Seven More Months?!

This break has been pretty good. I (tried to) relax (I found out that I really can't...). I got engaged and spent copious time with my fiance (who I still refer to as my boyfriend). I went to Philly and saw my best friend not once, but twice! I had a wonderful Christmas (even if one omitted the aforementioned engagement).

But now I have to go back to school.

I don't wanna.

This is the first time in the history of history that I didn't want to go to school. Even before I knew exactly what school entailed, I knew I wanted to be there. It's where the action was. When I was about to start kindergarten, my school district experienced a teacher's strike. I was five, so I wasn't entirely clear on the labor relations front in 1991 and I just assumed I was going to West Creek Hills Elementary on a fateful day in August, as promised. That didn't exactly happen. The district and the teacher's union debated (I can assume) salaries, benefits, and the like. And every day, I would toddle (five year olds toddle, don't they?) into my parents room and look at them with my big brown eyes that hungered to learn and they would tell me that I wasn't going to school. Crushed, I would return to my room, put that day-of-the-week pair of under-roos back in its drawer and place tomorrow's pair out with my first day of school outfit. Then I would toddle with Bunky and blankie in tow down to the family room and watch the 7 am installment of Sesame Street.

How long did little Megan Colleen suffer?

Over a month.

The strike was so long that they had to send the seniors in to school with non-union teachers so that they would graduate on time to attend any early college sessions and get applications in early enough. Finally, the strike ended and on September 30, 1991, I began school. As a side note, this story has an epilogue. When I was in high school, the AP history teachers hosted Trivial Pursuit Nights on Fridays and at the end of the year, they would roast the seniors. In my senior year, I was roasted and received 2 gifts. From my 9th and 11th grade history teacher, a fake Oscar. From my 10th grade teacher (who I attribute my American Studies inspiration to), a copy of Captain Underpants. At a parent-teacher conference, my parents told that little story about my days-of-the-week underpants to the aforementioned teacher and he never forgot. Thanks Mom and Dad.

Anyway, I don't know when I burned out, but I don't want to go back tomorrow. Ugh. Additionally, being engaged makes me want to spend even more time with Jason, so I miss him twice as much as I did before December 25th.

Only seven more months...

I'm peachy.

Dance Rant.

So, I'm watching this show on NBC called "Superstars of Dance".

There are eight nations and each submits a solo, duo, and a group.

The Irish group did what Irish dancers do best. It was awesome.

Then the United State's solo contestant popped.

REALLY? Popping looks cool, but it's not the type of dance that would win you an overall dance competition. Can't we define that as something else? That frustrates me on SYTYCD, a bunch of people get on for being genuinely talented at popping, but then can't maintain the talent because they really can't dance all that well.

Doug tells me that he was a SYTYCD reject. We couldn't get one of the winners?

Sigh.

I'm Peachy.

The year that was...2008.

So, like many of my other friends who blog, it has come time for me to complete a retrospective of "THE YEAR THAT WAS: 2008".

BEST FILM I SAW: The Dark Knight. (I saw Frost / Nixon on the 2nd, so that doesn't really count for 2008).
SADDEST MOMENT: Graduating from La Salle and leaving A-15.
HAPPIEST MOMENT: Getting engaged.
BEST TRIP: (tie) Senior Week in Ocean City, NJ with Sara / North Carolina with the Yinger's.
BEST COMFORT FOOD DISCOVERY: Tomato Soup (with Cheez-it Duos) and a Mousetrap from Roxy's.
BEST NEW FOOD: Cheesy Crab Soup
BEST SNACK FOOD: Crabbies!
BEST CHEESE DISCOVERY: Pepper Jack
PROUDEST MOMENT: Getting my Penn State Scholarship
BIGGEST DISAPPOINTMENT: Finding out that Penn State Harrisburg wasn't what I hoped.
BEST PLEASANT SURPRISE: Getting a random roommate who is awesome!
BEST NEW DRINK: Grasshopper (Thanks Val!)
MOST FRUSTRATING MOMENT: My computer crashing.
BEST CD I BOUGHT: Juno Soundtrack.
MOST SURREAL MOMENT: Barack Obama winning the Presidency / Seeing Obama in person.
(more to come as I think of them...)


Overall, I'd have to say that 2008 was a pretty good year, although when I was half-way through it, I was beginning to believe that the opposite would be true. I hated leaving La Salle and it's happy bubble. I hated not living with my best friends any more. That probably sucked the most (and still sucks). However, I'm halfway through grad school now and can see the light at the end of that tunnel. I'm engaged and I'll spend the next year and change planning the wedding. 2008 was the first full year that Jason and I were together. I had never had that before. Stability is lovely. I have a blog listing my goals by the year 2014. Some are frivolous (Woah! Dream Big!), but some are totally do-able, and one is done already. 2009 will be a big year just in what I have to do in the next year. Phew. One more week until classes start. Less than a week until the 3rd annual Pocononononononononononos trip.

2009, I'm going to kick your ass.

I'm peachy!