cleeeeean carpets

this just in: the stanford estate's carpets are now sparkly clean.

yes, that's right, we finally got vacuum bags and then stacey literally went nuts with the vacuum and vacuumed everything in sight, including joanna's butt. [ok, maybe not joanna's butt. but i had to put something in to keep everyone's attention.]

this is big. this is really big. our living room floor was literally covered with leaves. COVERED. lauren would come out of her room, look around, let out a little dejected sigh and go back into her room every few minutes.

hence, lauren was ecstatic this afternoon when she opened the front door and TAAADAAAA! there was a bright, clean carpet to greet her!

she wanted to blog about her excitement, so she asked me to take a picture of her kissing the floor.

one of my favorite things ever is to video her without her knowing, so i took a video instead. we both agree that it is an amazing reflection of her delight in our clean carpets. take a look at this:

ALSO, and probably most importantly, LAUREN HAS THREATENED TO STOP posting if no one comments on our posts. please.... humor her. if you read this, just say something like "lauren, your new haircut is amazing" or "you are a comedic genius, lauren" or "wow! this post really reminded me of the broccoli that i ate for dinner!!! THANKS LAUREN!" as a comment, and i'm sure her frustration will be quickly appeased. if she carries out her threats, we will all be deprived of much laughter and mirth.

think about the children. do it for the children.

my room is SO CLEAN.

i just tidied it, while i was procrastinating instead of studying.

this is a very important part of my life.

hence, i tell you.

i also put up more magazine clippings/random memorabilia on my walls.

i love it. i want to cover my walls with them. :)

and this is just because i love joanna and i miss her. i haven't seen her in a while, it seems.

and now to study my butt off (pardon my graphic language) until all hours of este noche.

theeeend.

i love elizabeth

i have a story for you. it's called i love elizabeth.

once up on a time, there was a girl who lived in my parent's basement with her family. her name was elizabeth. she was the best. we have had so many fun times making goofy videos and taking goofy pictures on my computer. i love her.

the end.

Part of Your DORM

after a long night of studying and practicing, a tea-making session turned into this....

here's our version of the little mermaid's "part of their world".

i love joanna. :)

African American Boycott of L.L. Bean

i very much enjoyed this video, by The Onion, a fake news network....

again, this is a joke.

i emphasize this because joanna did not know it was a joke.

it is a joke.

the end.

i just discovered something creeepy

you can look at a live video feed online of the gym.

i think that's weird. i mean, it makes sense.. but i look at those bikes and think, "i've biked there".... which is just a strange feeling....

COMING SOON:

"LAUREN CROSBY INVESTIGATES: an exploration of the mysteries of our household"

and

"The Penitence Stool: Based on a True Story"

so, stay tuned.....

"Pay in Forward"

Hello Readers,

So today, I was studying at Mayorga with Bryce. A man comes up to me and asks if I go to UMD. I decide to answer truthfully and reply, "Yes. I do. I see you have some tickets to todays game." He says "No, but here you go" and hands me the tickets and leaves. I open the envelope, thinking he just gave me football tickets. But no. I opened it up and to my utter surprise, I found two Colbie tickets. Each ticket was 40 dollars. The envelope read, "Pay in forward. Enjoy and Seize the Day." I had to pinch myself (not really... I would never hurt myself).
Just yesterday, I drove in my car and heard the concert announcement come on. I wished I could go, but I just couldn't because of the price. And God decided he would bless me with something little, but meaningful. Very kind. So Jenn came with me and we had a splendid time. The concert was wonderful. I'm going to try to post a video, but my favorite song, Bubbly, is not a good recording because my singing overpowered hers :)
Couples surrounded us in every direction. But I had Jenn!!! On the way home on the metro, two very unusual boys strolled around the metro car for 20 minutes touching their fingers to all the hand grasp bars. A girl and guy behind us wouldn't stop talking in baby voices to each other and kissing. Gross. Honestly.

Now, I am back in CP. In this house alone. But I feel safe because of two reasons. God is here and is surrounding this house. But also because it is raining like crazy. And what idiot would choose a rainy night, of all nights, to rob a house?

grocery shopping

today stacey and i went grocery shopping.

you know your life is sad when grocery shopping becomes a social event.

"hey guys, let's go GROCERY SHOPPING!"

"YES!"

"i'll drive!"

no, i am not exaggerating.

almost every time i go shopping, i go with at least one other person. last time it was five people, and that's not uncommon. that's the best because then you're running around and bumping into everyone all over the place, comparing cereals and recommending apple brands.

i love the ritual of it all. piling in the car, pulling into the giant parking lot, getting our carts and embarking on our mission.

all the essentials are systematically added to our respective carts:

apples

bananas

milk

cheese

yogurt

pasta

cereal

cookie mix

deodorant

i really love running into her near the eggs and yelling at her to get out of my way and watching people's reactions when they don't know that we know each other.

what's more is, i think that, from my observations this past trip, Giant is quite a common destination for many groups of college students. today there was this one group of (obviously) college guys there, who i kept on running into. there were four of them, i think, but they surprised me a bit with their purchases:

"hey guys! you want me to pick up some asparagus? i love asparagus.."

and then i was stuck at the deli with them too. they were buying a bunch of different exotic cheeses. what regular college guy buys asparagus and half a pound of imported aged gouda (and two other cheeses that i have never heard of...)?

i couldn't help being curious...

as we progressed, stacey and i would use our mobile devices to inform each other of our shopping progress [real samples of communication]:

r: "hey have you got deli meat yet?"

s: "nah, but english muffins are on sale- buy one get one free"

r: "really.... hmm..."

.....

r: "oh my gosh the lines are loco up here"

this is just one of the many things i enjoy about college. when else will i be able to call up one of my best friends just to go grocery shopping with them?

the best part is coming home and actually having food in my section of the fridge and in my cabinet. i haven't had food for a week and a half. now my sections are literally filled to overflowing.... a very good feeling, indeed.

lies, lies, lies.

first of all, i would like to say that stacey was being completely satirical in her last post. don't love it, brittany, because she lied.

stacey lies.

everyone knows that stacey hates sunday nights. everyone. stacey was just making fun of lauren and how lauren loves to treasure the little moments of life (like eating home-grown tomatoes or challah bread, making pancakes, or visiting ghetto schools) and didn't mean a word of what she said.

second of all,

well, there is no second of all.

now i'm gonna make a video with lauren.

[LAUREN MADE ME DELETE THE VIDEO BECAUSE IT WAS DUMB]

well that's cute. haha. NOT.

ok the end.

Sweet Sunday Nights:

Sigh, Sunday nights are my favorite.

Lauren has a full conversation with no one in particular about what she will be wearing to her next costume party from her room. Brielle and I just sit her studying.

[ lauren waltzes across the living room. does a quick headstand & comments on the current muscle group that she strengthened at the gym today]

Stacey & Brielle: silence. 

Lauren: starts to sing her own rendition of "breaks my hearr -are are artt are art" by Regina Spektor. 

Silence is golden on Sunday nights. The sweet hum of the single cricket that lives in our house. The sound of the ambulance blaring down 193, the clippity clippity clap clap click click click of the typists each singing their own tune with their fingers. The water dripping into the bucket under the sink. The bugs chirping outside our window, as in, right outside our window. Actually - it sounds like they have somehow found a way to lodge themselves inside space between the screen and the inside window. 

Homework is being done. Texts are being answered. Noses are being sniffed and blown because despite the fact that the leaves are falling in picturesque rotations to the ground to the tune of the autumnal chorus - we are still in the middle of cold season. make that flu season. i mean, swine flu season.

yeah - sundays are the best. 

Sunday nights. With Regina.

Stacey: Ewww killl that cricket!
Lauren: Brielle step on it. It's just a cricket
Brielle (swinging her legs off the floor and practically standing on the couch): You kill it!
Lauren: Not with my bare feet!

Also. I studied today from 2pm till now and am planning on more. YESSSSS.

Right now, Brielle is enviously glaring at Joanna's whole wheat muffins and really looking as if she is going to take one.

Regina Spec is in the background. Coffee is being consumed. Conversation is sporadic. Loud music periodically blares. Phones ring. Keys on computers are clicking. Homework is happening. Sunday. Lovely lovely Sunday.

last night: a photojournal

so this was basically what my life was like this week.

11:43 : the whole gang

1:45 : the faithful few are left, josiah falls asleep sitting up

2:10 : it progresses

2:30 : going crazy from studying too much. study guide ~13 pgs here.

3:00 : it progresses ... even james succumbs.

3:15 : i am left with nothing to keep me company but the gentle snores of my slumbering companions.

frozen bananas

ATT: All Residents

Hello Residents:

Due to the current economic recession and inflation in the toilet paper costs we are asking that the following residents reduce their bathroom usage. 

Residents under Restriction:

RACHEL CATHERINE ROBB

Thank you in advance for your cooperation,

Ms. Stacey Bosdosh

Director of Waste Management

#### Sligo Ave

Silver Spring MD #####

301 719 7997 x 293

Inner City Perhaps?

Today, I had my placement very near the SouthEast border in DC. Honestly, I had heard from someone who had been there that it was a very dangerous area. But once I got down there, I was completely at rest. We took a 45 minute walk around the neighborhood with the kids, and in that time, I saw theft and domestic violence and sketchy people everywhere. But you know what, God was there. He was. And I truly and honestly think that I could teach in the inner city. I had and still have dreams about owning a home in the most beautiful town of Charlottesville, but maybe God is calling me to live in a run-down apartment in some city. I don't know. I really don't know. But I do know this. NOTHING can harm me unless God wills it. Nothing. He is Sovereign. Sure, we might get harmed. There is sin abounding in this world. And I might get fearful at times. But my GOD has the final say at to what will happen to me. His hand is stronger than the hand of sin, of Satan, and of death. Praise the Lord. Praise Him.

Psalm 91

⁹ If you make the Most High your dwelling—
even the LORD, who is my refuge-

¹⁰ then no harm will befall you,
no disaster will come near your tent.

¹¹ For he will command his angels concerning you
to guard you in all your ways;

¹² they will lift you up in their hands,
so that you will not strike your foot against a stone.

¹³ You will tread upon the lion and the cobra;
you will trample the great lion and the serpent.

¹⁴ "Because he loves me," says the LORD, "I will rescue him;
I will protect him, for he acknowledges my name.

¹⁵ He will call upon me, and I will answer him;
I will be with him in trouble,
I will deliver him and honor him.

¹⁶ With long life will I satisfy him
and show him my salvation."

Challah bread

Is it wrong to say that I love Challah bread? I do. I love the taste of the bread that happens to be culturally and delectably rich. It's wonderful. Breakfast, lunch, and dinner, and snack yesterday. No joke. Joanna, thanks for bringing it this week :)

today i saw a freshman with a really ugly LL Bean backpack.

those things last forever.

that poor girl is going to have that backpack forever.

I'm Beginning to Think...

That no one except Lydia and Brittany read this blog. Which is fine. Really. As long as we have two viewers, it is worth the upkeep. Lyd and Britt, you will see that Rach has changed the format. I think I migggght like the black better. That might be just me. And even so, I'm just a contributor and I will not barge into the realm of blog decor.

Today was rather Mondayish. Accidental sleep-ins, lots of coffee, work, and school. A little girl at the CYC gave me a brief lesson on Michael Jackson and graced me with her version of ABC. She is the cutest 3 year old everrr. I know how to make mayo now. Julia Child is the best. Brielle and I went to the mall to pick up my fixed Mac. And we took one too many samples from the Cajun fast food place and Charlies subs. Did you ever notice that the people that sell the food at the Cajun fast food places are never Cajun? I'm just saying.

Tonight, everyone is studying their heads off. EVERYONE. Test season has begun. I can't do it any longer. I did much school this weekend, but a brain can only take so much. But not the brains of these household girls. They just never stop. I marvel at them. Justtt marvel. Nothing more to say, really. Rachel seems to have been keeping up with the blogging and it has much spicier content. So until next time!!!

best christian pick up line

ok. ok. ok. HILARIOUS.

i was walking from my car to a coffee shop today in downtown silver spring. i was stuck at a pedestrian crosswalk that was red and so i looked over my shoulder to see if there was a button to push to make the walk signal come on. instead of seeing a button, however, i saw a rather short, obviously foreign man, who noticed when i glanced at him. i looked away very suddenly to avoid the misconception that i had been looking at him. but, alas, i was too late.

him: "hello! you are very nice!" he said, approaching and holding a bible in his hand.

me: "um, thanks(?)"

him: "God created you and he loves you" (or something like that)

me: "amen!"

him: "aaand you TRULY are fearfully and wonderfully made!"

me: "um... amen."

him: "are you a born again christian?"

[upon closer observation, he appeared to be about 26-28 years of age]

me: "yes, i am."

him: "aah! no wonder our spirits are so in tune!"

(we walk across the street and continue walking)

me: "what church do you go to?"

him: "i go to the large ethiopian church around the corner."

me: "really? are you ethiopian? i love ethiopia! oh my gosh, i would love to visit your church!" (this was my biggest mistake)

him: "oh yes! oh yes! i would love to visit yours too! where do you go to church?"

me: "welll... it's in gaithersburg..."

him: "is it Covenant? i love Covenant! i have been there twice!"

me: "oh great... ok, well here's the coffee place, so i better be going... "

him: "oh, can i have your number... in case i... visit your church or something..?"

me: "oh... um.. sure." [it's so much easier to ignore calls than it is to reject requests... so i gave it to him]

him: "ok, well i'll call you right now. ok, there. is it ringing? you have my number"

me: "umm... what's your name?"

him: "israel... and yours?"

me: "rachel."

him: "ohh! israel and rachel! oh! oh! (meaningful laugh)... ok, goodbye!"

(you know how israel (jacob) and rachel get married in the bible... yeah. ha. )

this conversation was so funny to me on so many levels:

-first of all, can i just say that was the best and most hilarious christian pick up line EVER. you had to hear the intonation, too: "you TRULY are fearfully and wonderfully made!"

HAHA.

-second, it was very reminiscent of my recent visit to ethiopia, where i would be frequently asked to dinner or coffee by any random guy (of any age!), on the street or in a taxi bus. (it was just because i was white.... and there are hardly any white girls there... ) plus it was in the same accent. the similarity was sooo striking.

except, perhaps if this had occurred in ethiopia, he would have been calling to propose marriage, not dinner.

-third, it was just sooo RANDOM.

-fourth, the whole Israel and Rachel thing just topped it off. and his facial expression when he said it.... priceless.

-----

i walked into the coffee place and could not stop laughing while i tried to tell the people i was meeting there. i laughed a lot. oh yes, a lot. haha... oh yes.

then, ten minutes later, he left a message to asked me out to (an ethiopian) dinner, which i had to politely refuse via text message.

i got a rather dejected "Thanks." back for the "God bless you!" at the end of my text... poor guy.

and then i studied really super hard for my test on tuesday until about 12:15am. but that's not funny, so i'll stop now.

and the moral of the story is: ..... ?

IgNobel Prizes...

Are given every year to people who make lame discoveries or inventions. I just got this email from my dad and thought a couple of them were quite hilarious:

----

The 2009 Ig Nobel winners, awarded at Harvard University

Veterinary medicine: Catherine Douglas and Peter Rowlinson for showing that cows with names give more milk than unnamed cows.

Peace: Stephan Bolliger, Steffen Ross, Lars Oesterhelweg, Michael Thali and Beat Kneubuehl for investigating whether it is better to be struck over the head with a full beer bottle or with an empty beer bottle.

Economics: Executives of four Icelandic banks for showing how tiny banks can become huge banks, and then become tiny banks again.

Chemistry: Javier Morales, Miguel Apatiga and Victor Castaño for creating diamonds out of tequila.

Medicine: Donald Unger for cracking just the knuckles on his left hand for 60 years to see whether knuckle-cracking contributes to arthritis.

Physics: Katherine Whitcome, Liza Shapiro and Daniel Lieberman for figuring out why pregnant women don't tip over.

Literature: The Irish national police for issuing 50 tickets to one Prawo Jazdy, which in Polish means "driver's license."

Public health: Elena Bodnar, Raphael Lee and Sandra Marijan for inventing a brassiere than can be converted into a pair of gas masks.

---

hahaha.... quality, quality.

flashback:

to when we were laying the traps down for the mouse.....

Lauren: HOW WILL WE DISPOSE OF IT?!?!

brielle: well, A, it's dead and we put it in the trash can... B, it's alive and we put it under the neighbor's tire.

BRIELLE IS SICK.

i think the whole terrorism minor question WAS a serious question.... oh my.