Do You Believe in Miracles?

Happy New Year!

So in retrospect, 2011 wasn't my best year but I learned a whole lot about myself and I think gained more tools to improve my future opportunities and potential.  I decided that 2012 will be the year I try to challenge myself more and try new things.

On to better things.  I recently help name a cat.  If you know me, you know that I am totally not a cat person.  I am pretty allergic to them and they bore me a whole lot more than dogs but this was the cat of my best friend, so I will do my best to like it.  I suggested to name him (the cat in question) Sheldon since we had some many good times watching The Big Bang Theory last year and in case you don't watch the show, the main character has a song which is sung to him while he's sick called Soft Kitty.  Meagan and I sang it to each other for fun sometimes.  It's hard being 3,000 miles from her so I'm really hoping that I can make it out there in the spring.

The last few weeks have brought some interesting opportunities that I am debating.  I promise to get more into all those options once I have a clearer idea what I think I will end up doing.  It's been nice to have projects to work on.

I have also retaken up knitting.  I am trying to get better at it because I know that I am slowly getting towards the age where my friends are going to start getting married and having kids and it would be great to be able to make things for all these future children.  My other goal is to make an acceptable helmet liner for Meagan since apparently other ladies make these and give them away and she better be wearing one of mine and not one of these ladies.

So, things I have been enjoying of late about being unemployed.  I got to go to a taping of Chelsea Lately yesterday.  It's actually the episode I'm watching on TV now.  I'm glad I went to a show like this because it was filmed in one take rather than having to watch them do the same jokes again and again.  Rush and sorority life were great prep for being part of the studio audience especially when they are recording that sections as the noise to represent the whole audience.  It's a lot of clapping, fake laughter, (well some of it, everyone on that show is pretty funny to begin with) and cheering.  Next time, I'm bringing a book though since the waiting to get in was about twice as long as the taping.

It just occurred to me that it's been over a month since I updated this so I should probably address the holiday season that just passed.  Lizzie came home for a bit and walked in to her surprise Hanukkah present which was a Christmas tree.  For some reason, every person that I mentioned this tree to proceeded to then ask me, "Aren't you Jewish?" For anyone that questioned that, YES I AM A JEW.  I have been for almost 23 years.  Well, depending on who you ask, the amount of time I have been a Jew might change... It's a long story but if you're curious, ask.  I forgot how many amazing ornaments my mom's family had given her over the years.  We also discovered that somehow, Lizzie made no ornaments in school so almost all the little kid craft ones were mine.  Getting the tree was a debacle on its own but it was so ridiculous, I won't get into it.

New Year's Eve is normally such a let down.  Going out to bars are crowded and awkward but you never meet anyone new by just seeing the same people you see all year.  This year, I decided that I was just going to have people from all my different groups of west coast friends over and we were just going to hang out.  There were no expectations of what the night would hold and it was exactly what I wanted.  It was super relaxed and I didn't have to deal with anyone I didn't want to which was perfect.  I would do it again.

Other updates, if you need to get a hold of me and don't have my e-mail or phone number, I have a twitter (ekubokirs) or leave me a comment here, or ravelry.com if you are crafty.  I love that site.

I will try to update this more often but it will probably start being more commentary and less about life.

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.