Sun Is Shining

Okay so quick catching up on my life.

I am still looking for a full time position and trying to occupy my time with other part time adventures.  I am the advisor for a teen leadership group which I am loving because those kids are rockstars.  The program has them plan four events and I just have to help them stay focused and facilitate some of their discussion.  It's not the most exciting thing I have ever done but these kids are fantastic.  During their weekend retreat, we would give them a time to be someplace and they would not only be on time but early and sitting around in a circle, playing a game they organized themselves.  They function well as a group which is not always the case with teenagers, especially since they don't have very much in common.

A few weeks ago, I started developing a teaching assistant program for my local synagogue to help their teenagers feel more confident working with kids in a classroom setting.  I wrote out an outline and submitted it to the education director and found out today that they have a budget to pay me and I start teaching at the end of January.

Working on this program is going to be super stressful for the next month but since most places are slowing down (if not freezing) hiring due to the end of the year, it seems to come at the perfect time.  It's also looking like it might lead to more part time things through the synagogue in the future.

It's looking like I am going to stay in Southern California for a while because I am realizing that I hate the cold!

I will attempt to update this now with the progress on my extra projects and will hopefully have good news on the employment front in the early new year.

Here Comes the Sun, Here Comes the Sun, and I Say, It's All Right

So here goes the next update on my life because I feel guilty not keeping up a little.

I decided to go back to camp this summer to lifeguard.  This is the first summer that I don't have campers and the first summer back since 2008.  It's strange because so much has changed but there are other things that have stayed the same as they always have been.

I love being able to spend most of my time in the sun after being cooped up inside last summer and a fair amount during the year.  The people who are working this summer are great and it's been great to get to know new people and spend time with my old friends who I haven't had much time with over the last few years, mostly due to the distance.

There are no updates on the long-term future yet other than a move to DC might not happen until January since the potential roommate will be moving then rather than September as originally planned.

Sorry for being boring :) but camp rules my life right now in the best of ways.  I really needed a little time off while I continue to look for a job and figure out the long term.

You've got every right, To a beautiful life. Come on!

Here we go, my last real Lehigh post for this blog.  For the sake of full disclosure, I should mentioned that I am writing this on a plane the day after graduation with the intention of posting this online when I get back to Los Angeles later this afternoon. 

So picking up where I think I left off last time.  We went to Ocean City, MD for Senior Week the week before graduation and reunion weekend so Thursday to Thursday.  It was nice to have friends in the car with me for a drive like that because I normally have to do drives of similar distance alone and it was nice to have someone to talk to.  Anyone who has a chance to get to go on a senior trip should take all advantage.  It was nice to have a week off to just spend time with the friends who I am about to leave since everything will be different now.  We met new people, got lucky with far better weather than was forecasted and had a lot of fun.  We were supposed to have a lot of rain and clouds but we had a fair amount of nice weather, which meant good things for getting tan for gradation. 

The weekend before graduation is reunion weekend meaning that all of the classes celebrating significant reunions (ie 70 years) come back to campus and celebrate with their classes and essentially welcome the new class into the alumni world.  There is a parade of classes, which starts with the current graduating class and then goes from oldest to youngest (so we started with 70^th reunion) and leaves the 50^th reunion for last since they are the class that adopted us.  It’s strange to think that in 2057, I can go back and be a part of the group that adopts the class of 2061.  There are all sorts of activities to do but my weekend included a LOT of packing.  I never thought I would have accumulated so much stuff over only four years!

On Sunday, I had the unique opportunity of watching my best friend become a commissioned officer in the United States Army.  She and eleven other graduations were commissioned as second Lieutenants who will handle a variety of things from infantry to personnel all over the country.  It was cool to watch because her dad was the one to issue her oath to her since he is a retired naval officer and the requirement is to be an officer in the US Military.  He did stand out a bit in the midst of all of the other Army officers in his dress whites.  My best friend is an amazing person and I am so proud of her for taking on this commitment.  It was really nice to be able to share in her special day with her.

Monday morning, my housemates and I were up really early (well, like 7ish) in order to get up to the stadium for graduation.  Our robes were rentals that we were told might run if they got wet so it was a risk since it looked like rain and the forecast was for thunderstorms all day and the ceremony was outdoors.  We all graduate by college (meaning CBE versus Arts and Sciences etc) and then the split us up by half of the alphabet so I realized that I have very few friends in my business school in my half of the alphabet so I almost decided to just graduate with the other half of the alphabet in Arts and Sciences. 

Having been to graduations in the past, I was worried at how long it would take since there were over 1,700 people graduating and we all had to walk across the stage.  Most other schools do main processionals with a speaker or two and then departmental or college graduations but we have the entire university graduate together which I like because I got to watch my friends graduate even if it meant that the process was a little long.  I think our class president stole the show with his speech about how everything was changing but also addressing the question of how we are going to be defined as people and as a generation.  Our keynote speaker only spoke for about ten minutes, which was great because she got her point across but also realized that we were being rained on at this point.  There was enough rain that it started to drip off my cap onto my gown but luckily, they were wrong and the gown didn’t bleed and stain. 

HOODS ARE CONFUSING!  We have an entire group of collegiate graduates (or candidates for graduation as we were called then) and none of us could figure out how to correctly put on these hoods!  They came with instructions but the instructions only defined how to put them on by the basics, not how they were supposed to look when we were finished.  We improvised a fair amount but I think we all looked pretty good in the end; well as good as you can look in giant brown robes and silly hats.  Part of me wants a PhD just for the crazy plushy hat. 

I never considered myself the type of student that was really close to my professors but it was interesting listening to my parents recounting watching me graduate.  Our ushers are faculty members so they are all in their academic regalia and one of the ushers right next the podium which are names were read was one of the professors who joined us on our freshman GC trip to India and he smiled at me, told me I would do well in life and gave me a huge hug.  Two seconds later, I handed my card to one of my professors from this past semester, she had been just taking cards and reading them but she took mine, read it and then looked up and smiled at me.  It might be weird, but I felt really good in that moment like despite all of the uncertainty in my life, if these people thought I would be successful then it must be possible.  It got even better when I ran into one of my favorite professors, Jill Brown (seriously, take every class possible with her, she’s AWESOME) and she had nice things to say in front of my parents about me but she is such a genuine person and I know she expects great things of me and for her, I want to accomplish great things. 

So that brings me to this moment, flying somewhere between Philadelphia and Nashville on my way back to the land of Menchies, In-N-Out and Coffee Bean with no definite idea of what comes next.  Maybe I will post on this one again about what did end up coming next but I have a feeling Lehigh will unlink my blog before I find out. 

On that note, if you have read my blog, try those of the other student bloggers.  Everyone has a different Lehigh experience, it’s not an education factory but so much more than that and just as no two people are exactly the same, neither are two Lehigh experiences.  Maybe I will give one more final recap of my four years when I have a little more space from the experience but again, I have no idea what the future looks like so we shall see.

I Never Want To Fall Apart

So using this blog as my usual procrastination tool, here I am.  I know I still have a fair amount of work left to do today since I got nothing done yesterday due to other engagements but I just keep having moments where I sit here and think, "I should tell more people about this moment."  Right now, I am a little annoyed because I am in the serious library in the quiet section where everyone who does not want silence has headphones in but the place should be silent otherwise.  However, there are two people talking, lacking all hushed tones necessary to not get the evil looks from EVERYONE else.  Someone also left their cellphone on ring, a big faux pax in the library but to make it worse rather then immediately silencing it and taking it outside to take the call, she proceeds to take the call inside.  I don't know if this would bother me so much except that it is the weekend before finals when getting a seat in the library is an ordeal in itself due to demand and everyone is here to get work done, not just have a quiet place to see friends as is sometimes the case during other weeks.  

If I tell you all my plan for the rest of the day, the likelihood of achieving it is greater since then I feel like I am being held accountable to someone besides myself.  I have to finish my section of the group deliverables for project management then I am going to finish my question set for 306 then work on my study guide for global studies.  I can finish the study guide and work on the paper tomorrow but I want to get as far ahead as possible so I can get some more sleep tonight since even the guy at Johnnys told me I was looking tired.  That is never a good sign since he sees me maybe twice a week.

I need to have dinner at home since I am trying to finish eating everything I have in the freezer at the moment, I am currently down to some frozen pizza, pirogues, waffles and cake.  I think I may have one other lean cuisine type thing.  

At the moment I miss three things about the Georgetown library, one is coffee, two is the company and three is the lack of windows.  Their coffee place was conveniently located near the table that our group took over and open almost the entire time I was there with good snacks and fantastic coffee options.  I miss Ashley and the others and our (almost) 24 hour study table as all of us tried to finish our research papers, issue papers and finals.  They all provided a much needed break every once in a while and constant security which was necessary for food runs.  Finally, it is a beautiful day outside right now and all of the windows in this library are just showing me what I am missing out on.  Sitting in Georgetown's library meant getting a glimpse of the outside world but no real constant taunting like I am getting right now.  I just want to be past all of these things being due so I can enjoy the sun and go do fun stuff.

I do get to look forward to a little time in DC next week to help Liz and see Reagan for his birthday.  Very excited since that should also be the end of my college career by then.

La la la, whatever, la la la, it doesn't matter, la la la, oh well

Tomorrow I begin the last week of classes of my undergraduate career.  It's strange to think about because the truth is that I can only tell you snapshots of what I will be doing next, like when I will be in Northern California for a wedding but I have no  idea what my day to day life will be like after May 23rd.  Part of me is okay with this but most of me knows that this is a very uncomfortable experience and I really just don't know how to cope with any of it.  Right now I am stressed beyond belief because even though it feels like most of my school work is under control, it isn't totally under control and there are so many bigger questions that need answers.

This is one of the last posts I will write as a Lehigh blogger, the next post will inevitably be about the last loose ends of my semester and then maybe one about senior week/graduation but if you are lucky, maybe they will be two separate posts.

I am being all depressing because I can't sleep and I am excited for this week, there are still all sorts of things going on, events celebrating that we are seniors and such so that part is something worth looking forward to.  Now if only I could get through the mountains for work first.

Spread the word in stereo At the speed of sound

The last week has been insane!  There has been so much going on but it was nice because I didn't have very many academic obligations.

I guess the most interesting things were all this past weekend with sorority activities, Candidate's Day and Sundaze, plus a visit from a friend who graduated last year.

Saying that I just had my FINAL sorority formal is really strange, we only have them once a year, meaning that I have only been to three but it still seems like such a giant ending.  It was nice to get some time to just spend with friends and dance, having a good time because we won't have very much time together to do that.

This year, the nearest alumnae chapter of my sorority was also kind enough to have a senior service for us which welcomed us into the alumnae community which also had everyone in my pledge class announcing where they were going next year and it was kind of reassuring that there are still a fair number of people who don't know what comes next.  These woman all have very different life experiences and it was really nice being able to meet all of them and get some great breakfast :).  I hope they choose to continue this service in the future.

Candidate's Day is one of those events that seems so much the same every year even though there are always new people here.  There are the kids who have no desire to be here for whatever reason who let their parents run everything and then there are the other kids who are super excited the entire time.  I bet the bookstore makes bank those days, their bags are everywhere!  I did get to talk to a lot of potential Economics majors which was really interesting.  When I started at Lehigh, I thought I was going to be a marketing major or maybe even a dual degree but four years later, I don't think I would have been able to do as much outside the classroom if I had followed through with those plans.  Some people have a defined course they want to take, others think they do but then college gives you the time to figure out exactly what you want and then you find a completely different path.  It was cool meeting the future of Lehigh since for the first time, I won't be here when they are.

Sundaze is one of those experiences that I cannot figure out why I did not have previously.  Seriously, I have been wracking my brain for weeks trying to figure out why I didn't go freshman or sophomore year.  Although it was not sunny out, the weather was okay so it was fun.  I got to spend the afternoon hanging out on Sayre Field with my friends and getting a lot of free stuff.  What college kid turns down free stuff?

Okay now I have updated you all a bit but I have  more things that I must be off to do, like find a grown-up job.

Smiled and said 'yes I think we've met before'

So I shall start by saying that I have a test in two hours that I am thoroughly unprepared for but something just happened that I feel would be good to comment on here especially since I have been having writer's block lately when it comes to this blog.

So I just saw a kid look at me for a minute, then smile finally figuring out where he knew me from.  We all experience those out of context sightings but college is different since in the back of our minds, we know that everyone else is a student to some extent, we see them in plain clothes most of the time but we all vary on what our attire is on a day to day basis meaning, for example, my laundry days are generally over the weekend so I will opt for sweats as opposed to the other people who go to class each day in sweats.  

It is still strange to see someone you know from a club where they have power in a place like the library where they are working in a group or in class where they are no longer the ones in charge but rather have to listen to a higher power than themselves.

A few more quick things before I ensure that I get some studying done before this test (since that is the reason I woke up early, I was not ready for my alarm this morning).  Had a really great weekend, spending time time with my sister, the Hirabayashi family, Meagan, Sean and seeing what the Annapolis social life was like.  The last part was probably up there with the most interesting because it was so different from Lehigh's but I guess that is the fun with knowing people at other colleges, you get to see and experience different things by just going to visit and keeping up with old friends.

Okay, now I really have to study.

Riding on the Curl Straight into the Shore

First and foremost, HAPPY FIRST BIRTHDAY CAMPBELL!  I hope that my adorable cousin had a fantastic day with his grandma, parents and big brother.

Now for the usual Lehigh update.  This week has been INSANE!  I don't know if I have ever been so busy and things just kept coming that had to be taken care of.  There were so many things I wish I could have had time for this week like a thorough enjoyment of St. Patrick's Day but they just didn't happen in the scope of trying to balance all of my other responsibilities.

We are less than ten weeks from graduation, it feels like a lifetime away on one hand but on the other, that is two and a half months which is nothing.  I ordered my cap and gown and announcements yesterday which was a shocking reality of how close to the end I am.  Senior year of college is like a more stressful version of senior year of high school, everyone asks what your plans for the following year are and most people have no idea how to answer that.  The questions start coming even before senior year starts and you still have to worry about the balancing act of classes and other involvement in addition to looking for a job and updating all the necessary materials.

Everyone told me that my life would get easier after Vagina Monologues was over but I am still waiting for that day.  To be honest, it's nice to not have the hold in my life because I am still doing all sorts of other things I love instead.

Okay, it's time to get back to my to do list.

It's a Brand New Day

School starts again tomorrow.  I got to spend a week in glorious weather to come back to cloudy blah.  It was shockingly rocky on the boat which was different than what I was expecting.  I am not one to get super motion sick but even I thought it was bad.  The weather was fantastic minus the first day and the last day but the worst weather was the first day so it just got better.  A whole day at sea down south meant everyone spent the whole day at the pool which was great.

Spring break was nice to hang out with friends, some I see a bunch and others who I haven't seen in ages but also meet some new people.  There were a ton of other spring break kids on the boat so it was a lot of fun since there were a ton of other college kids around rather than only a ton of families.

Second semester is rough when we only have the one week off but it was glorious to have the time to relax We spent multiple days doing nothing but laying in the sun and reading.  I love to read so I actually got a chance to kick back and read for fun.  It was a chance I haven't gotten very often with other breaks because there were places to go and people to see.  I didn't have to worry about anything this week other than sunscreen, there were a lot of very sunburned people on this cruise and it looked very painful.  I currently have to catch up on a lot of TV shows from this week.  Of course all my shows were on a mini hiatus the week before spring break and then I missed them all while I was gone.  I have some work to do but it's not as much as past breaks.

I should apologize now for the spelling mistakes and other mistakes because I am still exhausted.  The time change today was also a little rough knowing how much stuff I had to get done today but so far, I got some food, went grocery shopping and then started getting work done.  There are so many things to do!

With that, I have to get some real homework done now.

Keep on moving through all this hustle

Today I fell in love with a new album.  It is Katie Costello's Lamplight and although I am a little behind on the times, her EP Cityscape.  There are very few albums I can listen to from beginning to end without skipping any tracks partway through even on the first listen but hers has been the perfect soundtrack to my day from start to finish.  I haven't flipped past a song yet which is mostly due to the amazing music and partly due to the desire to protect my hands from the freezing temperatures outside.  I have heard Katie perform in person at a benefit my sister put on when Katie was a Junior in high school at my alma mater.   It's hard to find artists these day who sound just as good in person as they do in their recorded music but she is one of those hard to find artists.  From Facebook, it's obvious that her growing fame has not caused her to forget who she is as an artist and a person and she has kept her friends close even though she splits her time between two very distant cities.  While I cannot claim to be a friend by any means, it's still pretty cool that we went to the same high school and I did have the pleasure of passing her in the halls during the two years we overlapped.

On to my life.  I am finished with classes until after Spring Break which would normally be a liberating feeling but I have soooo much laundry to do (I have been pushing it off for a while...) that I won't have a chance to enjoy the freedom until all that and the packing gets done.  Along with what seems to be half the school, my best friend and I are headed off on a cruise to get some sun.  The dilemma with second semester is that we only get spring break meaning that we have to wait through seven weeks of class to get a break which is not a natural break in the semester to then come back and go back to full steam ahead for the next seven weeks before finals.  I am convinced that this is a good portion of the reason second semester drags far more than first semester.  The other reason is of course the weather but I will get to that in a minute.  First semester, we get pacing break at the beginning of October and Thanksgiving at the end of November which splits the semester into three roughly equal parts which works with the testing system most teachers utilize.  I got lucky and had no tests this week and none the week we get back so I sort of get away with not doing anything over the break.  I will admit to having some classwork to finish but the likelihood of it getting done while I am on the boat is minimal.

Spring break seems to split students into two groups, the ones who head south with friends for what they hope to be a crazy week and the other who head home or to a friends with the intent of re-cooperating and refreshing for the rest of the semester, some of the latter group tries to get ahead or catch up on more independent work.  I am happy to say that I think I fall in between the groups, I am going to get some sun but also get some rest.

Okay back to the weather.  It has been a very tricky thing of late.  Today, it was freezing, last week it was nice and sunny.  I would like it to sort itself out.  Almost all of the snow and ice has melted from the warmth of last week but it's time for winter to be over and for spring to come.  It would be nice not to have to pile on a million layers to walk to class.  I have shorts that I would really like to wear when I get back from spring break.

I think I have made up for the lag in posts with this monster post.  Be back after spring break!

Leave all your love and your longing behind

I now have to figure out what my new normal is. Our Vagina Monologues performances were this past weekend and that means that a lot of the stress and pressure is now off. All I have left is to wait for some more donations to come in from local businesses and families and complete a couple of follow-up reports. Other than that, I have a lot of things to do for classes and I got to start again at work this week. It should be an interesting time.

Producing Vagina Monologues taught me a lot about Lehigh that I never knew before. I have always known that Lehigh consisted of amazing people but I got to meet a lot more of those people.  Friday was an incredibly stressful day but it helped that I had a ton of other people I had never met before helping to load my car and take a lot of the stress off.  Throughout this process, people came out of the woodwork to help make things run more smoothly, whether it be to just come to an event to support friends or offer specials to help us raise money for our goal.

On Wednesday morning, I got to run around to a bunch of offices in Alumni Memorial to pass out hot chocolate in our specialty cups which mean I got to meet a lot of the staff I may not have met otherwise.  It was a lot of fun because I don't know how often students venture into those offices without needing anything. 

I have already raved about the Women's Center but seriously, they are AWESOME!  I don't know if it is possible to find a more supportive group of people.

I have been distracted about a million times but I have to go now and tend to my other responsibilities.

I'm still the same

The last few weeks have been insane with all of the things that needed to be accomplished for this week. Last week we had a snow day, that NEVER happens here where the whole university is closed. Teachers will cancel classes if there is bad weather but this is one of the only times the school made the choice. Lucky for me it was because there was a 3/4 inch of ice outside instead of snow. It was only lucky because I had been a little under the weather so if it was snow I would have gone out to play but since ice is no fun, I stayed inside, did a little work, hung out with my roommates and slept. I felt far better the next day as a result. I am still not back to 100% but far closer than I would have been if it had not been for the snow day.

This week is V-week, the week I have been working towards since last April. We have events scheduled everyday so I tried to get a lot of my work out of the way this weekend but I only mildly succeeded, there were more interesting things to be doing and people to be seeing. I did alleviate a little bit of the extra stress of this week though and am super excited to see my family this weekend.

Classes are still going. I don't have one class that I love like I usually do because it's hard taking classes which you are not ready for. By not ready for, I don't mean unprepared but rather I don't have the skills to make the class interesting or relevant. For example, GS is interesting but as a senior, I have kind of passed the level that is being taught to just through random other classes like Economic Development or my freshman English class.

Well, I should get going because I do have homework to get done before my speakers start today.

2AM and she calls me

I know it has been forever since I have written anything but to be honest, nothing substantial has happened lately. I turned 22 on Tuesday, and it was a good day. I got to spend time with a number of my favorite people.

This has been the most exhausting first week of classes ever. The weather has not been my best friend lately. There is so much snow and ice! It is not fun to slip up the street but campus has been pretty easy to navigate which has been really nice.

I am still working at Academic Outreach which is a lot of fun and despite the insane scheduling issues I seem to be having, I refuse to give up any of my time in that office.

I know it's really late but I have been trying to get some work done since I hung out with friends last night, had all sorts of welcome back retreats this morning and have a full day of VM things tomorrow. We are about to start our hardcore fund-raising efforts for the cause soon. We are starting t-shirt sales and tickets and it's all coming together, now we just need money :)

My parents are coming in less than a month although my mother will also be on the east coast next weekend to hang out with Reagan and Campbell, (I am soooo jealous)but I am starting to plan all of the places that we are going to eat while they are here.

I am very all over the place right now because I am exhausted but I hope that I can update later on more of life.