The Myth & The Majesty

Some things never change. This little town still feels the same as it always has. Things have changed (again, reference the lake in the field behind our house), but it's still Tea. It's still a small town, the same families are still around, and it looks remarkably the same from our house. A few more lights, perhaps, but nothing so drastic as to make it unrecognizable. In a life where things change on a monthly basis, that's comforting. Refreshing, in a lot of ways. I'm a little sad to be leaving it again. Saturday morning, it's out to RC for my sister and I. This summer has the potential to be completely different than anything I've ever experienced, much as the past two summers have been. Guess we'll all see, right? Well, that's about it. I hope y'all have a great weekend (in case I don't write again tomorrow), and you should leave a comment on your way out! Is this the new year, or just another night? ... Switchfoot, "The Blues...

My sister and I had dinner with our high school librarian this evening ... It was great getting caught up with her! I worked with this woman for 1-1/2 of my 4 high school years. She's a particularly interesting lady, and a lot of fun to talk to. I haven't seen her for about two years, so there was plenty of catching up to do, too. But to be honest, that's not what I'm thinking about as I type. I just read an article on Yahoo! News about the possibility of considerably longer lifespans . Not just longer, either -- the possibility of indefinite lifespans. The line about doubling a person's life is even more alarming, at least with my family's history. My sister and I joke that, what with modern medicine, we'll live forever anyway; our family members are genetic mutants that tend to live into the triple digits. For instance, I had a great-great-grandmother that turned 100 in 1976. She died six years later. We had another relative that turned 100 in the TWENTIES...

There are these moments where I love going home. I am so stinking full. Went to the Olive Garden with Dani, had high tea with Jessie and my sister, and then had supper with the family ... Wow. My stomach can't handle much more. Oof.

I'm home again. You can tell -- I haven't posted since I got here. Somehow, blogging becomes less of a necessity when it's entertainment instead of a distraction. On top of that, I pull a blank every time I sit down to type. Just made the random discovery that I'll be living about eight blocks away from my dad's cousin next semester ... Keep in mind, I do actually know her. I've watched her kids play soccer and everything. Um ... yeah. Tea time with Jessie tomorrow and dinner with my high school librarian on Tuesday (tee hee ... I just like saying that ... it's amusing). Other than that ... Well, it's good to be here. It's been relatively relaxing. Not a whole lot of activity to report, though. I bought The Giver yesterday, which was happy. I've loved that book since I was considerably younger and now I get to add it to my collection. That's about it. Have a good week, y'all!

Argh, I despise this part of the year. The packing part. It's alarming how much stuff accumulates over the course of a school year. Hmm ... hungry ... No, Ashley, focus! Tell these people about your day! Well, there's not much to say. I've been packing. I finally visited my new house, and this looks like a rare occasion where agreeing to something before you see what you're getting into works out. Hopefully I haven't spoken too soon ... What else ... hmm ... Well, I'm headed to SuFu tomorrow ... That's kind of exciting ... sort of ... not really. It'll be a relaxing week, in comparison. Good stuff. Then I'll come back here to start work, which should be good. Looking forward to that. And then -- summer will be in full swing! Much better, Ashley. Well folks, that's all for now. Doubt I'll be posting before I leave, so have a good week!

Ahhhh. Tonight, I get to relax. Left RC, bound for my grandparents' place ... I've raved about this place before, and let me add -- I love it here. Tonight it's at its finest; the sky is clear so the stars are fully visible. This place is the embodiment of simplicity. Awesome. I think the summer thing is now kicking in. My body is less tense, my brain is more free, and I'm starting to get bored with the things that were previously great distractions. I just want to be outside, and I'm starting to plan out my free time. Right now, I'm really hoping August holds a trip to the west coast; Anya (my rockin' awesome Russian roomie) wants to go surfing and I think that's an excellent idea. Just have to make it happen now ... The rest of the stuff on my mind isn't formed enough to type, so ... thbbbb. Again, I have a lot of thinking to do in the near future. But that's okay; now I have time. Ahhhhh...

Whew. The semester is really, truly over. I still don't think I believe it, but people are starting to leave, and that's a little more convincing. Matt, you should've stayed in RC this summer. Felt weird just going to lunch with only Darren and Justin. Bunch of us went to Deadwood last night for the prime rib and crab buffet ... Yum. Crashed at Darren's mom's cabin for the night, which was fun; I miss queen-sized beds. Oh, so comfortable last night. Matt disappeared this morning sometime, and the rest of us returned to RC. Justin pointed out that the group that was out there was a bit different than any group he would have pictured himself with. I tend to agree -- the mix of personalities was, shall we say, eclectic. And I came to realize that I'm one of the guys, which is both comforting and depressing. Four years ago, I was afraid of boys; now, I'm more thrown off by the presence of more than one other girl. Not long and I'll be home for a bit, th...

*Yawn...* The semester is over! I don't think I actually believe that yet. Maybe it's because I haven't started packing yet ... I haven't had any motivation to do so, since, for the first time in four years, I'm not required to be out within 24 hours of my last final. Kept busy yesterday. Woke up around 8:30 (unhappily, since I didn't get home till about 2:30), laid there for another hour, got up, started writing my last essay and a half ... Did the standard morning stuff in there. I was still writing at 1:00 when I got a phone call to ask where I was -- I had a meeting I had COMPLETELY forgotten about (guilt, guilt, guilt) ... After that, I finished my essay at 2:52 (not that I was watching), then Andy, Ashli, and I went to the shooting range. That felt good. At the guys' house at 7 to hear the band (which, might I add, was awesome), midnight walk, Perkins, and ... home at 3AM. Now, it's shortly before 8, and I'm getting ready to go watch gradu...

It's my birthday today. I'm 22 years old. I feel ... yeah. Old. Or older, anyway. I've always associated 22 with college graduates, and here I am, not terribly far from being one. It's quite strange, actually; I almost fit a picture I've had since I was ten. Last final in a few hours! I'm almost looking forward to this one; it's my biochemical engineering final, and I've enjoyed the class all semester. The best part? After that, I'm done. Well, except for one final essay for American lit. Thank goodness. Back to work. Take it easy, folks!

Okay. It's Wednesday. The end is in sight, despite the fact that I'm really, really not ready for it. That's okay -- I will be. And sooner rather than later, because I have to be. We had an IV exec retreat last night and today; it went pretty well. Next year's starting to look promising ... After our four hours of discussion last night, we started at 7AM today and were back in RC around 2:00. Exhausting, on a lot of levels, but good. Now, I'm back to my old routine -- essays and studying, studying and essays. I really, really want to be done by tomorrow, so I can rest on Friday, but I'm not so sure that's going to happen. Argh. No matter. I have to finish. If not by tomorrow, then ... yeah. I won't be happy about it, but I have to finish. Next week, I just have to pack and move. While I'm not the biggest fan of moving -- AGAIN -- at least it's a change of pace. This is probably the only real time I'll get in Sioux Falls this summer, too, sinc...

There is no way it's only Tuesday. This could go down in history as the longest finals week ever. Well, it's in my history as that, anyway. I need to study and get my work done, but ... wow. I feel like I have all the time in the world. The Grand Canyon standing between my finals doesn't help that AT ALL. The nice part about this week is that I haven't had to bring out the old finals sleep schedule ... yet. I anticipate changes by tomorrow night, but at this point, I'm actually sleeping at night, even if it's not for more than three or four hours. Eating habits, however, are just as bad as past semesters. Alas, that's all the time I have. Back to work.

How is it that some of the greatest TV shows in the world get cancelled, while some of the dumbest ones stay on for years? I guess it's kind of a crap shoot. I mean, there are some great ones still on. And some bad ones get cancelled. (Of course, then there's "Survivor." I still don't get it.) 'Tis finals week. 'Tis Monday of finals week. I like finals week. It's actually ... refreshing. Different. A change of pace. Most of you know that I'm all about a change of pace. I don't sit still very well ... tends to cause problems. Then, finals week arrives just in time to interfere. Good timing, finals week. Hmm ... seems I'm a little more stressed than I thought. I've gone beyond talking to inanimate objects. Wow. In any case, the semester is aaaaalmost over, and I am REALLY looking forward to the weekend ... and the next week ... and the whole summer following. Yay! Back to work!

Huh. My last class of the semester ended about an hour and half ago (it ended up only being about 20 minutes long), and ... yeah. That was the last class I'll ever have with some people. People that I've been with for the last four years. People that are now graduating without me. Huh. Only a week left of this madness ...

It's amazing how much more posting happens when I'm technically too busy to post. Blogging is a great distraction. I'm back in the infamous computer lab, once again working on our senior design paper. It's to the point where you're soooooo close to being done with it that you are almost too antsy to keep working. Not a good feeling. I'm definitely looking forward to that other point -- the one where it's printed and you slip it into your professor's mailbox. Or, in our case, prop it up next to the ChE mailboxes with a big note that says, "Hey, Dr. P, this is for you," since it probably won't fit. My last Austen class starts in half an hour ... Sad. I've really enjoyed that class. An enjoyable humanities class at Tech -- who knew ... Actually, I take that back. I've had a few really cool humanities classes here. The professors are a different breed altogether, and it's really refreshing most days. Ooh, maybe then I can hav...

Quick story: I just did the flakiest thing yet this semester (at least for me). I was working in the classroom building computer lab, decided I needed a change of scenery, and decided to head home. On the way to the parking lot, I realized that my cell phone was missing. (Shocker, hmm?) Panicked search ensues. Questioned a couple people, retraced my steps (last remembered seeing it at 4:15 in Surbeck), called it a couple times, retraced my steps again, asked the only other guy in the CB lab if he had seen it, went home ... and called it again. CB lab guy answers. Sure enough, my phone was there. In the garbage. Don't ask. I have no idea. So, thank you, random CB lab guy. I appreciate you digging my phone out of the garbage. Really appreciate it. And I'm plenty embarrassed, so I'll end this here. (What a week!)

Thou wast all that to me, love, For which my soul did pine-- A green isle in the sea, love, A fountain and a shrine, All wreathed with fairy fruits and flowers, And all the flowers were mine. It is the last week of the semester, and Edgar Allan Poe is in my head. Sounds morbid, I suppose, but I'm reading some of his works for my American lit class, which I have been horrifically procrastinating on. Alas, this can't happen anymore, since the semester is very nearly over. Summer is getting closer. The campus is starting to brighten; slowly, slowly, students get to walk back into the sunlight. Haggard, sleep-deprived, hungry, and pale from the incessant glare of fluorescent lights, we are starting to see the end. Come Friday, things will get crazy; around here, finals week is a relief. Projects are over, papers are turned in, and there will be no more homework due. What's a couple of tests? In my case, a few essays, too. Back to that procrastinating thing. Summer. Blissful, ho...

My last few entries have been a little cryptic and vague, but, well, I've been a little cryptic and vague lately. At least I'm blogging what I'm feeling, right? Now, a bit more detail: This weekend was awesome. Caught up a bit with Benjamin, spent some time on the trails (great thinking time), and I got to go to the symphony with Justin and Chris. Very, very good. Exceptional. Personal benefits: some right-brain stimulation and a bottle of wine (I won a door prize! A really good one!). This week, there are two papers to finish, one or two assignments, and my lit class that I've been procrastinating on. Like crazy. To all IVers -- go to Pursuit! It's gonna be awesome! And Anya will be there, which is even more exciting, as far as I'm concerned. Woot! As I said last time, there's a lot to think about. Naturally. Big life steps coming up, and I need to learn to make decisions (not just flip a coin). I think that might be why I'm doing summer the way I am .....