A new 100 or so things about me, because in many ways I am not the same person who wrote the old one.

1. My name is Lauren.

2. I had for a while taken to calling myself 'La Lauren,' but sometimes I think that sounds too self-important, and sometimes I think it's not my nickname to use anymore.

3. Accordingly, my AIM name is 'bla la la lauren,' which also has a bit to do with Jason Mraz's Tonight, Not Again, a song that is something of a theme song and still capable of giving me chills, upon occasion.

4. I am a somewhat reinvigorated political science major and a passionate gender studies minor.

5. I am more liberal than the Democratic party, which is fine because I would do away with party government if I could.

6. I want to go to graduate school for women's studies, eventually earn my PhD and probably teach.

7. Though by no means do I really have a clear concept of what I want to do with the rest of my life.

8. I used to think of myself as a completely non-scientific person, but this semester I have developed both an affinity and a passion for zoology.

9. Most of the time I like animals more than people.

10. Truly understanding the scientific principles of evolution has cleared up a lot of personal questions for me.

11. I do believe in evolution, but we need not get into that right now.

12. I believe in evolution in all things. 'Evolve' is sort of a personal mantra/philosophy for me. Personal growth, change and evolution. It's all we have.

13. I know I keep going back and forth on this, but as of today, I truly am postmodern.

14. And I don't consider myself a humanist anymore, because it's hubristic and requires a lot more faith in people than I have. On an individual basis, we are capable of great things. In our own sphere, we have created an amazing world. But overall, we all have crap for brains and matter little in the grand scheme of things.

15. Yes, I adore Strong Bad.

16. I am a vegetarian.

17. I am an atheist in that I do not believe in a god who favors humanity over all other creation - which has existed without us for millions of years - and answers prayers or intercedes in earthly events or gives a damn what any one of us do in our meaningless lives.

18. I am an agnostic in that I do not believe anyone knows the truth through science or religion. There could be a higher being. There could be life after death. No one knows, and yes, it is hubristic to think we have any answers at all. I am always in search of more, and better, truth.

19. I am attracted to deism and the thought of a sort of secular worship to nature. Whether it is evidence of a creator or not, the world is amazing and beautiful. Playing to the firmament is one of my favorite concepts.

20. I am an existentialist but for the fact that I cannot find comfort in nonexistence. And perhaps I want control of my existence too much to accept the reality of what I cannot control. But it is a label I aspire to.

21. I am a feminist. Political and economic inequality persists, but I am particularly concerned with culture and the societal constructs that instill gender identities and keep women trapped in patriarchal roles without anyone even noticing.

22. I know it's not exactly a job, but for a select few, but I would truly love to be able to call myself a feminist theorist.

23. I am so ready to not be an undergraduate anymore.

24. I love the taste of baking soda toothpaste. I think that's a strange thing about me.

25. If I were any character in literature, I would be Beatrice from Much Ado About Nothing. I know I only decided this yesterday, but I still think it's true. Or Clarissa Vaughan from The Hours.

26. I aspire to be Margaret from Howards End.

27. So basically every character Emma Thompson has ever played.

28. It is important to me to be fluent in at least one other language. Spanish is within my grasp, and I'm working on Dutch as well.

29. I'd love to learn French to be able to read the French feminists, postmodernists and existentialists in their language. One doesn't have this sort of foresight as a 9th grader.

30. I spend more time dreaming about a 4.0 semester and calculating the mathematical probability of such a feat than actually earning it.

31. I am a compulsive planner. Itineraries and applications are about the only thing I approach in an organized, systematic way.

32. I am predisposed toward 'freaking out.'

33. I will never marry, because it is a religious/governmental institution, neither of which mean a thing to me.

34. I don't want children. I am too selfish, and I don't want the responsibility that comes with someone else depending upon me.

35. I might live with a lover, but would have to give it some serious thought - my posessions and my life will always be my own, and I am wary of giving away even a little bit of it.

36. I am pro-choice. If I became pregnant for any reason, I would have an abortion. I don't mean to say that so flatly; it would not be an easy decision to make, nor one easily forgotten. But I would.

37. The issue of abortion, for me, is essentially about valuing what is vs. valuing what could be. I value what is. This is why 36 and 38 are not contradictory.

38. I am almost entirely a pacifist and I am opposed to the death penalty.

39. I do not have crises of conscience over music downloading. I would compensate the artists directly, but fuck the RIAA.

40. Music defines me. I listen primarily to guys with acoustic guitars, angry and/or sarcastic girls, and classic rock. Though that doesn't begin to paint a picture.

41. I don't recycle as much as I should.

42. I am so unrealistic about and stupid with money. I know my credit is already shot to hell.

43. I want a tattoo that looks something like this.

44. I would also consider getting a cartilage or tragus piercing, or if I were particularly brave, a spiral cartilage piercing.

45. I like dyeing my hair any and all shades of red.

46. I am too impatient to let my curly hair grow long.

47. I wear makeup occasionally, which consists of colored mascara, sparkly eyeshadow and lip gloss when I do, but it is only because I enjoy it, for the same reason I choose my clothes or my hairstyle. I would never hide behind makeup or feel badly without it again. I will never wear foundation or concealer again.

48. I haven't shaved anything for nearly a year. It's not meant to be a statement; I have always found it a chore, and I'm not going to do for anyone else. I know most people are either offended or disgusted by this. Stupid fucking patriarchy.

49. I can't sleep without at least three pillows.

50. Jude: "I spoon an oversized pillow, which I bought for just that use." Yes, I do that.

51. I am so happily single, but definitely keeping my eyes open.

52. When I get nervous or agitated, I play with my food or braid the fringe on blankets.

53. Tiramisu, bruchetta, and mint chocolate send me into orgasmic fits. Figuratively.

54. Whenever possible, I go barefoot.

55. I am not comfortable unless my feet are curled under me or stretched out in some usually socially inappropriate way.

56. I have become legitimately obsessed with The West Wing again. I wish Barlet existed, I wish to be CJ, and I wish to love a Toby.

57. Scream-singing in the car is one of my favorite pastimes.

58. Once I took an informal survey of other cars on the road, and was both surprised and saddened to see that the vast majority of people do not sing in the car.

59. I know this is not environmentally conscious of me, but I love to drive.

60. I drive my '92 Mustang like it's an SUV.

61. I want to do/see/feel everything, and I am never more depressed than in the rare moments when it is clear to me that not even a fraction of this can happen.

62. I want to learn to play guitar so badly. I owned a guitar for a few months, and ended up selling it.

63. I need a lot of light.

64. I called myself a 'practical idealist' for a while, and only recently realized I had unwittingly stolen the idea from TWW.

65. I am almost never practical and as much a cynic as an idealist.

66. I am philosophically bipolar.

67. Thomas Paine inspires the hell out of me. (The world is my country and to do good is my religion.)

68. The Age of Enlightenment is my favorite historic time... All feminism and postmodernism aside, I probably would have felt more at home then.

69. I need to feel in control of everything that happens to me. I probably already said that, but it's that important.

70. I do not believe in fate or soulmates or destiny. To believe in such things is to relinquish your self. It is the height of laziness, and/or rationalization.

71. I become very easily obsessed with things, but never - in recent personal history - with people.

72. I have an intense desire to be part of something like a neo-Bloomsbury group.

73. I consider myself an open-minded and accepting person, yet I know I am hyper-opinionated and can become hostile toward people who don't agree with my viewpoints. It is hard for me to understand people who don't agree with progressive principles.

74. I believe wholeheartedly in Locke's blank slate theory. Aside from basic evolutionary instincts - which are being stamped out of us - we are a product of our environment and beings of our own making. I believe in escaping the former to increasingly fulfill the latter.

75. I don't think there is any such thing as basic, unchanging human nature.

76. I love pockets and notebooks with many sections and anything that promotes organization, though I can't follow through on any of it.

77. I don't care much about things, nor am I invested in keeping things 'nice.' I like a well-used book. I like to put my feet up. I don't mind if hair dye drips onto my towel. What does it matter?

78. I am a complete and total slob. I don't mind a mess and I hate to clean. I doubt if I'll ever in my life scrub a toilet.

79. I used to be much more of a sexual prude than I am now. I am a virgin, but I'm a lot more comfortable with the idea of sex now. I think it's because I'm more confident, I know better what I want, and I've given up holding out for a lifelong relationship.

80. My taste in men is probably a bit strange. "Hottie" for me describes Alan Rickman (Professor Snape), Richard Schiff (Toby on TWW), Colin Firth (any Mr. Darcy will do) and Stephen Dillane (Leonard Woolf in The Hours). So probably I will not find the man of my dreams until I'm 40.

81. In real life, my taste in men is nonexistent. I am so inobservant. And I've probably only had one hardcore crush in my life.

82. I don't place much emphasis on looks, but in general I'm attracted to the skinny, dark-haired coffeeshop guy. Dorks and guys with British accents are also a plus.

83. I maintain, however, that I am not attracted to a type or even, necessarily, a gender. I'd like to think I'm looking for a person who, in all the ways I know I cannot describe in two or three sentences, can complement my personality and generally not in any egregious way annoy me.

84. The road not taken: had I chosen differently, I might have enjoyed being a political speechwriter, a screenwriter, a field zoologist, or a professional clarinet player.

85. Sometimes, inexplicably and against my will, I experience huge pangs of nostalgia and homesickness.

86. I am so transient, I rarely finish anything I've started. I cannot stand to do any one thing or be any particular place or be among any certain company for too long. I may never be satisfied.

87. I prefer solitude to being with people I don't truly have anything in common with. But I can't stand solitude so I hope to always have people who understand.

88. When I say I don't care about making money, I think I begin to romanticize being poor.

89. I have a tendency to make quick, spontaneous and totally illogical decisions, like driving two hours to get my hair cut or going home at 3am.

90. I'm not sure why, but I enjoy categorizing and cataloguing myself in the way 100 Things lists and surveys allow. I enjoy labels as long as they are self-applied.

91. When I have to buy new things, I try to opt for all-natural, cruelty-free, environmentally-friendly alternatives. This is a sort of gradualist way of developing a consumer conscience. Also, shopping for hemp purses is really fun.

92. I am anal retentive about classifying my music files, computer documents and bookmarked websites. I obsessively alphabetize my enormous CD collection. There is no precedent or parallel for this behavior in any other aspect of my life.

93. I mind bugs a lot less than I used to.

94. Shallow favorites time. Movies: The Hours, Adaptation, Always, The American President, The Remains of the Day, Howards End.

95. Actors: Emma Thompson, Meryl Streep, Alan Rickman, Susan Sarandon, Dustin Hoffman, Holly Hunter, Allison Janney, Tom Hanks.

96. Musicians: Don't get me started (an old list)

97. Writers: Virginia Woolf, E.M. Forster, Jane Austen, the Brontes, Joseph Heller, Shakespeare of course...

98. I don't really seek out certain genres or eras in literature, but I tend to enjoy sarcastic narrators and stories more romantic than I am, with a writing style somewhat less verbose than Dickens and more so than Hemingway.

99. Josh says I'm like black fire: I'm all dark and light at the same time.

100. Lani says I'm the raspberry smoothie to her mint cocoa.

101. Voila.