"Traveling is a brutality. It forces you to trust strangers and to lose sight of all that familiar comfort of home and friends. You are constantly off balance. Nothing is yours except the essential things; air, sleep, dreams, the sea, the sky- all things tending towards the eternal or what we imagine of it. " - — Cesare Pavese
Feb 5, 2010
Last weekend at American University & last time to be with Dan for 4 months.
Needless to say, best weekend ever. Oh, and Sunglasses at Night.
Apr 18, 2009
"Watches are so named as a reminder - if you don't watch carefully what you do with your time, it will slip away from you. " -Drew Sirtors
So, I’m sitting here on this Friday night on duty. It’s the long weekend because of Patriots Day on Monday so a lot of the residents ended up going home. I don’t think its been this quiet when I’ve been on RA Duty all year, so its giving me time to think..and think a lot. So I already finished my usual Resident Assistant duties of the night, I did the first round, finished my posters for my program, and even got a Raspberry Smoothie from one of my Residents, Nicole ( I owe you one). I’ve got a few more hours on duty, so like everyone else on this earth, I began my facebook stalking While my dire boredom got the best of me, I stumbled upon a group… Bridgewater State College Class of 2013. Then it also hit me, today is the start of April Vacation for the high school kids..and 2 years ago, I was packing and getting pumped for my senior class trip to Florida. I just can’t believe it. After this month, I will be done with my Sophomore year of college, as well as finishing up with being a first year RA. Where does time go?
On Duty, Halloween Night 08. We had to dress up!
……I left for my sophomore year of school in the end of August where I began a whole new life at Bridgewater compared to the past year. I had a fresh start to make an impact with new students as my Dad, brother and I moved my things into the opposite freshman residence hall that I lived in last year, Shea- Durgin Hall. I was moving in ten days earlier than everyone else to begin training for being a Resident Assistant. I was instantly thrown into a group of students who are just like me, finally! After my freshman year of trying to find people who had the same mindset and goals..a year later I found them! Honestly, no one can tell me anything different. I have one of the most rewarding jobs on campus and I will speak for hours on why but I’ll just give you the brief overview. Living in a freshman residence hall, I am able to see my residents, along with 600 others change right before my eyes in the period of 9 months. I moved them in, all of them scared, worried and excited all at the same time. I began to really get to know my residents and know my building as the semester picked up with new and exciting activities for people to join. At this point in the semester, I have seen it all. I’ve seen heartbreaks, bad grades, being cut from an athletic team, making bad decisions, choosing classes, questioning everything, finding that real core group of friends and the greatest thing is I can relate to ALL OF THAT. I love being able to work with everyone! I will go to the end of the line in order for their questions to be answered, I live for it. So some of you may be reading and saying wtf…but it’s me, I love being able to lead someone in a positive direction and being able to lead a floor of 68 + , it’s so rewarding in its own way. The end.
Durgin Hall Staff 2008-2009 <3
……I left for my sophomore year of school in the end of August where I began a whole new life at Bridgewater compared to the past year. I had a fresh start to make an impact with new students as my Dad, brother and I moved my things into the opposite freshman residence hall that I lived in last year, Shea- Durgin Hall. I was moving in ten days earlier than everyone else to begin training for being a Resident Assistant. I was instantly thrown into a group of students who are just like me, finally! After my freshman year of trying to find people who had the same mindset and goals..a year later I found them! Honestly, no one can tell me anything different. I have one of the most rewarding jobs on campus and I will speak for hours on why but I’ll just give you the brief overview. Living in a freshman residence hall, I am able to see my residents, along with 600 others change right before my eyes in the period of 9 months. I moved them in, all of them scared, worried and excited all at the same time. I began to really get to know my residents and know my building as the semester picked up with new and exciting activities for people to join. At this point in the semester, I have seen it all. I’ve seen heartbreaks, bad grades, being cut from an athletic team, making bad decisions, choosing classes, questioning everything, finding that real core group of friends and the greatest thing is I can relate to ALL OF THAT. I love being able to work with everyone! I will go to the end of the line in order for their questions to be answered, I live for it. So some of you may be reading and saying wtf…but it’s me, I love being able to lead someone in a positive direction and being able to lead a floor of 68 + , it’s so rewarding in its own way. The end.
Oct 3, 2008
“Our battered suitcases were piled on the sidewalk again; we had longer ways to go. But no matter, the road is life.” - Jack Kerouac
Day 4
Off to London! We got up around 8am and went on our 2 hours drive back to Shannon Airport for our 1pm plane to Gatwick, London.
The plane ride was only an hour long which was felt like 5 minutes compared to a 5 hours flight ha. Once we got into London around 3 we took their commuter rail to Victoria Station in the heart of London. London is a beautiful city! We dropped our luggage off at our ghetto Bed & Breakfast that was so tiny and creepy. But it’s what you get for the money, it was worth it. All of us were exhausted but we didn’t want to waste the rest of the beautiful day and night. Theresa, Hannah and myself headed out sightseeing since we were in walking distance of everything!
We went to Buckingham Palace, Big Ben, Parliament, Westminster Abbey, St. James Park and the Princess Diana Memorial Walkway. We were only out for a few hours and once it started getting dark at around 9 we headed back to our B&B.
Day 5
The next morning we got our tickets for an all day tour of Windsor Castle, Stonehenge and the Roman Baths. We got up and out at 8am and headed on the coach for a 2 hour bus ride to Windsor Castle. Windsor Castle, in Windsor in the English county of Berkshire, is the largest inhabited castle in the world and, dating back to the time of William the Conqueror.
Queen Elizabeth II spends many weekends of the year at the castle, using it for both state and private entertaining. When we arrived at the Castle on Monday morning, the Queen was still there, but once we got into the castle she ended up leaving to go to Buckingham Palace. When we got there we got to walk around the State Apartments, extensive suites of rooms at the heart of the working palace. We also saw the Drawings Gallery, Queen Mary's dolls' house, and the fourteenth-century St. George's Chapel, which was the burial place of ten sovereigns and setting for many Royal weddings. We were not allowed to take pictures inside so I have none but the outside of the castle was marvelous. The stone work was so beautiful and I can’t believe that people still live here and how amazing it must be.
Since we were on a tour bus we only had limited time to see everything so we were rushed through and headed back to the bus to head to our next sightseeing adventure…Stonehenge! Stonehenge is a prehistoric monument located in the English county of Wiltshire. One of the most famous prehistoric sites in the world, Stonehenge is composed of earthworks surrounding a circular setting of large standing stones.
Archaeologists believe that the standing stones were erected around 2200 BC and the surrounding circular earth bank and ditch, which constitute the earliest phase of the monument, have been dated to about 3100 BC. It was a beautiful site!
But always seeing pictures of Stonehenge, I always thought it was a big bigger then what it truly was! Pictures are deceiving! And I never thought of what was surrounding Stonehenge, but I found out…nothing. Absolutely nothing is around Stonehenge. Only one road is located around it and you have to drive at least two miles on this one, two-way road to get to the stones.
After leaving Stonehenge behind, the tour bus took us to Bath, to see the Roman Baths.
The Roman Baths complex is a site of history in the English city of Bath. The complex is a very well-preserved Roman site of public bathing. The Baths themselves are below the modern street level and has four main features, the Sacred Spring, the Roman Temple, the Roman Bath House and the Museum holding finds from Roman Bath.
Day 6
Woke up in the morning and caught the famous hop on hop off double Decker bus tour. When around to just about everything you could think of.
We headed to Shakespeare Globe Theatre, River Thames, and Piccadilly Circus. After a day of all the touristy attractions, we when back to our Bed and Breakfast for the Ice Bar! 
That place was absolutely amazing! It was -5 degree Celcius and everything was made of ice. The chairs, tables, lights and the cups and bar itself! It was called the Absolute Ice Bar London and with your ticket in, you got a drink that they only served with Absolute vodka. Also because it was so cold, we could only stay in for a total of 40 minutes, while in there you got to wear a jacket and gloves. 
Once we left the bar we ended up eating at a pizza chain named Pizza Express, which had the best pizza! Anyone who goes to London and just wants a plain old cheese pizza…that is the place to go! Once we ate we headed back to London Victiora for bed. I ended up calling my mom and let them know how everything was.
Day 7
Last day in London. We slept in until 9am and headed over to the London Eye which was a 360 degree view of London for about 35 minutes.
We lucked out, it was such gorgeous weather! The Eye was located right next to the River Thames. After we got off the London Eye, Theresa and I headed to Kings Cross Station….yes where Harry Potter traveled to Hogwarts. Sooo we went to Platform 9 ¾!
Let me tell you, my childhood dream was completely fulfilled! I could not believe that they really had a platform! We ended up eating at the station just because we wanted to say we ate at Kings Cross Station. At around 2:30 we met back up with Hannah and Amanda and went on the Tube to get to Abbey Road. Abbey Road took a while to get to, but once we were there, we were thrilled! We ended up writing our names on the Beatles recording studio wall, and we got a picture on the crosswalk, just like the Beatles did! After we got our wonderful pictures, we headed to the airport to catch our flight back to Ireland.
Off to London! We got up around 8am and went on our 2 hours drive back to Shannon Airport for our 1pm plane to Gatwick, London.
The plane ride was only an hour long which was felt like 5 minutes compared to a 5 hours flight ha. Once we got into London around 3 we took their commuter rail to Victoria Station in the heart of London. London is a beautiful city! We dropped our luggage off at our ghetto Bed & Breakfast that was so tiny and creepy. But it’s what you get for the money, it was worth it. All of us were exhausted but we didn’t want to waste the rest of the beautiful day and night. Theresa, Hannah and myself headed out sightseeing since we were in walking distance of everything!
We went to Buckingham Palace, Big Ben, Parliament, Westminster Abbey, St. James Park and the Princess Diana Memorial Walkway. We were only out for a few hours and once it started getting dark at around 9 we headed back to our B&B.Day 5
The next morning we got our tickets for an all day tour of Windsor Castle, Stonehenge and the Roman Baths. We got up and out at 8am and headed on the coach for a 2 hour bus ride to Windsor Castle. Windsor Castle, in Windsor in the English county of Berkshire, is the largest inhabited castle in the world and, dating back to the time of William the Conqueror.
Queen Elizabeth II spends many weekends of the year at the castle, using it for both state and private entertaining. When we arrived at the Castle on Monday morning, the Queen was still there, but once we got into the castle she ended up leaving to go to Buckingham Palace. When we got there we got to walk around the State Apartments, extensive suites of rooms at the heart of the working palace. We also saw the Drawings Gallery, Queen Mary's dolls' house, and the fourteenth-century St. George's Chapel, which was the burial place of ten sovereigns and setting for many Royal weddings. We were not allowed to take pictures inside so I have none but the outside of the castle was marvelous. The stone work was so beautiful and I can’t believe that people still live here and how amazing it must be.
Since we were on a tour bus we only had limited time to see everything so we were rushed through and headed back to the bus to head to our next sightseeing adventure…Stonehenge! Stonehenge is a prehistoric monument located in the English county of Wiltshire. One of the most famous prehistoric sites in the world, Stonehenge is composed of earthworks surrounding a circular setting of large standing stones.
Archaeologists believe that the standing stones were erected around 2200 BC and the surrounding circular earth bank and ditch, which constitute the earliest phase of the monument, have been dated to about 3100 BC. It was a beautiful site!
But always seeing pictures of Stonehenge, I always thought it was a big bigger then what it truly was! Pictures are deceiving! And I never thought of what was surrounding Stonehenge, but I found out…nothing. Absolutely nothing is around Stonehenge. Only one road is located around it and you have to drive at least two miles on this one, two-way road to get to the stones. After leaving Stonehenge behind, the tour bus took us to Bath, to see the Roman Baths.
The Roman Baths complex is a site of history in the English city of Bath. The complex is a very well-preserved Roman site of public bathing. The Baths themselves are below the modern street level and has four main features, the Sacred Spring, the Roman Temple, the Roman Bath House and the Museum holding finds from Roman Bath.Day 6
Woke up in the morning and caught the famous hop on hop off double Decker bus tour. When around to just about everything you could think of.
We headed to Shakespeare Globe Theatre, River Thames, and Piccadilly Circus. After a day of all the touristy attractions, we when back to our Bed and Breakfast for the Ice Bar! 
That place was absolutely amazing! It was -5 degree Celcius and everything was made of ice. The chairs, tables, lights and the cups and bar itself! It was called the Absolute Ice Bar London and with your ticket in, you got a drink that they only served with Absolute vodka. Also because it was so cold, we could only stay in for a total of 40 minutes, while in there you got to wear a jacket and gloves. 
Once we left the bar we ended up eating at a pizza chain named Pizza Express, which had the best pizza! Anyone who goes to London and just wants a plain old cheese pizza…that is the place to go! Once we ate we headed back to London Victiora for bed. I ended up calling my mom and let them know how everything was.Day 7
Last day in London. We slept in until 9am and headed over to the London Eye which was a 360 degree view of London for about 35 minutes.
We lucked out, it was such gorgeous weather! The Eye was located right next to the River Thames. After we got off the London Eye, Theresa and I headed to Kings Cross Station….yes where Harry Potter traveled to Hogwarts. Sooo we went to Platform 9 ¾!
Let me tell you, my childhood dream was completely fulfilled! I could not believe that they really had a platform! We ended up eating at the station just because we wanted to say we ate at Kings Cross Station. At around 2:30 we met back up with Hannah and Amanda and went on the Tube to get to Abbey Road. Abbey Road took a while to get to, but once we were there, we were thrilled! We ended up writing our names on the Beatles recording studio wall, and we got a picture on the crosswalk, just like the Beatles did! After we got our wonderful pictures, we headed to the airport to catch our flight back to Ireland.
“The world is a book and those who do not travel read only one page.” - St. Augustine
When you first opened up this blog, you will most likely be hearing the song “Galway Girl” this song was played every place that we went to in Ireland.
The morning of July 10th, we arrived into Shannon Airport from a 5 hour overnight flight to Ireland. It was 6a.m there but only 2am in America. We got off the plane being extremely exhaust to Theresa mother and her Uncle Peter. While driving to the place we were staying we stopped for Breakfast since it was in fact breakfast time even though we still believed it to be 4:30 in the morning and working on no sleep. Of course Amanda and I have never been out of the country and we had to get used to the money systems. During breakfast all of us got something to eat, costing about 5 euros. They gave us back 2 euro coins and 1 euro coins, just like it would be 1 dollar bill just in coin form, well Amanda did not know that and ended up tipping her about 5euros because she thought it was just coins! The funniest thing was she didn’t realize it until about 15 minutes later when we were talking about the coins! So that began our trip off with a great laugh and we all learned by Amanda’s mistake!
Once we finished breakfast, we continued to 2 hours journey to Connemara to Theresa’s late uncle’s house. When we finally arrived we were all so jet lagged that we ended up sleeping until around 3p.m. Once we got our sleep time in all wondered around Connemara to explore our surroundings. While taking a look around outside all you could see in the distance were hills of grass and stone. If you looked in another direction you would see horses, dogs, chickens and roosters owning the streets and land. We ended up walking to a small convenience store about a 1 ½ away to try some different snacks. I loved looking at all the different types of food and drinks! I loved trying a variety of new taste and over all none of them were that bad! After exploring we went to do some family visiting for the rest of the evening. We went to 3 uncles homes as well at Theresa’s grandmothers home. It was such a cultural difference while we were spending time with family! They constantly asked if anyone wanted tea or snacks when we first walked in, their accent changed like ours, some were really thick and we couldn’t understand a word and others we could understand crystal clear. After visiting a few families, we headed back to home. We all thought it was much earlier than it was because the sun doesn’t begin to set until around 11p.m and begins to rise at around 3am.
Day 2- Friday July 11th
Today was when we really began our tourist attractions. We got up and heading down to the Ferry to get to the Aran Islands at 10am. The ferry ride was about an hour away which wasn’t a bad ride at all. Once we landed back on land we ended up taking a island tour by van by a man who had lived on the island for many years. The main island that we traveled on had a population of about 800 people and in the summer about 1000 people live there. There is 3,000 miles of stone walls throughout the island. At a point in our trip we had to get out of the van and walk about up a very big hill to get to Dun Angus, a fort that was used to fight between the people of the island between the O’Flarety’s vs O’Brien’s. The Flaherty’s one and there are only a few O’Briens left on the island today. Once we came down from the mountain we continued on our van tour by stopping at the 7 churches. The 7 churches were where many saint are buried and is still used as a cemetery today.
We also stopped for a short time at the “beach” which was all rock but we got to touch the other side of the Atlantic Ocean which was pretty cool. I said hello to America on the other side. Once our tour was completed we got the 4pm ferry back to main land. Once we got back we headed up to the local pub, which was literally a 2 minute walk. We decided that it was time to try our first Guinness since Ireland was known for it and the drinking age was 18. I didn’t dare get a pint because I knew I was not going to be able to drink it so Amanda and I split a glass and Hannah had a glass, and the outcome….GUINESS IS DISGUSTING.We headed back home after our first disgusting drink and got ready to go out to the “disco” a.k.a club. Before the disco opened at Midnight we headed to another pub where a lot of 20 something year old were. It was such a great Irish atmosphere! People were playing Green Day/ Kelly Clarkson/Rhianna on the acoustic guitar while everyone was singing along. And of course they played Galway Girl. After we left that bar we headed down the street to the disco named Josies. Let’s just say Irish dancing is very different than any dance I have ever been too. No one was really grinding and my horrible dance moves such as the sprinkler and shopping cart was totally acceptable. I now see how white people have to dancing skills at all and I don’t feel that bad about my dance moves anymore!
Day 3. Saturday 12th
Today we got to sleep in for a little bit before we made our hour journey to Kylemore Abbey. Kylemore Abbey is the oldest of the Irish Benedictine Abbeys. It was originally called Kylemore Castle; it was built between 1863 and 1868 as a private home for the family of Mitchell Henry, a wealthy politician from Manchester, England who was also Member of Parliament for Galway County.
After the death of his wife Margaret in 1875, Mitchell did not spend much time there. However, he built a beautiful memorial church about a mile from the Castle on the shore of the lake, in which Margaret was finally laid to rest and where in due course he joined her. The church is a miniature replica of Norwich Cathedral, the inside being composed mainly of green Connemara marble.He and his wife are both buried in the small mausoleum near the church in the grounds of the abbey.
After our adventures to Kylemore Abbey we headed to Tullycross for Theresa’s uncle Jimmy’s Gaelic football Game. Gaelic Football is a combination of soccer, football and rugby but no padding what so ever. Gaelic football is played by teams of 15 on a rectangular grass pitch with H-shaped goals at each end. The primary object is to score by kicking or striking the ball with the hand and getting it through the goals.The team with the highest score at the end of the match wins. Players advance the ball up the field with a combination of carrying, soloing (dropping and then toe-kicking the ball upward into the hands), kicking, and hand-passing to their team-mates.
London. See Other Blog!
Day 8
We got up early and drove to town to catch the bus to Dublin which was a 3 hour ride from where we were. Once we got in we ate a late lunch at a local coffee shop and headed onto a bus tour to Trinity College, Guinness Brewery and the National Gallery. Trinity College was beautiful, we basically just walked quickly though it because we had to pay extra to go see anything in the college itself. At the Brewery we got to taste Guinness for the second time right out of the factory which was defiantly much better tasting then at the Pub we first drank it at.
The National Gallery was amazing. It was so relaxing to just be able to look at art for a few hours. We didn’t do much that day because of severe lack of sleep the night before and the bus ride just completely drained us. On the way home we got on the 8pm bus back to Theresa’s aunt Barbara’s I finally got to speak to Dan! My long lost boyfriend! 8 days and no talking what so ever! I never want to do that again! It made me so happy to finally get to be able to talk to him!
Day 9
This was basically a nice and relaxing morning. During this trip we barely got to sleep in at all. This was the first time we got to sleep in, well kinda. We woke up at 10 and wondered around the farm and hung out with the horses and cows.
Sounds weird but it was fun just being in a new environment. At around noon time we headed to Slieve Aughty Riding Center with Marid, Theresa’s younger cousin. The riding center was in a town named Slieve Loghrue. We ended up going horseback riding for an hour through the mountains which was relaxing but at the same time not because, well I’ve never really been on a horse outside of a pony area. But in the end it was a lot of fun.
Day 10
Today we did nothing all day! It was wonderful! We slept in but ended up waking up pretty early because our bodies were finally used to the 5 hour time difference. At 7:30 that night we took the bus into Galway City. We wanted to find a restaurant but ended up eating at Supermac’s which is basically their version of McDonalds. There was so many people all around the city because the Galway Arts Festival. Eyre Square was filled with performers and crowding the streets, it was awesome. There were people on stilts literally 9 feet in the air, fire jugglers, drummers, you name it and it was there.
After eating we went to a few bars but it was still pretty early so nothing was really happening since. The 1st bar we went into had live music and you could barely move throughout the rooms. We ended up staying for about 45 minutes and left since there was no one there our age. Yay for being hit on by men with gray hair?! The next bar we headed to was Fibber Mcgee’s which was a slightly younger crowd.
We stayed for a while and met up with Colleen and her friends! We ended up all getting drinks named “Fat Frogs” which was pretty good! It was a mixed drink of Smirnoff Ice, Bacardi breezers and Blue malted vodka. It was delicious. While we were all hanging out we got hit on by a few Irish 20 something’s, man they really have to work on their pick up lines. Since the one I got was … “so, I have a 4 month old daughter...” Hmm. Doesn’t fly silly Irish man.
After we left that bar we headed down the street ( mind you bars are within 10 feet of each other) to the Skeff which was where we stayed for the entire night. So many people were everywhere and old- school music was playing. It was by far the best bar of the night.
But still, these Irish guys really need to work on their pick up lines. The ones that we got from this bar.. “ my friends have 50 euro bet, can you name the 5 oceans” or “do you like hurling?”. But I got the winner for sure when I got the “ are you the Russian tennis player?” “huh?” “Anna Kournikova! I’ve always wanted to meet you!” ahhh. No drunken man I am not her and yes, you must have beer goggles on now. After a very exciting adventure of the Galway City nightlife, we got a taxi at around 1am and went to bed once we got home.
Day 11 & 12
Today we slept in! We did nothing all day. We basically just cleaned and organized the house since we were leaving in a few days. We cooked a lot of food that was going to go to waste if we didn’t eat it soon.
Day 13 & Flight Back
The adventure was beginning to wind down for the last few days. We actually packed up all of our stuff and headed to Galway for a day of shopping. We spent all day there and ended up leaving around 6:30 when Theresa’s aunt Barbara came to pick us up to spend the night with her. That Wednesday morning, my flight was heading home. Somehow, I left a day before everyone but it was okay. The morning I left we got up early and I took a shower. We headed to Shannon Airport about an hour away for my flight. All the girls came with me to make sure I got in safe and sound. It ended up being perfect timing because their bus back to Connemara was right around the corner when I went to check in. I said my goodbyes and headed into the terminal. The flight back wasn’t that bad. I slept, got to eat my lunch and just relax. Got home to a horrible storm though, I was blessed another hour in the air and we would have been stuck up in the air because of the storm!
Hope you enjoyed my wonderful vacation stories! Feel free to comment!
The morning of July 10th, we arrived into Shannon Airport from a 5 hour overnight flight to Ireland. It was 6a.m there but only 2am in America. We got off the plane being extremely exhaust to Theresa mother and her Uncle Peter. While driving to the place we were staying we stopped for Breakfast since it was in fact breakfast time even though we still believed it to be 4:30 in the morning and working on no sleep. Of course Amanda and I have never been out of the country and we had to get used to the money systems. During breakfast all of us got something to eat, costing about 5 euros. They gave us back 2 euro coins and 1 euro coins, just like it would be 1 dollar bill just in coin form, well Amanda did not know that and ended up tipping her about 5euros because she thought it was just coins! The funniest thing was she didn’t realize it until about 15 minutes later when we were talking about the coins! So that began our trip off with a great laugh and we all learned by Amanda’s mistake!
Once we finished breakfast, we continued to 2 hours journey to Connemara to Theresa’s late uncle’s house. When we finally arrived we were all so jet lagged that we ended up sleeping until around 3p.m. Once we got our sleep time in all wondered around Connemara to explore our surroundings. While taking a look around outside all you could see in the distance were hills of grass and stone. If you looked in another direction you would see horses, dogs, chickens and roosters owning the streets and land. We ended up walking to a small convenience store about a 1 ½ away to try some different snacks. I loved looking at all the different types of food and drinks! I loved trying a variety of new taste and over all none of them were that bad! After exploring we went to do some family visiting for the rest of the evening. We went to 3 uncles homes as well at Theresa’s grandmothers home. It was such a cultural difference while we were spending time with family! They constantly asked if anyone wanted tea or snacks when we first walked in, their accent changed like ours, some were really thick and we couldn’t understand a word and others we could understand crystal clear. After visiting a few families, we headed back to home. We all thought it was much earlier than it was because the sun doesn’t begin to set until around 11p.m and begins to rise at around 3am.Day 2- Friday July 11th
Today was when we really began our tourist attractions. We got up and heading down to the Ferry to get to the Aran Islands at 10am. The ferry ride was about an hour away which wasn’t a bad ride at all. Once we landed back on land we ended up taking a island tour by van by a man who had lived on the island for many years. The main island that we traveled on had a population of about 800 people and in the summer about 1000 people live there. There is 3,000 miles of stone walls throughout the island. At a point in our trip we had to get out of the van and walk about up a very big hill to get to Dun Angus, a fort that was used to fight between the people of the island between the O’Flarety’s vs O’Brien’s. The Flaherty’s one and there are only a few O’Briens left on the island today. Once we came down from the mountain we continued on our van tour by stopping at the 7 churches. The 7 churches were where many saint are buried and is still used as a cemetery today.
We also stopped for a short time at the “beach” which was all rock but we got to touch the other side of the Atlantic Ocean which was pretty cool. I said hello to America on the other side. Once our tour was completed we got the 4pm ferry back to main land. Once we got back we headed up to the local pub, which was literally a 2 minute walk. We decided that it was time to try our first Guinness since Ireland was known for it and the drinking age was 18. I didn’t dare get a pint because I knew I was not going to be able to drink it so Amanda and I split a glass and Hannah had a glass, and the outcome….GUINESS IS DISGUSTING.We headed back home after our first disgusting drink and got ready to go out to the “disco” a.k.a club. Before the disco opened at Midnight we headed to another pub where a lot of 20 something year old were. It was such a great Irish atmosphere! People were playing Green Day/ Kelly Clarkson/Rhianna on the acoustic guitar while everyone was singing along. And of course they played Galway Girl. After we left that bar we headed down the street to the disco named Josies. Let’s just say Irish dancing is very different than any dance I have ever been too. No one was really grinding and my horrible dance moves such as the sprinkler and shopping cart was totally acceptable. I now see how white people have to dancing skills at all and I don’t feel that bad about my dance moves anymore!Day 3. Saturday 12th
Today we got to sleep in for a little bit before we made our hour journey to Kylemore Abbey. Kylemore Abbey is the oldest of the Irish Benedictine Abbeys. It was originally called Kylemore Castle; it was built between 1863 and 1868 as a private home for the family of Mitchell Henry, a wealthy politician from Manchester, England who was also Member of Parliament for Galway County.
After the death of his wife Margaret in 1875, Mitchell did not spend much time there. However, he built a beautiful memorial church about a mile from the Castle on the shore of the lake, in which Margaret was finally laid to rest and where in due course he joined her. The church is a miniature replica of Norwich Cathedral, the inside being composed mainly of green Connemara marble.He and his wife are both buried in the small mausoleum near the church in the grounds of the abbey.
After our adventures to Kylemore Abbey we headed to Tullycross for Theresa’s uncle Jimmy’s Gaelic football Game. Gaelic Football is a combination of soccer, football and rugby but no padding what so ever. Gaelic football is played by teams of 15 on a rectangular grass pitch with H-shaped goals at each end. The primary object is to score by kicking or striking the ball with the hand and getting it through the goals.The team with the highest score at the end of the match wins. Players advance the ball up the field with a combination of carrying, soloing (dropping and then toe-kicking the ball upward into the hands), kicking, and hand-passing to their team-mates.
London. See Other Blog!
Day 8
We got up early and drove to town to catch the bus to Dublin which was a 3 hour ride from where we were. Once we got in we ate a late lunch at a local coffee shop and headed onto a bus tour to Trinity College, Guinness Brewery and the National Gallery. Trinity College was beautiful, we basically just walked quickly though it because we had to pay extra to go see anything in the college itself. At the Brewery we got to taste Guinness for the second time right out of the factory which was defiantly much better tasting then at the Pub we first drank it at.
The National Gallery was amazing. It was so relaxing to just be able to look at art for a few hours. We didn’t do much that day because of severe lack of sleep the night before and the bus ride just completely drained us. On the way home we got on the 8pm bus back to Theresa’s aunt Barbara’s I finally got to speak to Dan! My long lost boyfriend! 8 days and no talking what so ever! I never want to do that again! It made me so happy to finally get to be able to talk to him!Day 9
This was basically a nice and relaxing morning. During this trip we barely got to sleep in at all. This was the first time we got to sleep in, well kinda. We woke up at 10 and wondered around the farm and hung out with the horses and cows.
Sounds weird but it was fun just being in a new environment. At around noon time we headed to Slieve Aughty Riding Center with Marid, Theresa’s younger cousin. The riding center was in a town named Slieve Loghrue. We ended up going horseback riding for an hour through the mountains which was relaxing but at the same time not because, well I’ve never really been on a horse outside of a pony area. But in the end it was a lot of fun.Day 10
Today we did nothing all day! It was wonderful! We slept in but ended up waking up pretty early because our bodies were finally used to the 5 hour time difference. At 7:30 that night we took the bus into Galway City. We wanted to find a restaurant but ended up eating at Supermac’s which is basically their version of McDonalds. There was so many people all around the city because the Galway Arts Festival. Eyre Square was filled with performers and crowding the streets, it was awesome. There were people on stilts literally 9 feet in the air, fire jugglers, drummers, you name it and it was there.
After eating we went to a few bars but it was still pretty early so nothing was really happening since. The 1st bar we went into had live music and you could barely move throughout the rooms. We ended up staying for about 45 minutes and left since there was no one there our age. Yay for being hit on by men with gray hair?! The next bar we headed to was Fibber Mcgee’s which was a slightly younger crowd.
We stayed for a while and met up with Colleen and her friends! We ended up all getting drinks named “Fat Frogs” which was pretty good! It was a mixed drink of Smirnoff Ice, Bacardi breezers and Blue malted vodka. It was delicious. While we were all hanging out we got hit on by a few Irish 20 something’s, man they really have to work on their pick up lines. Since the one I got was … “so, I have a 4 month old daughter...” Hmm. Doesn’t fly silly Irish man.After we left that bar we headed down the street ( mind you bars are within 10 feet of each other) to the Skeff which was where we stayed for the entire night. So many people were everywhere and old- school music was playing. It was by far the best bar of the night.
But still, these Irish guys really need to work on their pick up lines. The ones that we got from this bar.. “ my friends have 50 euro bet, can you name the 5 oceans” or “do you like hurling?”. But I got the winner for sure when I got the “ are you the Russian tennis player?” “huh?” “Anna Kournikova! I’ve always wanted to meet you!” ahhh. No drunken man I am not her and yes, you must have beer goggles on now. After a very exciting adventure of the Galway City nightlife, we got a taxi at around 1am and went to bed once we got home.Day 11 & 12
Today we slept in! We did nothing all day. We basically just cleaned and organized the house since we were leaving in a few days. We cooked a lot of food that was going to go to waste if we didn’t eat it soon.
Day 13 & Flight Back
The adventure was beginning to wind down for the last few days. We actually packed up all of our stuff and headed to Galway for a day of shopping. We spent all day there and ended up leaving around 6:30 when Theresa’s aunt Barbara came to pick us up to spend the night with her. That Wednesday morning, my flight was heading home. Somehow, I left a day before everyone but it was okay. The morning I left we got up early and I took a shower. We headed to Shannon Airport about an hour away for my flight. All the girls came with me to make sure I got in safe and sound. It ended up being perfect timing because their bus back to Connemara was right around the corner when I went to check in. I said my goodbyes and headed into the terminal. The flight back wasn’t that bad. I slept, got to eat my lunch and just relax. Got home to a horrible storm though, I was blessed another hour in the air and we would have been stuck up in the air because of the storm!
Hope you enjoyed my wonderful vacation stories! Feel free to comment!
Jun 16, 2008
"May your trails be crooked, winding, lonesome, dangerous, leading to the most amazing view. May your mountains rise into& above the clouds.."-E.Abbey
Starting the summer off with a bang; or in my case with a Zip-Line.
The weather is really starting to feel like summer and I am loving it! Haven’t done too much since finishing my freshman year besides starting my new job at Best Buy in Taunton and taking a summer accounting class which I’ll be done with next week. So to really kick off the summer, Dan and I ended up in Lincoln, NH on Friday the 13th to continue our thrill seeking adventures at the Alpine Adventures' Zip-line Canopy Tours. We were on a 1700' hilltop on the edge of Barron Mountain. There were 7 zip-lines that totaled over 3500 feet and the lines were in trees from 15 feet to 65 feet high. Talk about an ADRENELINE RUSH. Out of the 10 people who came on the tour Dan and I of course went first and it was amazing! I went first on the first line and it was pretty scary looking down from 65 feet in the air! We went over 40 mph too! Even though it was pricy the money was totally worth it, it’s almost too hard to describe it, so I would totally recommend it to everyone! The only thing I’m mad about was that I thought we couldn’t bring cameras but it ended up that we could have so I have no pictures of us actually zip lining or of us in all our gear. They are making a new course which is going to be opening up in July and I want to go back again! They do the zip-lines all year round so I’m thinking next time Ill go in the winter.
Since we were 3 hours away from home we stayed the night at The Lodge right in downtown Lincoln. We decided to go this weekend because this was the last “Quiet” Weekend and after this week prices for the hotels jumped up about $45 so we saved some money there! Our hotel was awesome, it was simple and it’s all that we really needed. We overlooked the White Mountains and had the Pemigewasset River flowing right next to the hotel! It was an awesome and such a natural view. We had the windows open and the breeze at night was perfect and so peaceful with the sound of the river putting us to sleep.
We were done with the zip line by about noon time so we still had the entire day ahead of us. It was such gorgeous weather so we wanted to take advantage of it! We ended up at the Flume Gorge in Franconia Notch State Park and we got a package deal with that to ride up on Cannon Mountain on the Aerial Tramway. The Flume Gorge was beautiful! It was the perfect time of year to go because all of the run off from the snow kept everything flowing at a good speed. After we went through the Gorge we headed over to Cannon Mountain for the Tramway, and let me tell you, the views were absolutely breath-taking. They said that the sky was so clear and its very rare during the warmer months to be able to see such distances. We even saw Canada in the distance! The only other times where the visibility is that good is in the middle of winter when its 20 below or at least that what the Tram guy said.
Saturday we woke up late and ate at a delicious all day breakfast place called the Longhorn. It was so calm and relaxing! We ate our breakfast while overlooking another section of the Penigewasset River which was amazing and I just cant say it enough how relaxing it was. After breakfast we ended up at a section of the river where you can swim in and stuff. We ended up staying there for a few hours and swam and the water was FRIGID! It was really cool though because the current from the river eroded the rocks down so there were natural slides down the river which was different. We went on them but it was ice cold, and I initially didn’t want to go in, I slipped on a rock and just slid right it up to my neck! Haha. Cool…literally. After we froze ourselves we ended up at Clark’s Trading Post…but only to buy a drink and fudge, we didn’t see the bears or ride the train or anything. Overall our little mini-vacation get away was so worth it. I absolutely loved it and Dan and I both took advantage of the scenery and all the natural stuff that NH had to offer.
The weather is really starting to feel like summer and I am loving it! Haven’t done too much since finishing my freshman year besides starting my new job at Best Buy in Taunton and taking a summer accounting class which I’ll be done with next week. So to really kick off the summer, Dan and I ended up in Lincoln, NH on Friday the 13th to continue our thrill seeking adventures at the Alpine Adventures' Zip-line Canopy Tours. We were on a 1700' hilltop on the edge of Barron Mountain. There were 7 zip-lines that totaled over 3500 feet and the lines were in trees from 15 feet to 65 feet high. Talk about an ADRENELINE RUSH. Out of the 10 people who came on the tour Dan and I of course went first and it was amazing! I went first on the first line and it was pretty scary looking down from 65 feet in the air! We went over 40 mph too! Even though it was pricy the money was totally worth it, it’s almost too hard to describe it, so I would totally recommend it to everyone! The only thing I’m mad about was that I thought we couldn’t bring cameras but it ended up that we could have so I have no pictures of us actually zip lining or of us in all our gear. They are making a new course which is going to be opening up in July and I want to go back again! They do the zip-lines all year round so I’m thinking next time Ill go in the winter.
Since we were 3 hours away from home we stayed the night at The Lodge right in downtown Lincoln. We decided to go this weekend because this was the last “Quiet” Weekend and after this week prices for the hotels jumped up about $45 so we saved some money there! Our hotel was awesome, it was simple and it’s all that we really needed. We overlooked the White Mountains and had the Pemigewasset River flowing right next to the hotel! It was an awesome and such a natural view. We had the windows open and the breeze at night was perfect and so peaceful with the sound of the river putting us to sleep.
We were done with the zip line by about noon time so we still had the entire day ahead of us. It was such gorgeous weather so we wanted to take advantage of it! We ended up at the Flume Gorge in Franconia Notch State Park and we got a package deal with that to ride up on Cannon Mountain on the Aerial Tramway. The Flume Gorge was beautiful! It was the perfect time of year to go because all of the run off from the snow kept everything flowing at a good speed. After we went through the Gorge we headed over to Cannon Mountain for the Tramway, and let me tell you, the views were absolutely breath-taking. They said that the sky was so clear and its very rare during the warmer months to be able to see such distances. We even saw Canada in the distance! The only other times where the visibility is that good is in the middle of winter when its 20 below or at least that what the Tram guy said.
Saturday we woke up late and ate at a delicious all day breakfast place called the Longhorn. It was so calm and relaxing! We ate our breakfast while overlooking another section of the Penigewasset River which was amazing and I just cant say it enough how relaxing it was. After breakfast we ended up at a section of the river where you can swim in and stuff. We ended up staying there for a few hours and swam and the water was FRIGID! It was really cool though because the current from the river eroded the rocks down so there were natural slides down the river which was different. We went on them but it was ice cold, and I initially didn’t want to go in, I slipped on a rock and just slid right it up to my neck! Haha. Cool…literally. After we froze ourselves we ended up at Clark’s Trading Post…but only to buy a drink and fudge, we didn’t see the bears or ride the train or anything. Overall our little mini-vacation get away was so worth it. I absolutely loved it and Dan and I both took advantage of the scenery and all the natural stuff that NH had to offer.
May 13, 2008
Are You Ready?
I found this from Brittany's facebook and she found it somewhere. This is so realistic and i think everyone should take the time to read it. makes you think about college and everything.
A year has passed and now we stand on the brink of returning to a world where we are surrounded by the paradox of everything, and yet nothing being the same.
In one week we will reluctantly give hugs and fighting the tears, say goodbye to people who were once just names on a sheet of paper, to return to the people who we hugged and fought tears to say goodbye to before we ever left.
We will leave our best friends to return to our best friends.
We will go back to the places we came from and go back to the same things we did last summer and every summer before that. We will come into town on the same familiar road, and even though it has been months, it will seem like only yesterday. As you walk into your old bedroom, every emotion will pass through you as you reflect on the way your life has changed and the person you have become. You suddenly realize the things that were most important to you a year ago don’t seem to matter so much anymore, and the things you hold the highest now, no one at home will completely understand. The memories and the stories from school won’t mean anything to anyone at home and yet you resent them for that, they can’t share that happiness with you.
Who will call you first? What will you do your first weekend home with your friends? How long before you actually start missing people barging in without calling or knocking? Who will get pizza at three in the morning with you now? How long until you adjust to sleeping alone in a room again?
Then you start to realize how much things have changed, and you realize the hardest part of college is balancing the two completely different worlds you now line in, trying desperately to hold on to everything all the while trying to figure out what you have to leave behind. In the matter of one day’s traveling time, we will leave our world of living next door to our best friends, walking across campus to eat, instant messenger, 8:00 AM classes, and the perpetual procrastination, to a world that will seem foreign to us despite the fact that we lived in it for eighteen years.
But it is different now. We now know the meaning of true friendship. We know who we have kept in touch with over the past year and who we hold dearest in our hearts. We’ve left our high school world to deal with the real world. We’ve had our hearts broken, we’ve fallen in love, we’ve helped our best friends overcome depression, stress and death, and we’re stayed up all night on the phone just to talk to a friend in need. There have been times we’ve felt so helpless being hours away from home when we know our families needed us, and there are times we know we have made a difference.
One week from now we will leave. One week from now we take down our pictures and pack up our clothes. No more going next door to do nothing for hours on end. We will leave our friends whose random e-mails and phone calls will bring us to laughter and tears this summer. We will take our memories and dreams and put them away for now, saving them for our return to this world.
One week from now we will arrive. We will unpack our bags and have dinner with our families. We will drive over to our best friend’s house and do nothing for hours on end. We will return to the same friends whose random e-mails and phone calls have brought us to laughter and tears over the year. We will unpack old dreams and memories that have been put away for the past year.
In one week we will dig deep inside to find the strength and conviction to adjust, to change, and still keep each other close. And somehow, in some way, we will find our place between these two completely different worlds.
A year has passed and now we stand on the brink of returning to a world where we are surrounded by the paradox of everything, and yet nothing being the same.
In one week we will reluctantly give hugs and fighting the tears, say goodbye to people who were once just names on a sheet of paper, to return to the people who we hugged and fought tears to say goodbye to before we ever left.
We will leave our best friends to return to our best friends.
We will go back to the places we came from and go back to the same things we did last summer and every summer before that. We will come into town on the same familiar road, and even though it has been months, it will seem like only yesterday. As you walk into your old bedroom, every emotion will pass through you as you reflect on the way your life has changed and the person you have become. You suddenly realize the things that were most important to you a year ago don’t seem to matter so much anymore, and the things you hold the highest now, no one at home will completely understand. The memories and the stories from school won’t mean anything to anyone at home and yet you resent them for that, they can’t share that happiness with you.
Who will call you first? What will you do your first weekend home with your friends? How long before you actually start missing people barging in without calling or knocking? Who will get pizza at three in the morning with you now? How long until you adjust to sleeping alone in a room again?
Then you start to realize how much things have changed, and you realize the hardest part of college is balancing the two completely different worlds you now line in, trying desperately to hold on to everything all the while trying to figure out what you have to leave behind. In the matter of one day’s traveling time, we will leave our world of living next door to our best friends, walking across campus to eat, instant messenger, 8:00 AM classes, and the perpetual procrastination, to a world that will seem foreign to us despite the fact that we lived in it for eighteen years.
But it is different now. We now know the meaning of true friendship. We know who we have kept in touch with over the past year and who we hold dearest in our hearts. We’ve left our high school world to deal with the real world. We’ve had our hearts broken, we’ve fallen in love, we’ve helped our best friends overcome depression, stress and death, and we’re stayed up all night on the phone just to talk to a friend in need. There have been times we’ve felt so helpless being hours away from home when we know our families needed us, and there are times we know we have made a difference.
One week from now we will leave. One week from now we take down our pictures and pack up our clothes. No more going next door to do nothing for hours on end. We will leave our friends whose random e-mails and phone calls will bring us to laughter and tears this summer. We will take our memories and dreams and put them away for now, saving them for our return to this world.
One week from now we will arrive. We will unpack our bags and have dinner with our families. We will drive over to our best friend’s house and do nothing for hours on end. We will return to the same friends whose random e-mails and phone calls have brought us to laughter and tears over the year. We will unpack old dreams and memories that have been put away for the past year.
In one week we will dig deep inside to find the strength and conviction to adjust, to change, and still keep each other close. And somehow, in some way, we will find our place between these two completely different worlds.
May 12, 2008
"People grow through experience if they meet life honestly and courageously. This is how character is built."- Eleanor Roosevelt
Can someone please tell me where did the last year go?
Everything’s happening so fast.
It’s like I’m on the highway going 110 into the sunset without intent of stopping.
I just want everything to speed up and slow down all at the same time.
I’m done with my freshman year of college. When did I even start?! Remember when it was freshman year of high school and you thought that went by fast? Well college, goes by even faster. For anyone who is planning on attending the Bridgewater State College, I have four words for you: be open to anything.
As I packed up my stuff on Thursday morning I couldn’t believe it. Looking at the old, empty white walls, seeing my wooden desk completely bare, and staring at my 3ft lofted bed with a vacant blue mattress, I was stunned. I’ve been a resident of 71 Woodward Hall for the last 9 months and in a matter of days it looks at though I had never been there. I remember moving in the first day, scared shitless of everything and as the weeks went by, I began to get used to my new environment of the college world. I began to get to know my roommates Christine and Theresa and ventured the halls of Wood to meet more people. I got the job that I’ve wanted since I first began my college tours my junior year of high school. I was a freshman tour guide, one of the two freshman selected. I was on cloud nine. I began going to parties the first month or so but then I realized that the party scene isn’t really for me every week. I found out that I can have just as much fun sober and remember than getting shitted and not remembering my night through pictures. I learned that the college work load was much harder than high school and I actually had to study in order to succeed. And I learned that it is quite possible to keep a relationship with a significant other when it is regarding the long distance.
As the year grew on I found myself completely comfortable in my triple dorm. I had my own space and was content. Friends on the other hand could be a different story. From the beginning of the year to the recent ending I can say I’ve hand a handful of lasting friendships. Others who I thought were my friends really weren’t. They never really cared about what I was doing, how I was feeling and never held conversations just to pass the time. I thought we were in college but somehow it seemed like I was in high school again with the drama at times. But I held my head high and realized that “the people that want you in their lives are the ones that you want in yours.” I got incredibly close with one of my roommates, the one who I thought I wouldn’t get to close too, and I became distant with the other, the one that I though we had so much in common with at the beginning of the year. But what one has to realize is that people change and life goes on, and that’s all you can really do.
What I’ll miss the most; well the list could go on forever. Some things I never thought would really impact my daily life, has in fact made a difference. I’ll miss my morning breakfasts with Devon, where we’d go to Tilly at 7:15 on Tuesdays and Thursdays and 8:20 on Mondays, Wednesdays, and Friday s. And how we would get really excited if they had chocolate chip pancakes on Friday mornings or had the mini oranges. The Wednesdays lunches that consisted of me eating 3 taco’s just because they were my favorite. Laughing non stop with Theresa about nothing important, usually we were procrastinating about school work that we didn’t really want to do. Having talks about moving sheep? Bumper stickers, making fun of things, yo mama jokes, and how I talk to her in a different language while I sleep. Ok ill stop we have too many jokes. Thursday heart to hearts with the girls when everyone else is out. The sun waking me up in the early morning because my bed is placed in just the right spot, making me instantly happy. These are just a few of what I’ll really miss, and its sad.
Walking out of Woodward Hall, I was reminded by Allie that I am no longer a resident of Woodward Hall. Not only will I never be a resident at Wood but I will no longer ever JUST be a resident. As of next fall, I will be a Resident Assistant in Durgin, the other freshman dorm. The roles have been reversed. Ill be the one doing all the hallway decorations, the name tags on each door. Ill be checking in the freshman on move in day, and I will know exactly how they feel. With their wide eyes and brains going a mile a minute, trying not to pretend their nervous but in all reality they are. But my time has passed; my freshman year is over and done with. I had such an amazing experience all along the way and those are the memories that I will always have. Because in fact, I will never be a resident of Woodward hall again, my empty desk will be filled with other items, my vacant bed won’t be vacant and my white walls will be covered in another freshman girl’s life. I was just apart of the building for such a short time but has impacted me greatly. 3rd floor love <33
Everything’s happening so fast.
It’s like I’m on the highway going 110 into the sunset without intent of stopping.
I just want everything to speed up and slow down all at the same time.
I’m done with my freshman year of college. When did I even start?! Remember when it was freshman year of high school and you thought that went by fast? Well college, goes by even faster. For anyone who is planning on attending the Bridgewater State College, I have four words for you: be open to anything.
As I packed up my stuff on Thursday morning I couldn’t believe it. Looking at the old, empty white walls, seeing my wooden desk completely bare, and staring at my 3ft lofted bed with a vacant blue mattress, I was stunned. I’ve been a resident of 71 Woodward Hall for the last 9 months and in a matter of days it looks at though I had never been there. I remember moving in the first day, scared shitless of everything and as the weeks went by, I began to get used to my new environment of the college world. I began to get to know my roommates Christine and Theresa and ventured the halls of Wood to meet more people. I got the job that I’ve wanted since I first began my college tours my junior year of high school. I was a freshman tour guide, one of the two freshman selected. I was on cloud nine. I began going to parties the first month or so but then I realized that the party scene isn’t really for me every week. I found out that I can have just as much fun sober and remember than getting shitted and not remembering my night through pictures. I learned that the college work load was much harder than high school and I actually had to study in order to succeed. And I learned that it is quite possible to keep a relationship with a significant other when it is regarding the long distance.
As the year grew on I found myself completely comfortable in my triple dorm. I had my own space and was content. Friends on the other hand could be a different story. From the beginning of the year to the recent ending I can say I’ve hand a handful of lasting friendships. Others who I thought were my friends really weren’t. They never really cared about what I was doing, how I was feeling and never held conversations just to pass the time. I thought we were in college but somehow it seemed like I was in high school again with the drama at times. But I held my head high and realized that “the people that want you in their lives are the ones that you want in yours.” I got incredibly close with one of my roommates, the one who I thought I wouldn’t get to close too, and I became distant with the other, the one that I though we had so much in common with at the beginning of the year. But what one has to realize is that people change and life goes on, and that’s all you can really do.
What I’ll miss the most; well the list could go on forever. Some things I never thought would really impact my daily life, has in fact made a difference. I’ll miss my morning breakfasts with Devon, where we’d go to Tilly at 7:15 on Tuesdays and Thursdays and 8:20 on Mondays, Wednesdays, and Friday s. And how we would get really excited if they had chocolate chip pancakes on Friday mornings or had the mini oranges. The Wednesdays lunches that consisted of me eating 3 taco’s just because they were my favorite. Laughing non stop with Theresa about nothing important, usually we were procrastinating about school work that we didn’t really want to do. Having talks about moving sheep? Bumper stickers, making fun of things, yo mama jokes, and how I talk to her in a different language while I sleep. Ok ill stop we have too many jokes. Thursday heart to hearts with the girls when everyone else is out. The sun waking me up in the early morning because my bed is placed in just the right spot, making me instantly happy. These are just a few of what I’ll really miss, and its sad.
Walking out of Woodward Hall, I was reminded by Allie that I am no longer a resident of Woodward Hall. Not only will I never be a resident at Wood but I will no longer ever JUST be a resident. As of next fall, I will be a Resident Assistant in Durgin, the other freshman dorm. The roles have been reversed. Ill be the one doing all the hallway decorations, the name tags on each door. Ill be checking in the freshman on move in day, and I will know exactly how they feel. With their wide eyes and brains going a mile a minute, trying not to pretend their nervous but in all reality they are. But my time has passed; my freshman year is over and done with. I had such an amazing experience all along the way and those are the memories that I will always have. Because in fact, I will never be a resident of Woodward hall again, my empty desk will be filled with other items, my vacant bed won’t be vacant and my white walls will be covered in another freshman girl’s life. I was just apart of the building for such a short time but has impacted me greatly. 3rd floor love <33
Apr 15, 2008
"Examine the opportunities, the challenges you’ve given yourself."- Michael Johnson
29 days left. 29 total days left of my freshman year in college. Talk about surreal. Where in the world did the past year go? It feels like two months ago I was giving my speech to the senior class at graduation and two days ago that I was moving into my dorm in Woodward Hall. I remember vividly in third grade the last day of school, I remember yelling, “Nine more year of schooooool!” All I wanted to do was expand my adventures, education, and myself but in the process I feel like I grew up really fast. I would give anything to go back to that care free childhood of third grade when boys weren’t thought about as sex toys, girls didn’t talk behind everyone’s backs and everyone could be easily entertained without consuming massive amounts of drugs and/or alcohol. Time keeps ticking; friends change; I’ve grown up.
I’ve picked my summer classes this afternoon. I decided to take Summer Session I classes since its only 4 weeks and at that time I wont be in a steady job. Since I’ve decided to take summer classes, next Spring I will be considered a junior. Yikes. So since my last post; Room Selections. Well I won’t be living with any of the girls I’ve hung out with all this year. They’ve decided to live with each other and whatnot. One great tip I would give anyone would be to watch who your real friends are. That’s one of the biggest lessons I’ve learned during my freshman year at college. You think people are your friends; but they turn around and become strangers. I’ve made just a few true friends that I know I will keep in my following years here at BSC. The others just helped me realize even more who I want to become and who I never want to be, thank you for that.
Anyways, I didn’t get to participate in the room selection because my time was too late in the afternoon, but it didn’t matter. After a grueling interview process and awaiting anxiously for emails. I found out that I got the position of Resident Assistant for fall ’08. I am tentatively placed in Shea/Durgin Hall, which is the other freshman dorm on the
Countdowns :
Last Day of School: May 13th
Dan's Prom: June 5th
Ireland
