Life After Graduation.

People keep asking me about life after graduation. After the initial jubilation and sheer excitement of the NOT HAVING TO DO ANYMORE SCHOOLWORK! things have settled a bit. The whole getting-ready-for-a-wedding-in-3-months-and-a-new-job-in-2-months thing is somewhat distracting and keeps me busy.

I graduated at 10am on Sunday, at 9am on Monday, I got a call from Stephanie (lovely mother of 6 beautiful children, whom I have babysat for a few years). So a job basically fell into my lap. I'm working about 4 or 5 hours a day there - eating cereal, making Mac and Cheese, helping them with schoolwork (4 of them are home schooled), swimming, and hugging Anndrea - the SMALLEST 2 year old alive. It's a nice gig and leaves me time to do my own thing.

Our wedding webpage took me a few hours. After which, Anthony promptly dissed. "That would take me 2.4 seconds. Plus, your fonts are kind of boring." Ah, loving brotherly support. My mom and I finished all the invitations and blah blah blah wedding. :) Michael comes in 2 days, WOO! Let's find a place to live.

I need to go fold laundry! make bed! finish watching riding in cars with boys! eat dinner! and hot chocolate!

Decisions Rock!

Yay!

Thumbs up for decisions!

Mike and I decided where we're living next year. (Hint: It's here!)


How exciting!!!



Now we just need to find him a job, pray he gets an assistantship next January, find a place to live and finish planning our wedding!!

Oh yeah, aand...I have to survive exam week. T-minus 6 days until graduation. Too much excitement, I can't handle it!

Study Days = Another Post!

But instead, I am writing on this thing. Study days at the my school are a few days when studying doesn't really happen. What happens is people drink and procrastinate and sleep in and eat breakfast with their roommates and watch too much TLC and eat too much cereal. Or maybe that's just me. :) I have an exam on every day but Monday next week. And three papers to finish. And then? I'm an effin' college GRADUATE.

Sometimes I hate being a woman. See? Stupid cute shoes! Why must you tempt me? I should know better.

Next. SUNDAY. I GRADUATE NEXT SUNDAY. Last night I was volunteering at a soup kitchen and was talk to another volunteer - a businessman in his 40's who graduated from my college 22 years ago. We were discussing how expensive the school is, and he said, "Well it's all worth it...if you can get gainfully employed, of course!" and gave me a hearty laugh.

I stopped drying the industrial size metal pan I was holding and wanted stay say, "Dude, I just told you, I'm working with inner city youth at an education center next year. Do you think I will be "gainfully employed" EVER?? Don't you think the ways I grew and changed because of what I studied is valuable or is it only getting a well-paying job?" Now, granted, this man was volunteering his Tuesday evening at a soup kitchen, so he's not an evil-spirited, money mongering man (unless it's, like, his way of making up for a DUI? yep, probably a DUI, he did go to UD after all :) Gosh, how much of tangent am I going on here? Speaking of Tangent, I have one. Our school makes us buy them. They SUCK. But at least we get free computer care while we're here. And that has meant a new hard drive, with backed up files!, and a new CD-Rom drive. It's been a rough four years for Lappy. I'm really going wild with these links. Sorry! You just know it's because I'm procrastinating.)

Do you still remember what I was talking about? The guy at the soup kitchen? Gainful employment? Anyway, I, for one, am pretty darn happy to be making next-to-nothing but working towards a more just future in whatever little ways I can. (Check back in a year to see if my youthful idealism has faded. But am marrying an even bigger idealist, so I'd guess not)

How's this for youthful idealism?

Tara (right) and I, circa 1987. (I was actually a little bigger than her at this point! Didn't last long)

Why I Love to Run

The first few steps out of my house and onto the sidewalk fill me with a sense of freedom. I'm leaving my house behind, with all its worries and responsibilities. I am doing something for myself, something besides the endless barrage of schoolwork that hangs over my head. My feet pound methodically on the pavement and my breathing falls into rhythm with my stride. The darkness surrounds me, so as to give me privacy and time free of distractions. This time is truly a mental break from the world. The nighttime is my absolute favorite time to run. It's just me, the road, and the darkness. The cool darkness means I have the streets to myself. A handful of cars might pass me, but they can't see me. I am alone.

Since I've been running for a while now, I'm able to run a few miles without being distracted by the pain of it. I don't usually count down the minutes until I'm done, because I don't even think about the fact that I'm running. It's almost like my body is running so my mind is free. At the end of the day, I can process what happened, what I need to do tomorrow, and what I want to do five years from now. I have resolved arguments, planned out my day, written a paper in my head, and prayed while running. I have learned to face myself more and to take the critical action of really thinking about myself and my day. Instead of plodding through day after day without pausing to take it all in, I am able to withdraw from it all and ponder.

I feel good about myself when I run. I feel healthy and strong and able. Able to push myself and do something. And sometimes, I'll admit, I feel smug. I do. Not that I'm the world's greatest runner or even that I have talent as a runner. But that I am committed to something. I am committed to trying to be healthy - and running is the best way for me to do that, both physically and mentally. :) Running gives me this inexplicable surge of hope and euphoria. I just feel so in control of my life, so in tune with God, and just really at peace. Even if I go on a run because I am totally pissed and I need to get my frustration out, I end up feeling better. It's amazing.

Running isn't about competition or goals for me. I run when I want to and don't when I don't. I might improve a little now and then, but overall, I'm not a fast runner, I don't run everyday, and I can't run forever. But no one knows, no one judges me, it's MY thing. And that's what I love. I hope I'll be able to do it forever.

13 Days Till Graduation!

With the warm weather, I've been cranking up my Jack Johnson lately. It's been a difficult time lately with problems in personal life and more schoolwork than is sanely possible to complete in the next 9 days (SEVEN papers then FOUR exams. insert desperate whine here). However, I wanted to post this hilariously awesome video because I think the world should see it! (Spoiler: If you can't stand Ben Stiller, don't watch ;-))

Stop This Train

Honestly, won't someone stop this train? - John Mayer

So many thoughts running through my mind.

So, I was going to post a bunch of hilarious stories from this wonderful weekend at home, but hell...my heart is really hurting right now and I'm just not up for it.

Guster and Norah Jones soothe the soul.

Answering Questions...the future and shopping

This morning I took a mini-retreat and skipped two classes. I went to the house where I'm house sitting, took a bath, journaled, did the laundry, took a nap in a wonderful bed, made coffee, and watched The View. It was an amazing morning, and it was nice to have some much needed space and time to myself.

...and continuing with the questions.

2. What is one thing in the coming months to which you are looking forward?

Oh wow. Well, I will be graduating in TWENTY FOUR days, and getting married in 4 months -- so it's safe to say the next few months will be a time of total change. I will be moving out of this house where I have lived for 2 years, leaving the school where I have attended the longest (previous record was three years), getting a real full time (?) job, and moving in with a boy! Having a wedding where 250 people watch me walk down the aisle!! Oh crap, this is making me all anxious.

Most of all, I am looking forward to knowing what happens next. At this point, the future is quite unclear - we're not sure where we'll be and grad schools haven't gotten back to us. So certainty and beginning a bit more stable life will be wonderful. :)

3. What is your most hated thing for which to shop?

Anything at the mall. Honestly, I have really come to dislike the mall because it is overflowing with young teens who are decked out in Abercrombie and are desperately attempting to draw the attractions of the opposite sex. It's all a little depressing and disturbingly shallow - consumerism and capitalism as a whole are really present in my consciousness lately as troublesome institutions. So I guess I don't much like to shop for anything, especially when my money supply is unquestionably scant. :) Groceries are pretty much my weakness. Trader Joe's makes me weak in the knees. Social responsibility AND healthy choices, gotta love it. I feel like that was an incredibly cynical and pessimistic answer. Sorry! :)

Well, that's all I've got for tonight. The other two questions should be coming soon. I'm heading up to Akron for a few days -- so peace out!