Finding My Mentor

I finally had the chance to meet with my poetry mentor today.  And we discussed poetry, publishing, etc.  And he told me he liked my writing.  And he wants to keep in contact, and help me in my career.  He even wants to get me a copy of his latest book, when it comes out in September!  I'm very excited :)

 

I know I still have a long way to go, but with his assistance and guidance, I have a feeling I'll be able to make it in the poetry world someday.

Final Finals

This week is my last official finals week as an undergrad.  And I'll be honest, I'm not sure if it just hasn't hit me yet, or perhaps I'm finally starting to become comfortable with the fact I'm graduating, but honestly, it doesn't look like things are going to be too bad.

 

I completed my Detective Fiction final this afternoon, after a coffee date with a friend.  I have a paper due on Wednesday and a collection of creative writing due on Friday.  Other than that, I have another coffee date tomorrow, dinner with a couple of my professors on Wednesday, and I'm helping out a friend with her acting final on Thursday.  Time has finally slowed down just enough, and I'm preparing for summer.  This is really the first time since the semester started that I'm actually looking forward to school being over, for real.  I mean, I wish it would last forever, but at the same time, I need a bit of a break.

 

What will my summer consist of?  Books, mostly.  I'll be working at the local library, and participating in two book discussion groups (on top of my own personal reading schedule).  I'm not sure exactly what I'm going to start with, but I know for sure that Sarah and I were planning on reading Moby Dick together.  I was supposed to read it for class last semester, so I'm looking forward to reading it for real this time around.

 

Going off book recommendations, I've started a few new series that I'm really looking forward to completing.  The first is The Dresden Files.  This is a series about a detective wizard named Harry Dresden, who solves supernatural crimes (like rogue wizards, vampires, werewolves, hell-spawn; you get the idea).  Anyways, I'm on book two, Fool Moon (book one was Storm Front).  As you can probably guess from the title, this is a werewolf book.  Personally, I preferred the first one, but I heard that the series gets better and better, so I'm looking forward to reading onward.

 

Also, I've been reading the Space Odyssey books.  (You know, like 2001: A Space Odyssey, etc.)  And those have been really interesting.  I just finished book two last week (2010: Odyssey Two).  I've been told that the other books aren't really worth reading (I'm guessing like the last two books of the Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy series), but even so, I'd like to read them just to say I did.

 

After I finish Fool Moon, I'm going to attempt to wrestle Cloud Atlas into literary submission....before finals are over.  Or whenever the library closes.  We have a week of senior activities coming up.  I hope that they don't mind if I keep the book during that time....

 

In other news, I've been drinking WAY too much coffee, so I'm super-hyper and my metabolism is racing.  That means I'm jittery and hungry.  And I'm at work.  Not a good combination, people!

My Last First Day of Class

It's official, dear friends...today marks the first day of my last semester of college.  And I can't figure out just where all the time went!  I'm not freaking out yet.  Right now, I'm still trying to readjust to being back on my own time and my own schedule.  At home, things run rather differently, as I try to adjust to the schedule of the three other people in the house.

I'm officially not going to grad school...at least not yet, so that means I'll be getting a job once I come back home.  Been working on applications and trying to find places that will hire me NOW, and let me start working in a couple of months.

It's been a while since I've had to bother being up for a 10 o'clock class, and while it's late enough that I can't really complain, I'll admit it would be nicer to just sleep in a few hours longer.  Still, I think today promises to be interesting and fun (three English Literature classes today!!!).

Hope all of you are well!  Updates to come in soon (I hope!)

Last College Autumn

Autumn has settled upon my senior year of college.  To be honest, I find it hard to believe that I've been attending this school for nearly four years now.  Where does the time go?  Seriously!  I'm so amazed.

Sometimes, the swiftness of time terrifies me.  And I'll be honest, I'm a bit nervous about graduating in May, and leaving all this behind.  Don't get me wrong, I love being at home....I love my family and all the friends I can only see when I'm there...but I know I'll miss the campus, my college friends, and the freedom I feel here.  Sure, there are classes and such, but it's been nice having a dorm to retreat to, and having friends only a five to ten minute walk away.  I love the feeling of the campus in the fall, and I think that I'm going to miss that more than most things.

I know I have a few more months, but this is my last autumn here, and I want to enjoy as much of it as I possibly can.  Ever since I was a child, fall has always been my favorite season.  I love the weather, the crispness in the air....the start of school, my birthday, and Halloween were all in the fall (and in that order).  It was and is a magical time.

There are so many things I still want to do here, but at the same time, I feel as though my time to move on has come.  I guess what I'm looking for right now is a chance to stay attached to this campus forever, but as a student.  I want to continue to learn, and to wander the campus, taking in every delicious detail so that nothing is forgotten...Like a ghost, but alive, and well, and happy.  I want to freeze time for just a little bit longer.

And sometimes, I wish I could go back to freshman year, when I was just a naive kid wandering around to God-knows where with a frog-faced philosopher who made me feel like I could fly, even if only for a short time.  True, things fell apart, but I still think of him fondly when I see our cherry blossom tree bloom in the spring, or when I walk past the bench and lampposts where we used to meet up every night.  I guess, all in all, you could say I'm feeling somewhat nostalgic....and I guess that would be right.

First Day, Spring 2011 Semester

Its only the first day back, but I'm all out of sorts. Classes were good, but tedious, and I'm going to have sooooo much work to do for my Witches of Salem class that its not even funny. I'm tired and have a headache, but all my complaining aside, I'm still excited about this coming semester's worth of classes. I've gotten a bit of homework, but nothing I can't handle: a 25 page reading assignment from a most tedious writing guide (I'm going to be working in the campus writing center come Fall 2011, and this class is my training), a writing prompt about the importance of tutoring and the benefits for all involved, and a 3-5 page paper about the accusations brought forth during the Salem Witch Trials.

Shrimp-flavored ramen, tropical punch Fuze juice, and Alice Cooper: Super Hits have been keeping me sane.

I think I'm mostly just tired.......the fire alarm went off at 1:30 last night. What the hell is that about??? I stood outside in the freezing cold wearing just my pajamas and a winter coat; I was wearing shorts and my legs were nearly frozen!

Reading Jeannette Walls's The Glass Castle for book club. Its very good, but sad.

Moving Back In

I've just moved back into the old dorm room; and well, it feels weird. Part of me feels like I have never left, whereas part of me can't believe I'm already back. I'm currently alone....Professor Thomas and his family kidnapped the Roomie, but I didn't get in the van (oh god....this sounds like a real kidnapping, doesn't it?) I was going to the library to pick up a book for class tomorrow (I ordered it online, but it didn't come in yet. I don't want to buy a second copy, so I'm using the library copy to tide me over until then).

Dinner with the Professor and the Roomie soon. Looking forward to it, but I'm soooo not hungry right now. In fact, I don't want to eat anything, but I'm going to eat a little I guess; mostly, I'm going to be social. The food is going to suck; I know this for a fact. Perhaps its good that I'm not hungry.

I feel kinda bad that I didn't jump in the van with everyone else, but that's not me, so why worry about it? Right?

School Books

One thing that I just LOVE about starting a new semester of school is getting all my new books. There's something wonderful about all the interesting topics, covers, shapes, and sizes involved. I've started ordering my books this week from Borders. And, already, I've already gotten two of them, with two more on the way. I have SIXTEEN books that I need to buy.

So far (of the four books I've purchased) I've gotten two for my history class on the Salem witch trials, one for my Classical Studies and film class, and one for my writing class. I'm going to have a lot of academic stuff to post about in the coming weeks :)

It's always thrilling to crack open a new textbook; and there is so much suspense....What will the new book be about? Will it be good or bad? What exciting new things will it teach me? *Sigh*...Wouldn't it be wonderful if one could just stay in college forever? And just learn about all kinds of things...that would be amazing.