Cigarettes & Chocolate Milk

"...These are just a couple of my cravings
Everything it seems I like's a little bit stronger
A little bit thicker, a little bit harmful to me..."

Those aren't my cravings, they're Rufus Wainwright's (and it's a really cool song), but it makes a lot of sense.

Tonight, for instance, my two classmates and I were craving frozen yogurt. This new serve-yourself fro yo phenomenon has hit Tuscaloosa hard, and one such establishment has popped up on campus. So when, after an exhausting 3-hour lecture, we see those beautiful letters shining in the distance-- T...C...B...Y-- like a beacon of comfort and yum, it's hard to resist the urge. Is frozen yogurt bad for you? Compared to ice cream and other sugary confections, not especially. Is frozen yogurt covered in hot fudge, marachino cherries, and crumbled Heath bar bad for you? Without a doubt.

Other things I'm craving this evening:

Pizza from Mama's, my favorite Italian restaurant in my hometown... possibly my favorite Italian restaurant stateside.
A trip: a road trip, a cruise, a weekend shopping trip... anything outside of my regular routine.
A House marathon. It's one of my favorite shows, and I'm a little behind... oh, and I freaking LOVE TV on DVD.
A massage; something is terribly wrong with my neck and, although I've been to the chiropractor, I'm dying for a spa day :)
Hot chocolate, apple cider, and a snow day.
Weather cool enough for sweaters, boots, scarves, and hoodies.
CHRISTMAS!
A snuggle buddy. Yeah, I said it.
I want to cook a meal, a real meal. Not a sandwich or a frozen dinner-for-one. I want to have a dinner party, or just be free enough on a weeknight that I can cook for a friend.
Ultimate frisbee. Or tennis. I run a lot, but I rarely get to play a team sport, and I'm dying.
A good play. Yes, a good play. Have you seen Wicked? It ruined me.
Holiday movies (read: HARRY POTTER)
Pasta... luckily, I'm eating at Mama's Friday night, so all this Italian food craving will come to an (temporary) end.
To do something artsy... finish a cross stitching project (yeah, I cross stitch, so what??), paint something, make a pillow...
a hair cut & color (I know I blogged about this yesterday, but I'm not exaggerating... I can barely look in the mirror. THAT bad.)

Here's something noteworthy: none of those cravings involved school. None of them even hinted at school. I didn't even list a craving to read a book because, honestly, I don't want to read anything. This is a new low for me. I'm a reader--an avid reader-- and grad school has taken that joy from my life.

I'm craving anything that would offer me a break from school, anything that would give me enough time to breathe and put my life in order... So I'll finish off with Wainwright's very appropriate closing lyrics:

"I'm just a little bit heiress, a little bit Irish
A little bit Tower of Pisa
Whenever I see ya
So please be kind if I'm a mess..."