Some days

Some days are just veritably crazy and the past 2 weeks have been full of those. I still haven't found my camera so I've been taking all my pictures on disposable cameras. My sister makes fun of them every time I pull one out in public but I'm excited to get them developed anyway.

ANYWAY, Last weekend was Easter weekend and I got to go home for my dad's birthday, mom's birthday and the Easter celebration itself. Talk about a jam-packed weekend! I also decided where I'd be going to law school and sent out my graduation invites! I feel like that last part is jinxing it or something but I guess sending them out after graduation would be kind of silly...

After Easter, a few days full of research and writing passed and then J and I packed up in the car again and headed to Austin for a baptism :) It was full of family and food and absolutely wonderful. I kept telling myself it was worth it as I worked on thesis things for 36 hours after that... Bah. Luckily, in a week, this will all be behind me. But for today, more editing and presenting! Gotta love it.

As a parting gift, I leave you with this picture I took of J on date night. Sometimes I have no idea how he puts up with me at all.

 

Let's Be Honest

Alright now, let's be honest. We all remember that breakout song of 2000, Graduation (Friends Forever). I remember chilling in my best friend's car freshman year, already feeling nostalgic about what our graduation would be like. I don't remember exactly what sort of goals I had for myself back then; I just remember feeling as though the next four years were going to take their dear, sweet time to pass and then I'd go off to college somewhere. At least I was right on one account! I did make it to college but in retrospect, the years flew. Honestly, it's a little insane.

Anyway, this song was on the 69 cent list on iTunes and I felt compelled to buy it since it had played such a big role in my formative years. As I was jamming out to my new purchase, I came across this which is probably the stark honest depiction of what actually happens after graduation (with a few token exceptions of some of my still-best friends).



On another completely irrelevant note but slightly related to the whole 'change is swift' thing: I had to buy my baby sister a pregnancy test yesterday. Traumatizing experience? I think yes. Still processing.

2011

It's time. It's time for that 'goodbye 2010, hello 2011' post that seem to be all the rage right now. So far, I've spent 2011 in the company of good friends, good family and stabbing myself continuously with a sewing needle as I try to finish up J's Christmas present. I am, actually, that un-domestic. Anyway, as I've already kind of reflected, I've decided to type up my New Years' Resolutions so that they exist somewhere in the world, so that I don't completely forget what they are.

Last year, my one resolution was to be more like Sherlock Holmes. To learn marksmanship, self-defense and pick up the basics of another language or two. I am sad to say that none of these things happened. But if there ever was a time for re-invention, it would be the turning of a new calendar page and, with that in mind, here I go.

1. Go to the gym AT LEAST twice a week M-F and once on the weekend. Maybe three times during the week if I know my weekend's going to be busy.

2. Study for the LSAT. Then, subsequently, take the LSAT.

3. Apply to at least 4 law schools, in order to have choices.

4. Get 75% done with my thesis.

5. Finish writing my book and send it's query letter off to the agenting world.

6. Get an internship I'll actually enjoy.

7. Give respect to those who deserve it; patient tolerance to those who don't. Going along with that, refuse to be anything other than who I am. Surround myself only with people who's company I truly enjoy.

8. Keep the love of life that London's re-instilled in me. Appreciate the value of every single day and know, that, in the end, it's going to be a good life.

I won't lie, while I usually don't listen to much of their stuff, OneRepublic's song, Good Life, pretty much seems up the vibe and core of what I'm trying to accomplish this year. What I'm going to strive to always remember. Because, if I can do that, then the rest of the resolutions, I sincerely believe, will come easier. I'll let the lyrics speak for themselves. Happy new year, everyone :]

Woke up in London yesterday, found myself in the city near Piccadilly 
Don't really know how I got here, I've got some pictures on my phone
New names and numbers that I don't know,
addresses to places like Abbey road
Day turns to night, night turns to whatever we want, we're young enough to say

Oh, this is gonna be a good life, this is gonna be a good life
This could really be a good life, good life
I say, "Oh, got this feeling that you can't fight," like the city is on fire tonight
This could really be a good life, a good, good life.

Genetics. Friends. Uh-oh.

So I've been gone for a semester, this has been established. and while I was off making wonderful new friends and while I've been spending my Christmas re-connecting with the people who have known me for the past seven years and have gotten me through some of my worst and best moments, there is still one distinct group of people that I have yet to see. My university friends.

I think it's important to note, first, that when I went away for university, I was at a really weird stage in my life. I was trying to adjust to life 'on my own'; trying to figure out who I had been in high school and who I wanted to be and I fell into a group of people wondering the very same thing. As we got older and figured out who we would be, it became evident that we were becoming very, very different people. The only problem was that everyone else was becoming more the same while I was becoming increasingly different. The brand-spanking-new black sheep of the family. I know it's horrible to say but I've never been the black sheep before. My home friends, for all our differences, make a great group together. We understand that we've all chosen different things we want from life and different paths to get those things but we live each other. The time for judgment has passed. The university group isn't quite there yet nor will I think it will ever get there.

There is one exception to the above paragraph. My best university friend, who we'll call M, is absolutely wonderful. We haven't seen each other in six months but every time we find the time to talk, it's like we were never apart. She was the one who changed more along my way of change. We're very much the same though I'm the much more cynical and sarcastic and blatant about the way I feel, and she's a complete optimist and kind to the core. Mostly. We tend to share the same taste in who we like and what type of personalities we dislike but while I generally refuse to hide it, she's fake-nice for a living so she's generally the more well-liked one, too. ANYWAY, despite this exception, my university friends and I have about nothing in common. At all. I was just perusing through a facebook album and my first thought upon seeing their pictures was, "This is what I'm sentenced to now?" I SWEAR, I AM NOT A HORRIBLE PERSON. And I felt so terrible about even thinking this. They are wonderful people and I'm sure they entertain themselves marvelously but it is just not for me. I outgrew that kind of stuff at about age six. No joke.

Gah, I swear. That was out of line but I am a nice person. I just wish I got along with more people :/ I think it's genetic though.

Today Is Christmas

Today is Christmas and it was spent with my family, eating delicious food and being the generally dysfunctional bunch we always are. One thing you'll learn about me is that I'm horrible at uploading pictures in a timely manner so I always end up making posts about things that have happened days before because I finally have the pictures up. Which is why, today, I'll mostly be talking about what happened the day before Christmas Eve instead of this wonderful day itself. Which is sad because Christmas really is a beautiful time of year. As everyone in my family changes and gets older, the dynamics of our Christmas change but the love is always there and for that, I am grateful.

Another thing I'm grateful for is the fact that my beloved J gets home tomorrow! He's been stranded in London and even though he's only lay-overing in my town for about an hour, he'll be at his home home and I'll be able to see him for ten days :] Just knowing that he's on my side of the Atlantic is going to relieve some stress, I feel. Having a boyfriend 5000 miles away really is a stressful situation. Anyway, here he is:

He really is a wondeful boyfriend and altogether is the second thing I am grateful for.

The third is for these people:

Since I was in London for the past three months, I hadn't had the chance to see any of my good friends from home and even though I still have yet to see any of them, I'm thankfully for the four I did get a chance to hang out with a few days ago. From left to right: K, my roommate who I'll soon be seeing on a daily basis. M, who goes to school a few hours away from me and is really bad about texting back, T, my best friend who has stood by my craziest moments but who is so busy during the semester that she hardly has time to sleep much less hang out and finally, C, who shipped off to the Navy a few years ago and, besides for a few days she takes as leave, doesn't know when she'll be back. Somehow, some way, we were all able to get together and hang out. Walk to the mall like we did before we could drive, try on ridiculous outfits and catch each other up on our craziest stories. For a while, our group of friends was absolutely crazy and we fought every other day. A manifestation of our jealousy and insecurity. We've finally gotten a little better about that and have learned to be thankful for the times we do get to be together.

Now my family's baking a pie [frozen of course, we don't do 'from scratch' around here] and are having problems working the new Blu-Ray player so I think I'm going to go see what's up. J's flight leaves at 5 am CST and he should be back by four! AND AND AND I get to see D, the boy who I had the most inexplicable relationship with but have somehow managed to be friends with, and the wonderful K. More on that later of course but for now, Merry Christmas. It's amazing that a day like this can exist; to just bask in the blessing of life and put everything else aside for a whole twenty-four hours.