The Semester I Really Learned

I started out with all sorts of ideas about how this semester would carry out. There was a sweet balance of "been here, done this" and "everything's so new" that day I moved myself in for keeps.I wasn't new at this; why, a year before I'd been shaking in my khaki shorts as my family hauled boxes and bags into 315 Riverside East. And still, the idea of living in an apartment with my best friends kept making me smile all day long. It felt so surreal. Words like perfect and freedom and laughter kept slipping themselves into my thoughts. And in the end, it was perfect and free, and people, there was a lot of laughter. But what else there was took me by surprise. It shocked me. It made me angry.

Basically, I'd never experienced the stress that such a large load of school inevitably induces. As the girl who showed up on test day in high school and aced it and somehow found her way into not one but two Freshman Compass classes (read: "Write an essay on the difference between high school and college") her freshman year, things like studying for more than one night before the test were foreign to me. But this year, I had whole weeks where I didn't move from my spot on the couch, weeks where I felt guilty for breaking for dinner because "I have stuff to do!" Weeks where I would find myself, mid-Biology notes, thinking about my Human Development test and suddenly, there would be tears that I would whisk away, hoping none of my roommates caught a glance. Weeks that I took out way too much of that stress on way too many people who never deserved a lick of it. And I regret that.

I pulled out better, shinier grades this semester than I ever have before, which affirms what I knew all along: if I put the work in, I could and would get it done. But I learned that I don't want to live in a world where being destressed is a foreign idea, where, more often than not, I feel guilty for taking dinner breaks. I took that lesson and learned and dropped a class next semester and signed up for yoga. I feel that I am guaranteed a less stressful existence in the start of 2011.

So, that is my spiel about that. What's up next is all the crazy wonderful bits that I got swept up in, as well.

August 2010

moved in, threw Joanna a rockin' Birthday dinner, started class, revisited Summer Snow, learned how to cook black beans

September 2010

Went to the lake for Labor Day 2010 (again), Fell in love with Alabama football (again), suffered Round 1 of tests, found out just how wonderful our balcony really is

 October 2010

Went to Lake Guntersville for Fall Break #1, remembered how liberating it is to (occasionally) skip class, carved pumpkins, became half of a Halloween costume called "Can and A Bowl"

 November 2010

went to an away game (Tennessee), went to the Harry Potter premiere, went to a square dance, went home for Thanksgiving, met my goal of finishing the Harry Potter books

 December 2010

I finished strong. And it was awfully hard to say good-bye.  

 At the end of it all, I learned a lot. I learned that allopatric speciation occurs when one species turns into two because of geographical barriers. I learned that widowed men remarry 5 times more often than women. I learned how to build a wrench out of shapes in a computer program, and I tried to convince everyone that Grendel wasn't really a monster. I learned that most of the time, you get what you put into it, whatever it may be. I learned that productivity comes in all kinds of different ways, and that sometimes, unproductive productivity is more important than dishes or homework. I learned that people are more integral to this life than anything else, save for Jesus, who is a person, anyway. I learned that eating together brings you closer to the people around your table. I learned that sometimes, you have to start the conversation. I learned that at the end of the day, I a bold, and that whoever is loving me has to like that sort of thing. I learned that running away because you're scared is a terrible reason to run. I learned that I'm more of a yogini than a runner, anyway. And in yoga, I learned, you have to breathe through the pain. I learned that a family never means "ideal." Instead, a family means "acceptance" and a family means "selflessness" and a family means "I'll hold your hand" and "Please, don't be perfect." And don't worry, I took that lesson to heart.

Spring 2011? Bring it on. 

Return

Sorry about that.

I took a blog hiatus because it seemed more appropriate than, say, taking a sleeping hiatus. Though actually, i sort of took one of those, too. This week was monstrous. And so, blogging fell by the wayside. But I'm back!

Let me give you a brief overview, mostly because I'm proud that I made it through: two tests, an entire Photoshop book, 352 points of French homework online, a PS skills evaluation + a PS test, a French test, nursery duty, volunteer duty, small group, dinner with friends, coffee with friends, a party at my house, thrown by me, etc. It's been busy in ways that I don't like to be busy (i.e., I didn't get to watch a stinking minute of TLC, read a page of a book that wasn't school-related, or take any naps.) And I'm actually not finished yet, but I think that I'm through the worst of it, and I aced those tests, by the way. And while I kept my spirits up and my sense of humor handy, thus eliminating any panic attacks, I'm still really, really looking forward to the calm of next week.  

Anyway, a recap of all things me in the last few weeks via photos:

I know what you're thinking: What a sweet life! You're so right, friend! I mean, there are downsides to being me, certainly. I have to walk about six miles to get to class every day. I am taking lots of class and therefore my stress levels are usually up and my free time levels are way down. Additionally, I only have six freckles, something that's always kind of torn me up inside. But I have crazy awesome friends who do crazy awesome things like invite me to be dragged behind a boat and brave a thunderstorm to watch my football team beat the pants off other football teams and cram 200 people in a three bedroom apartment for a dance party (needless to say, a lot of sweating ensued, if you were dancing at least. And c'mon, there's no question about whether or not I was dancing.) (See above photos for illustrations.)

So it was a long, stressful, exhausting, demanding week, but I'd had all these great things the week before to push me through, and lots of great things waiting this weekend to pull me along, and, as it turns out, those days went by and I took those tests, and suddenly, I'm finished and I did it and I'm proud and I'm back.

Hallelujah!

The songs of September

Did anybody almost have a heart attack when they woke up yesterday and it was all SEPTEMBER and stuff? You know, your calendar had run out of days and when you flipped the page, it was WHAM! September! and you clutched your chest and wondered how could it BE? Just me? Luckily, when I walked outside the weather, at a cool 94 degrees and 69% humidity, reminded me of summer. So, no heart attacks.

But really, September is the great big banner that screams SUMMER IS OVER. Sure, school starts in August, but there are those great few weeks at the beginning when everyone's getting acclimated and reading syllabi and mapping out routines and the like. By September, all of those things have run their courses and it's time to get busy. For example, I had my first test today. That's right. It was French and I think it went okay and it's totally and completely in the back of my mind until later. But you want to know what's on my mind? (My mind, your mind, approximately 800 million fans' minds, actually.) I'll give you a hint:

FOOTBALL! The season opening of the reigning National Champions is Saturday and I HAVE A TICKET. In fact, I have a ticket to all of the home games. It's like payback to my brother for that early curfew that I hated for so long, because man, he would kill for this. (To add insult to injury, I get the package for $5 a ticket. Ha!) After the game, we will celebrate our win by vacationing at the lake because Labor Day is here! (Hey, just because September almost gave me a heart attack doesn't mean September isn't welcome! Yay, September, we like you!) 

                                

Oh man. I may or may not survive. In a good way.

I'm really excited for September because I think that perhaps the shock (and the hot weather) of such an extreme change will wear off a bit, and my routines will naturally fall into place. In fact, that's already happening, and it's working. I can't wait for fall temps, and fall leaves, and fall smells (think pumpkin and apple pie, oh my word, yes, please!) Moreover, I have a feeling there will be more and more splendid memories made throughout September, like these from August:

                             

I'm actually cut out of this shot, but you can imagine the fun that was happening.

                                          

Ah, reunited and taking photos to prove it.

So see, September took me by surprise. Maybe it's because I spent all summer counting down the days until this was my life again, and then once it was, I stopped counting and started living and it's going so quickly. But still, I can't wait for these 30 September days, and I am especially stoked for this first weekend. If I live through the tubing again, then I'll be back with pictures on Tuesday. Bonne weekend!