own. I'll show you some shots of the group - finally, faces to the names I mention so often!

SN: Andrei wanted to know why he wasn't on my blog, too. Lol. So, I wondered about just doing a Scholars Stories series, and do interviews with all of the people in the program - even the professors. What think you? Let me know what you'd think about getting to know my classmates and friends! :-)

So, now, presenting some of my fellow Scholars! (I did let them know that I'd be blogging about them, and they knew about the photos :-D ):

 

From left to right: Daniel, Andrei, and Stephen while we discussed the major points of history that we learned this semester.

Allen (left) and Andrei (right) talking about the finer points of history in the kitchen.

Vicente (left) and Stephen (right) enjoying Allen and Andrei's conversation.

Allen and Andrei deep in a discussion about the effects that religion has on culture.

In the basement: Allen and Andrei's physics and calculus oral dissertation lol. I looked on from the couch, taking in the incense that Vicente (sitting off to the left) burned. Vicente's younger sister came down to listen in, too, and she was also intrigued. Who wouldn't be?

This is a short clip I recorded during their discussion. This was the tip of the iceberg! Sorry for the poor video quality; their voices are more important than the images, though :-)

Andrei used my scrunchy to describe what time is (my mind was blown, btdubs). And speaking of scrunchies, peep the 'do! I went up to the bathroom to take out my twists, and was greeted with this (I did pin back one side with a couple bobby pins I found in my hair):

Not too bad, eh? I think I'll wear my hair out on Fridays again. I'm loving this look, methinks. Oh, and I just mixed up my cleanser for tomorrow morning. I added some Paula's Choice shampoo because of the silicones from the Pantene that are in my hair. Uggh. Ooh, and I'm DCing with Nature's Gate Aloe Vera Moisturizing Conditioner. I'll probably add EVOO, EVCO, grapeseed oil, sesame oil, canola oil, and mayhaps a carrot or two, and some mayonnaise. I'll dish in the AM.

Last but not least: Please, please, please keep those CT families in your thoughts and prayers. The fact that somebody was sick enough to murder so many young, innocent children is troubling to my soul. I was devastated when I heard the news. I work with that age group a lot, and I just cried and cried. What are we coming to?

Pantene/Silicone RANT!! + Facial Hair Woes

I'm so angry right now. It may not come through in my calm, pleasant-looking typed words, but I'm ready to cuss and spit! I posted yesterday about my Pantene fiasco. Well, I baggyed my twist bun overnight like usual, and it looked fine...until I stepped outside. I live in Maryland, so the weather here is iffy at best. Yesterday was a pleasant 55 degrees, and today is dreary and grey and wet all round. Blech. Now normally, my hair is fine in the humidity and rain. The section that was covered with the Darcy's Botanicals leave in looks shiny and isn't frizzing up much. But the rest of my hair?! It looks dusty and dry like the Sahara, feels matted and hard and crunchy, and is just an all around NASTY MESS. Uggh! I'm ashamed to be a natural today. That's how bad it is. I mean, just look at it:

Can you shudder with me? Please? This frizz is ridiculous. The one twist I did with my DB looks BOMB; it's shiny and frizz free. I did have gel on it, rinse it, and then added some Pantene, but still. I'm hot. Silicones didn't used to treat my hair like this. Neither has Pantene; I've used the Pantene Curly Moisture Renewal conditioner multiple times before, and my hair looked fine before. My hair has NEVER looked this dry! Not even after I BCed! And definitely not after baggying. I'm just disgusted. I will be CG for life if this is how my hair is going to react to silicones now #ain'tnobodygottimeforthat. Here's the one twist that actually looked presentable. It's the bottom one...

On top of all of that, my scalp is itching like crazy in the spots that I have Pantene in! I'm like da heck is this? Mayhaps I just developed an allergy to it or something. Either way, I'm upset. Way more than I was yesterday. Ugh.

To compare that frizzy mess in the front with what my hair usually looks like, look at this little back section (that refuses to go into twists, mind you) that I detangled and left DB in, sealed with grapeseed oil, and added some gel. This is after being rubbed around on my coat collar and being out in the same amount of rain as the rest of my hair. Just lookit. It looks a little cray, but I'll pin it up...eventually...

Anywho, in other news...the amount of men with burgeoning beards lately is just sinful. Here's a bit of a Shakespearean-esque prose I wrote about it while on campus today:

*le sigh*
O, men of the College of Montgomery! O, O, O! 
Why dost thou insist on insulting the good people by permitting those evil wires to sprout from thine chin? 
Verily, I say unto thee, you do disgrace the eyes of even the most virtuous of women in thy presence. 
Be gone, whiskers from the bowels of Hades! Be gone!

Yes, I am a little on the crazy side. I get it from my Nana's side of the family :-D