Summer Time

This summer... Well... Really the past month has been a little obnoxiously crazy and wonderful. One of the reasons that I haven't applied for other jobs yet is because I really wanted to take advantage of how flexible my current job is so that I could fully indulge in my last summer before full-blown adulthood.
So.
A and I went camping.
My family and I went to Tahoe and the Bay Area to visit family and friends.
I went to Central CA to visit my brother's girlfriend.
And I have just been genuinely enjoying myself.
Pictures to come later :]

The only problem with vacations is that after a while all I want is to resume normalcy. Before this weekend I had spent exactly three nights at home in the last three weeks. That's absurd! I had a great time but honestly I am just so ready to be back to normal. What I need more than anything in my life right ow is a weekend at home. I had been planning on going to visit my grandparents this past weekend but I just honestly couldn't. I can't afford the gas but more importantly I can't afford the mental state it would've left me in. I was still currently living out of a suitcase. My room was a disaster. My car is filthy and still lugging camping stuff in its trunk..... I couldn't. I needed to be at home for at least one weekend. Stuff from the move is still everywhere and my room is still completely unorganized and I hate it. I need to finally "move in" to my house so that it isn't just a place I sleep anymore.
Vacation is fun but I always feel like I need a vacation from being on vacation. Anyone feel me? Maybe it's because none of our family is local so we are always traveling when we go on vacation but I always feel like I need at least a couple of days after to just be at one and get back to normal.
Also I am really behind at my second job. A bunch of new responsibilities were just handed to me and although I am really looking forward to managing them I still need to get myself together and get started. I have started but I kind of feel like I am always one step behind where I need to be at work right now.
Between new work responsibilities, finding time for my long distance relationship, performances, two jobs, applying for jobs, and rehearsals... I am a little bit strung out. BUT I was home for the first time this weekend in about a month and it was glorious. My room is now almost beautiful and that in itself can heal so many things.

Best Friend Therapy

Most people know this about me, although I'm not sure that I've said it on here, but I was home schooled until high school. I loved everything about being home schooled, but that is for another post. What I am most thankful for about home schooling right now is for this girl:

I have known L since we were in first grade. We lost touch for about two years in middle school but reconnected in high school. Well she lives about an hour away from me, where she goes to school but we always try to get together at least a couple times a quarter. In the midst of my life recently I really just needed a day with my best friend. So I went. And it was just what I needed.

I am so thankful that I have people in my life that pick me up when I'm down.

This picture is highly motivational for me. I look like a cow. A cow in a very cute outfit.

Thanksgiving Break

I just painted my nails, so I am sure this is going to be a really slow post...
Last week I had two midterms, one at the beginning of the week and one at the end. Needless to say, it was a rough week. I know that it was completely my decision to take on two jobs on top of being at school full time, but sometimes I think that A really is right. I do take on too much sometimes.
Right now is a very exciting but stressful time. I applied for graduation last week so in March I will officially be done with my Undergraduate degree. I am immensely excited to start this new journey in my life. Everything seems to be going right for me right now and I am so happy. A has been interviewing for a job and for Graduate School and both have been going very well. He made it into the teaching program he applied for and he had his final interview for the job that he is pursuing. We will find out in a week or week and a half if he got it. Fingers crossed. Everything just seems to be falling into place.
I am really thankful for this week off. For some reason my professors decided to cancel classes on Monday, Tuesday, and Wednesday (instead of just Thursday and Friday) for Thanksgiving and I have this weekend off from my job at the Studio. So Monday after rehearsal I packed everything up and hit the road back to my hometown to my parents. The highlight so far was seeing one of my best friends from high school last night.

 Us our Junior Year of high school. This was actually the day I got my driver's license. Weird!

A few years ago on her birthday.

This past summer... I think...

C and I met in high school but were not friends right away. Funnily enough we really met on myspace. I know right? It sounds so ridiculous, but it's actually true. We became friends on myspace and we haven't been able to get rid of each other ever since. I love her because no matter how long we go without seeing each other or talking to one another (we are both absurdly busy and live over an hour apart) the next time we see each other is like nothing ever happened. No awkwardness, no weirdness. Just us. I appreciate that so much in her because I lost a lot of my high school friends as a result of scheduling and unfortunate geography. It was a shock to me when I first started college that people would drift so easily and I quickly learned that it took a certain kind of relationship to survive separation. C was one of the few that made it through with me and that is something that I so appreciate.

It seems almost ridiculous that we are adults now. Thinking about graduating, getting real jobs, moving out permanently, getting married, having families. All of these things have been happening around us and it is finally our turn to partake in them. I love that we are in the same places in our lives and that we understand each other so well. I am truly thankful for her and it was really good to see her, especially since I hadn't seen her in about three months. I am exciting to see where our lives take us in the next couple of years. 

Tomorrow I am leaving before sun-up (yep, that's how my family rolls on road trips) for family vacation. We are going to visit my mom's family and I'm so stoked. I love Thanksgiving time, especially the ability to see my family. The holidays just have such a magical quality to them. I'm definitely a fan of this time of year. The only thing missing will be, of course, A. It makes me sad that I still haven't been able to share my holidays with him, despite how long we have been together. Our goal is that next year we will be together for the holidays. I can't wait. It's going to be a very exciting year.

Okay, well happy Thanksgiving everyone. Don't forget to be Thankful for what you have, despite the temptations of Black Friday :]