It is amazing being back on campus! I moved in with Julia and we rearranged our room and unpacked everything by 6ish. It is now 10:52 and we're in our jammies hanging out. I love love love love it here. My room is mad small but I can't complain at all. I am just ecstatic and can't wait for more festivities tomorrow! Also, my 19 books that I needed to buy for classes were $400. So ridiculous!

What do you go home to?

I don't really know how to rate this summer in comparison to past ones. I worked 40-50 hours a week, while taking summer classes, while working out 5 times a week. It was a wildly busy few months but I suppose it was fun nonetheless. I lost nearly 20 lbs and was able to see friends (though not as many/often as I had hoped). I feel that I opened up a lot more to certain people and will go back to school with this more outgoing and outspoken personality that I seem to have acquired. I move in Friday morning (the day after tomorrow!) and really can't wait. I've finished all of my packing 2 days early, which is slightly ridiculous, but I'm so eager to just leave. I've already planned quite a few things for the upcoming semester with friends, which is nice too. I'm getting a Pfit membership in Vermont because Ryan will be working there and I'll continue my workouts with him. There is a big welcome back BBQ and Party that Dan planned that I'm looking forward to as well. I'm most excited to get into my room with Julia and arrange it and plan it and such, though. This year should really be a quality one... I'm looking forward to so much.

I finally decided to settle with this Schedule for Fall:

MWF:
11:45-12:50- Intro to Literary Studies
1:00-1:5o- Genres: Fiction

TTH:
10:00-11:15- (Honors) Philosophy of Society
1:00-2:15- Child Development
2:30-3:45- Understandings of God

I have one more essay to do before I'm done with summer classes.
9 more days of Summer Rec.
17 more days until I'm moving in on campus.
I'm so antsy and itching to be back that it is driving me nuts.
:)

With tired eyes, tired minds, tired souls, we slept.

I'm strangely content. I have no idea what to do with my life and I'm no longer letting myself stress about it. I had a great weekend with Brian visiting and finally spending time with Helen, Yelena, and Tom... It had been too long. I saw Pink Floyd's The Wall for the first time. Justin is on his way back from Minnesota. 19 days until I am back at school. I need to make lists and pack and prepare. I'm growing. I'm happy.

I get so restless.

August 14- Last deadline for summer classes
August 22- Last day of Summer Rec
August 29- (hopefully) Moving in on campus
September 12- OAR concert
September 15- Needtobreathe concert
September 29- Less Than Jake concert
October 22- Donovan Frankenreiter concert
October 23- Justin's Birthday

Emotional highs and lows.
Lost in Portsmouth.
Distance.
Vermont.

Keeping English and Education. May pick up an Anthropology/Sociology minor though. Who knows.

Does this make me crazy?

I'm having some sort of academic breakthrough/mind block. Having 4 months of summer to reflect over what I'm doing with my life/college career is fatal but useful. I've gone from declaring an English major along with Elementary Education, to Secondary Education with English... Now I'm thinking of dropping Education and English completely and going for Anthropology/Sociology with a minor in Peace and Justice. The idea is insanely attractive. Switching now wouldn't be too bad just because I haven't really started taking classes for my major yet. I just want to figure it out and get classes squared away etc. etc. If I don't do that, I may stick with English and then pick up the Peace and Justice Minor as well. So so so so so many ideas.

Let your troubles roll by

I spent a wonderful weekend in Mass. with Justin and his family. It included a lot of swimming, eating, playing ping pong, and napping. We took a long exploration walk through a wildlife refuge area and saw a painted turtle and huge black snake. I hung out with his little brother, Joey, and listened to him bang around on his new drum set between ping pong games. I had a hard time leaving. I don't like being away from Justin and noticed the empty space next to me as soon as I hit 495 on the rainy 2-hour drive.

I just comprised a bucket list. I'm sure it doesn't include all of my life goals. It's a start.

-Spend at least 2 years in the Peace Corp.
-Become a College English Professor at a small, private college.
-Visit Tibet and learn more about Buddhism while there.
-Read all of Keroac's Road Novels.
-Live and teach abroad (in more places than one).
-Finally learn to play the harmonica.
-See Explosions in the Sky live.
-Own an Australian Shepard or a little Cat.
-Visit both Olympia and San Francisco (I've never seen the West Coast).
-Complete a Triathlon.
-Write and have my own series of Short Stories published.
-Make sure that everyone close to me knows how much I truly appreciate and care about them.