Graduation!

This morning I went to the baccalaureate mass for SLU and I sat down in a pew and realized that the family sitting next to me was that of a girl who lived on my floor freshman year. Four years ago, she and I took a walk to Forest Park together and walked for hours, talking about our dreams and hopes and where/who we wanted to be when we grew up. Both of our visions included SUVs, perfect families in suburbia and white picket fences. I don't know if she remembers this conversation, but I have thought about it frequently as I reflect on college, beucase I think it really demonstrates how much SLU and the people who make up SLU have changed my life. No longer do I dream of being a housewife (not that there is anything wrong with that!); instead I'm not really sure what I want. I just know I want to make a difference, experience life, and keep growing and learning. Not to much to ask right?

p.s.: hopefully I'll hear some amazing news today so that I don't have to wear this shirt!

Thought of the Day: "It costs a little to light the world." -Fr. Valentine Peter
Listening to: "Graduation (Friends Forever)" Vitamin C

{Image via: SLU}

Domination Dreams

With graduation right around the corner, plans and dreams for the future are constantly on my mind. I don't know where I am going to end up or where my friends are going to be. Regardless of our locations, I know that we will keep in touch and will be scheduling regular visits. What better way to chart my travels than with a Places on Earth map? I especially like the subtitle of "A Self-Congratulatory Guide to Personal Global Domination". So maybe I don't actually want to dominate the world, but fill the poster with pushpins makes an awesome goal. Some locations I'll hopefully be checking off this summer: Iowa, Kansas, California, Mississippi, and Michigan. Yay for fun visits and memories!

Listening to: "Baby" Justin Bieber
Thought of the Day: "All things work together in the tapestry of life." - Dove wrapper

Gettin' Some Culture

When I decided to go to SLU during my senior year of high school, my favorite history teacher teased me that I would return from St. Louis wearing Baby Phat clothes and high top Nikes. I laughed it off obviously, thinking that my conservative self would never give into the urban culture. And now as I student teach in an inner city high school, I can see how far I’ve come from the uber conservative self I was, but at the same time, I’m still in a total culture shock.

Yesterday, my cooperating teacher and others in the department were told that they need to create a new SMART goal for the month and they’ve decided the new goal would be to increase my “hoodness” by 5%. To start with, they decided to write up a list of movies I need to watch, songs and artists I need to listen to (I got over a gigabyte of new music today from them!), and TV shows I need to watch. This is the important stuff they forget to teach you in college. Professors always say you need to connect with your students, but they never give you insight on how. Hopefully this education helps because I definitely need to improve my understanding of my kids. I wonder what my high school teacher would say now.

[Proven example: last night I watched “The Bad Girls Club” on Oxygen and while it was painful to watch some of the stuff they do and say, I came to a better understanding of why the girls at my school get into cat fights over boys and hair that end up getting them suspended for 10 days. I can’t believe that people act like that on TV and are ok with portraying themselves in that manner, but it explained why girls behave in the ways they do.]

Movie list so far:

-Get on the Bus (or anything Spike Lee)

-Rize

-Kings of Comedy

-Soul Plane

-CB4

-The Wash

-Rosewood

-Krush Groove

Music includes:

-Gucci Mane

-Public Enemy

-Beastie Boys

-Dr. Dre

… and if I’m really good and show my 5% improvement, I might even get a nickname!

Listening to: "Gangsta's Paradise" Coolio

Thought of the Day: "We all live with the objective of being happy; our lives are all different and yet the same." -Anne Frank

I like lists.

I woke up this morning to a lovely 16 e-mails. I last checked it at 1:30am. Ahhh... Monday mornings.

{Essentials for the week: laptop (please note the plethora of sticky notes), coffee, stack of books, and Leaves candle}

It's midterms week too and it's looking very hairy. I have two tests on Wednesday and two tests and two papers on Thursday, but I just keep telling myself that it will go well because I have a plan in place. No matter what, I am going to go to the gym everyday, sleep at least 6 hours, and study constantly. I'm addicted to post-it notes and lists so I have it all mapped out and I just keep telling myself these could be my last midterms... ever. Scary thought, but with graduation in May and student teaching all spring, I may never have to take them again. Even scarier than graduation though is that this means this semester is the last one I have to make a great impression on my future employers and on my GPA. What could be better motivation? Yikes!

{running shoes, ready for stress relief}

Therefore, in order to, not just survive, but thrive this week, I will never be without my laptop, coffee (thanks to the pumpkin spice lattes, I now take my coffee with almond milk, pumpkin pies spice, and a spoonful of pumpkin puree - yum!), fall candles, planner, and post-its. Sounds like a plan to me!

{Breakfast of Champs: steel-cut oats + pumpkin + tons of cinnamon}

Listening to: "Heavy" Holly Brook

Thought of the Day: "Success is not final, failure is not fatal: it is the courage to continue that counts." -Winston Churchill

Honesty

Ever feel like this? Those relationships that become so strained that you are so far removed from even hoping to repair them, instead replacing this wish with the simple hope for the other person's personal well-being? Or maybe it is that we all are lying to ourselves, creating a facade of who we wish we were. Whatever it is, my wish, my hope is that each of us can be totally honest about one thing today. Whether it is with yourself, or with your best friend, or your mom, be completely honest just this once and observe the results.

I hope it works.

Listening to: Jason Mraz "Sleep All Day"

{Image via: papertissue.}

Carpe Diem

I cannot believe that I officially started my senior year today. I am really this old? I don't feel like I am ready to be an adult (even though I technically already am). But, at the same time, I am ready to make this year be one of the best and to live life to the fullest, seizing every opportunity and making the most out of my relationships. With these goals in mind, here are a few thoughts I am hoping to live by:

"There are no rules to this thing. We can make the best or the worst of it. I hope you make the best of it. And I hope you see things that startle you. I hope you feel things you never felt before. I hope you meet people with a different point of view. I hope you live a life you're proud of." -B. Button

"You can have the life you want." -Stephanie Congdon Barnes.

"Well behaved women rarely make history." -Laurel Thatcher Ulrich

"I believe in pink. I believe that laughing is the best calorie burner. I believe in kissing, kissing a lot. I believe in being strong when everything seems to be going wrong. I believe that happy girls are the prettiest girls. I believe that tomorrow is another day and I believe in miracles." -Audrey Hepburn

"Live with intention. Walk to the edge. Listen hard. Practice wellness. Play with abandon. Laugh. Choose with no regret. Continue to learn. Appreciate your friends. Do what you love. Live as if this is all there is." -Mary Anne Radmacher


Listening to: "Young" Kenny Chesney

{Image via Frangipane}

Starting July off on the Right Page

Holy cow! I can't believe that it is already July... where is my summer going? I just realized that it is almost halfway over and I haven't read nearly enough books. Summer used to be the time I read 4 or 5 books per week, but once I started college and working, reading sadly got shoved to the side. But, I have a new goal for this summer (I know, I am really into making goals for myself) which is to read at least one book a week. The only stipulation is that it has to be a fun book. I read so many books for school (I am a history major), so it's not like I don't read; they just aren't the kind that you want to read by the pool or have on your bedside table.
Here's a look at what is on my list:

3 Willows: The Sisterhood Grows by Ann Brashares

I loved the Sisterhood of the Traveling Pants series, so while this is for a bit younger audience, it's a fun way to get back into lighthearted reading. I also liked The Last Summer (of You and Me) by Brashares.

A Girl's Guide to Hunting and Fishing by Melissa Bank

I think I am the only person who has trouble getting into this book. It was recommended to me by my sister, one of my best friends, and numerous blogs (check out the comments here), but I am having issues finding the point of the whole thing. The author details her journey through love (I think my major mental block is the relationship with the man about 40 years older than her - I just find this weird, sort of like Rachel Wiesz in Definitely Maybe), but I am going to force myself to finish it. I would love any insights that might help me with it!

Revolutionary Road by Richard Yates
So, I'm a little late on this one, but I want to see the movie and I don't want to ruin the book by knowing the ending since books always turn out to be better than the movie.

Blacklisted by History by M. Stanton Evans

This is for my history course, so it doesn't technically fit my original criteria, but I think it is really interesting and insightful into the effects the media has on our perception of people and events.

Any suggestions for future reads?

Thought of the day: "Believe in yourself and all that you are. Know that there is something inside you that is greater than any obstacle." - Christian D. Larson
Listening to: "I Gotta Feeling" by the Black Eyed Peas (I am so obsessed with this song; it's a little embarrassing)