Coffee

I have this long-term love affair going with coffee. I love it, and it apparently hates me. Coffee has always upset my stomach a tiny bit, but I could deal with that. I think I may have over-done the coffee in Europe because now, all of a sudden, it freaking KILLS ME. I can't even have 1 measly cup anymore! LAME. I'm going to buy low-acid coffee and see how that goes.

I CAN'T GIVE UP MY COFFEE!! I'm not even addicted to the caffeine, I just straight up like the taste. UGH.

Hey look, it's Picnic Day!

Picnic Day has arrived Ladies and Gents!

In case you don't know, Picnic Day is a gigantic festival thing in Davis. Pretty much the whole city shows up, it's awesome.

I'm going up with my friend Chloe and I already have over 450 songs ready to GO because it's a 3 hr drive either way, so I've gotta be prepared for the epic jam seshs that are bound to happen.

On the agenda:
Doxie Derby (people dress up their weiner dogs in little costumes, capes, etc and race them around! It's the most adorable thing ever!)
T-shirt tye-dyeing
liquid nitrogen ice cream tasting
Chemistry Magic Show
And a late night bar crawl! (Not an official Picnic Day event, but surely a tradition in it's own way)

We're staying with my friend Rachel, who is practically the world's sweetest person ever, and I'm taking Toby up there so he can play with her dog Crosby! It's going to be SOOO much fun! Pics to come later =]

Daydreamin'

“Prague never lets you go… this dear little mother has sharp claws.” Franz Kafka

Day 30, I did it!

:movies you can watch again and again

Ohhhh man. There are so many!!

1. The Goonies. I love this movie. By the time I was about 8, I had already worn out 2 VHS' of it. I LOVED this movie as a kid, and as an adult I still feel the same.

2. Walk the Line. It's a Johnny Cash movie, and it's really great!!

3. Young Frankenstein. CLASSIC Mel Brooks. Seriously, what is there to dislike about a black and white parody movie about Frankenstein? Haha.

4. Fracture. Anthony Hopkins is (in my opinion) one of the greatest actors of our time. He can adapt SO well to any roll; whether it's creepy or funny. He's a genius in this movie that kills his wife.

5. World's Fastest Indian. Another Anthony Hopkins movie, but in this one he's the Australian guy who broke the land speed record on an Indian motorcycle. If you haven't seen it, you should!

6. Forgetting Sarah Marshall. HILAAAAAAAAARIOUS. That's all I can say about that one.

7. Rain Man. Dustin Hoffman did this roll justice.

8. A Knight's Tale.

9. All of the Lord of the Rings movies.

10. All of the Harry Potter movies! Loveeeee them!!

11. I Love You, Man.

I'm sure there are many others! I just happened to take a glance at my movie collection and saw which ones I watch a lot.

:favorite tv shows and why you like them


Oh man, I love Charmed! It's a show about witches, dark magic, etc etc. Sounds fully corny, but I really like it!

Day 28

:cruise a thesaurus and pick out 10 words that you like the sound of

Well, I don't own a thesaurus. Honestly, who does anymore?? Ridiculous.

So, I'm just going to tell you some words that I DON'T like.

Moist. This word is just gross sounding, despite the actual definition of it! It's just a weird sounding word.

Elbow. It flows awkwardly off the tongue and just seems like no one thought it out very well.

Those are the only two that I can think of at the moment, but it's kind of a weird thing I have against those words.

Day 27

:my day job vs my passion

My day job is working at door and window shop, and I like it. It's a fun job and there's always more to learn, but it's not my passion by any means.

As of right now, my passion is cooking and baking. I'd LOVE to open up a bakery/coffee shop, in the true European style. I also want to work with children with Autism. Sooooo, we'll see where I end up!

Day 26

:list 10 things you are thankful for

1. Family. They are KILLERRRR.
2. Friends. Always there for me, no matter what!!
3. Chris. He can be the world's largest pain in the ass, but he loves me and I love him and we are good for each other.
4. My job. In this economy, I'm happy to have any job, but at least this one is something that I could see myself doing until I finish school (and possibly beyond if I can't find something in my field to do while I go to grad school!)
5. Toby!!! The little guyyy!! He's my favorite, he's always happy to see me and misses me constantly when I'm not there.
6. My home. I love where I live. It's cozy and homey.
7. Happiness. I'm happy with my life, and I don't feel like I need much more than that!
8. School. Many people don't get the opportunity to go to school, and I want to continue mine further.
9. Lazy days. They are the best and fully necessary when your schedule is as crazy as mine!!
10. Books. I love books. They are so useful and entertaining!

Day 25

:what would I find in your bag

This is the best lip stuff ever. It's awesome. So awesome, that I buy it in 5 or 10 packs on ebay because it's so much cheaper that way and I use it for EVERYTHING. It's good as a lip balm, good on dry cuticles, cracked heels, diaper rash (at least that's what the packaging says, I would know). Anyway, if you haven't ever tried it, you should!


Just sayin', best gum ever. I'm never without it.


My newest addition in lip stuff (which I'm a bit obsessed with, ask anyone that knows me well). It's paraben, SBS, and cruelty free. And btw- it works great!! Well worth the $2 I paid for it (I used coupons =] )


Best lotion! It's a bit greasy when you first put it on, but my hands and elbows are never super dry anymore!

For my eczema.. Ugh. I have RX stuff for it, but I forget it all the time. So this stuff works pretty well for it. Plus, it was cheap.

Day 24

:favorite quote, and why

"The world is a book and those who do not travel only read one page." -- St. Augustine

I love this quote, a lot. Liiiiike, a lot. It just rings true to me. People that never leave their comfort zone live such a limited life that it seems sad to me. Their lives are still full and all, but it's just a limited existence. I'd feel so tied down and anxious all the time. Eek. I will always travel, ALWAYS. And that's a promise, you can write it down if you want.

Day 23

:something you crave a lot

Oh. my. gosh.

MEXICAN FOOD. Hands down.

I freaking LOVE Mexican food!! Burritos, enchiladas, quesadillas, tostadas, mexican rice, beans, cheesy goodness!! What is there to not like about Mexican food???

I'm hungry now, obviously.

Day 22

:What makes you different from everyone else

I believe that something that makes me different from everyone else is my strong will and independence. I can be extremely stubborn at times, but I know who I am and I know what I want in life. I don't want to compromise and I won't. I try to be very independent and self-sufficient. It's not possible for me to be financially independent right now, but I do everything that I can.

In short, I know who I am and I also have. I believe in myself and I think I'm a good person.

Day 21

:a picture of something that makes you happy

Prague <3

Day 20

:write a letter to someone

Dear CSUMB,

Sometimes I hate you, sometimes I love you. We have a love/hate relationship, but I'll be happy to finish out my degree there.

See ya soon,
Lindsay

Day 19

:write about a sweet memory from your past

Well, since I was just talking to Lexa on Facebook chat, the first thing that popped into my head was our EPIC PANCAKE BATTLE!! I capitalize it because when I say it in my head, I say it in that awesome announcer voice from like, Space Jam and what not. Anyway.

When Alexa and I were liiiiike 13 or whatever, we lived next door to each other. We lived like that for somewhere around 5-6 years. It was awesome. I mean, come ON! Living next door to your best friend? Nothing better. We used to bake cookies and make pancakes a lot during summer because we were both always home alone. So one night I had a friend stay the night, and the next morning we made like a million little pancakes, and then I called Alexa. Our front doors faced each other, so she was an easy target. I'm not sure if it was a planned out thing to throw pancakes at her, or if we were just THAT cool and spontaneous. I tend to lean towards we just randomly did it. Anyway, I hurled the first pancake and it was ON. Alexa was throwing them back, I was pelting her with them, my friend was throwing them too, it was a mess. The bushes between our houses were covered in pancakes. Well, they were chocolate chip pancakes (are there really any other kinds at 13??) and we have chocolate chips EVERYWHERE. They were on her mom's roses, on the mats in front of the doors, on the sides of the house, on everything. Her mom was SOOOO pissed at us haha. After we had this epic battle though, she came over and we ate the rest of the pancakes! YUM!

We still laugh about it to this day on a regular basis. It's definitely a sweet (literally!) memory.

Day 18

:plans/dreams/goals you have

Oh man. Plans. Dreams. Goals. Those are all things that I think about a lot. They're all actually kind of stressful in their own way.

Plans-- Well, I'm making spring break plans as we speak. Possibly a road trip somewhere with some friends. Then I'm going to a Katy Perry concert over the summer, up to Davis in April, and then I'm not sure!

Dreams-- Pshhhh. I have tons of dreams, but none of them include being a responsible adult with a job and all of that lol. I want to travel the world. I want to adopt TONS of dogs and just own a ranch and have them run free. I want to complete my bucket list (see previous post for it). However, all of these require money and I'm poor and have things to pay for! Darn life getting in my way of fun...

Goals-- To graduate college and find a career. That's my goal in life as of right now.

Day 17

:someone you would want to switch lives with for one day and why

I want to switch lives wiiiiiiiith.... The Queen of England. I mean, COME ON!! How fricking cool would it be to be a Queen for a day?? SO cool. That's what I want... but I want it to be the Queen from like 1950 or so, right after she was promoted or whatever to Queen. When she was a spry young woman. Not old and not being able to do much.

Anyway, that's what I want.

Day 16

:a picture of yourself




This was the nicest day we had in Prague. It was BEAUTIFUL. 65, sunny and gorgeous! Me and 3 friends went paddle boating for the day, it was lovelyyyy.

Day 15

: put your ipod on shuffle: first 10 songs that play

1. One Thing - Finger Eleven
2. For Once in my Life - Stevie Wonder
3. The Day That Never Comes - Metallica
4. Right Thurr - Chingy
5. Even If I Wanted To - Jason Aldean
6. Surfer Girl - The Beach Boys
7. Running Away - Hoobastank
8. Just The Girl - The Click 5
9. Carrying Your Love With Me - George Strait
10. Rivers of Babylon - Sublime

Random assortment of songs! All good ones though.

Day 14

:a picture of you and your family

Hmm. I don't have a picture of all of my family anytime in the last 10+ years. My parents separated when I was 12, soooo there are no complete family pictures since then. SO! I'm going to post pics of me and various family members and such.


My nephew, Ayden
My Brother and Sister-in Law, Scott and Tiffany


Me and my Dad, Jeff



My pups! Well, the little guy on his back legs is mine (Toby), the 2 other black ones are my dad's (Cash and Kosmo), and the German Shepherd is my brother and SIL's (Duke)



The Madre, Yvonne

Day 13

:your 5 favorite books and why

Ohhhh this is a toughie! These aren't going to be in order of how much I like them or anything.

1) Water for Elephants. This is SUCH a good book. It's about an old man that lives in a nursing home and he sees a circus come into town, and he's remembering when he used to work in the circus. Seriously, if you haven't read this book, do it. It's amazing. They're making a movie of it now, but I'm sure it won't be as good as the book, obviously.

2) Harry Potter series! While I love all the books in this series, I particularly like The Goblet of Fire (#4) and the Deathly Hallows (#7). The Goblet of Fire is where Harry is entered into the Triwizard Tournament and he has to go through these crazy dangerous obstacles to get to the next round. It's really awesome. I like the obstacles, I like the writing style of it, and I like that Voldemort isn't really in it. While I think he makes for a good plot line, if all the books were about him then it would get a BIT boring. The Deathly Hallows is the last book in the series, and it's where Harry tries to find all of the pieces of Voldemort's soul (Horcruxes) and destroy them, and then to kill Voldemort himself. Crazyyyyy.

3) Angels and Demons. While everyone was raving about The Da Vinci Code, I was busy reading and re-reading Angels and Demons. I like The Da Vinci Code and all, but Angels and Demons was just SO MUCH BETTER. The plot was better, the twists were better, the characters were better, it was just 100% better.

4) The Five People you meet in Heaven. I saw this book on my Dad's shelf (which is rare, because he doesn't really read) and I always thought it was a religious book so I never picked it up. Well, I was bored one day so I grabbed it. I couldn't put it down! It's not a religious book at all, it's about the five people that you meet on your way to being able to get to your heaven. Five people that have made an impact on your life, whether you know it or not. It's SO GREAT!!! I read it one afternoon, it's a short book.

5) Bitter is the New Black (and the rest of Jen Lancaster's books!). I love Jen Lancaster, she is fricking HILARIOUS. Bitter is the New Black is about how she lost her job and had to downsize from her cushy corporate job and try and scrape by on much less money. Her writing style is hilarious... page turners for sure. She also wrote Such a Pretty Fat, My Fair Lazy, Pretty in Plaid, and Bright Lights, Big Ass.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=K8jnXfVPGfA&feature=player_embedded#at=162

If you go on that link, it's the trailer for her book Such a Pretty Fat. You'll see why I love her, she's just like me!

Day 12

:Your first love.

Ohhhh geez. This is taking it back. Gabe Arcoleo. We dated from 7th-10th grade, and he was definitely my first love. We are still civil, but we don't hang out or anything now. We're very different people, and while it was great while it lasted, it's better than it ended because I learned a lot from it ending. More than while it was happening, that's for sure.

Day 11

:write a bucket list of things you want to do before you die

This one's easy for me! I already have one!

Lindsay’s Bucket List:

Skydive (tandem)

Live in a foreign country

Marry the one I love

Help someone in need

See Haley’s Comet

Ponder the Mona Lisa’s smile at the Louvre

Graduate college

Take Horseback-riding lessons

Learn to play the guitar

Take Ballroom dancing lessons

Scuba dive on the Great Barrier Reef

Ride a mechanical bull

Go para-sailing somewhere beautiful

Donate $1000 to cancer research

Go to an opera at Sydney Opera House

Visit Oktoberfest

Run with the bulls in Pamplona

Go to the Taj Mahal

Have coffee at the original Starbucks in Seattle

Go to Ellis Island/statue of liberty/empire state building (New York in general, pretty much)

Take a picture with the Eiffel Tower at night

Take Grandma Connie to see the covered bridges in the East

Talk to Grandpa Gerry about his life

Pick a career that I love and makes me happy, no matter what anyone says or how much money it makes

Places:

Berlin

Oktoberfest

Budapest

Amsterdam

Dublin

Paris

Barcelona

Florence

London

Munich

Greece

Iguazu Falls

Go to Mardi Gras

The Maldives

Bora Bora

The orange ones are the ones that I've completed already! It's an ongoing process, and I work on it whenever I can. I hope to have it finished by the time I die, obviously.

Day 10

:songs you listen to when you are happy, sad, bored, hyped, mad

Well, I listen to many different types of music, and I don't really listen to them when I'm upset. I'm not like most people in that way. Music can comfort me, but i don't NEED it like most people claim to.

When I'm happy, I listen to club-type music because I can dance to it, and I love that!

Sad: Country for sure! No song particularly, just country in general.

Bored: I don't really listen to music when I'm bored. I look for something to do, or read a book.

Hyped: Rock! I loooove rock music, and I love listening to them to pump myself up for something! It's perfect.

Mad: Angry music I guess? I have some pretty intense music (Pantera and such) that I like to listen to when I'm angry and I can just drive around, beat on my steering wheel, and get my anger out.

Day 9

Something you’re proud of in the past few days

In the past few days I've made a budget and tried sticking to it. Technically, it starts on March 1st so I'm trying to not spend any money until then that's not absolutely necessary. I'm proud that I've started taking the small steps that I need to take towards adulthood and being independent eventually. It's not happening right now, but that's to be expected. I go to school all the time, full time, and there's no way I can be 100% financially independent with my school schedule, but it's nice to know that I have the steps in place to be that way when I graduate in a year.

Day 8

Short term goals for this month and why

Really, my only short term goal for this month is to figure out how to balance out my work, school, and social lives. They are all important, but school is most important by far, and because I was/am working so much, it's tough to get all my homework done. I've got to work on time management and cut back a little bit on work. Social life is left for the weekends, since I don't have school or work those days!

Day 7

A picture of someone/something that has the biggest impact on you



My dad! He has a huuuuuge impact on me, definitely one of the biggest in my life. I couldn't ask for a better Pops. However, sometimes we are too much a like and we piss each other off. Mainly though, we get along famously and he supports everything I do. Love you Dad!

Day 6

Favorite super hero and why

I think that my favorite superhero is Harry Potter. I know he's not a stereotypical "superhero", but I mean, he flies (on a broom, but let's not get so technical), he does magic, he fights the darkest wizard in the world as a baby and lives, from the time he was 12 the most evil and powerful wizard is after him, etc etc.

So in short, I totally think Harry Potter is a superhero and he is my favorite.

Day 5

A picture of somewhere you’ve been to

I'll pick to put a picture of the place that I've gone that I love the most.

Day 4

Day 04- A habit that you wish you didn’t have

Hmm. A habit that I wish I didn't have... Target.

I love Target, and I wish that I didn't have the unfortunate habit of spending money on things there that I don't need. I got in with 3 items in mind, usually something like toothpaste, deodorant, and pens or whatever... useful and necessary things in other words. I come out with like a million tings I don't need. I've been cutting down on that a LOT lately, I usually only get the things I need, but if I get something that I don't need at the moment, it's more likely to be something I can use down the road (like more shampoo) instead of clothes or shoes.

Day 3

Day 03- A picture of you and your friends



This was taken last night! A few of my girlfriends and I went out to have a girls night, and naturally we made friends! We had sooooo much fun, and it was amazing! Many laughs, many new jokes, and a few new friends... What more could I ask for??

Day 2

Look at that, I already missed a day. I'll make up for it right now!

Day 02- The meaning behind your Blog name

Why not? Simple as that.

"30 Days of Me" Blogging Challenge

Lately I've been really bad about blogging, but that's because I've been so busy. So, I found this little "blog challenge" so it would encourage me to do one little post every day. I'm apologizing in advance if I don't do it EVERY day, but I will catch up if I don't!


Day 01- A recent picture of you and 15 interesting facts about yourself




1. I love to read. I read constantly and for fun. I have WAY too many books to be on just one book shelf. They are currently piled into one bookcase and some are still in boxes. I also have a kindle with 70+ books on it, which I love, but if I had to choose between going to a bookstore and sitting for hours picking out books or buying them online and having them sent to my kindle... I'll pick books over Kindle everyday.

2. My dog Toby is the coolest/cutest dog you'll ever see. He is amazing and I'm so happy we found each other.

3. I studied abroad in Prague, Czech Republic. Every day I think about Prague and I miss it intensely. I WILL go back.

4. I love coffee and tea. I love them equally, but I tend to drink coffee more. I think it's because when I was in Prague the only coffee I could make at home was instant and it SUCKED so I drank tons of tea. So, I'm tea'd out I guess!

5. Math is my least favorite subject, ever.

6. I have two jobs. One is as an owner's assistant at a door and window company, and the other I nanny for a 6 year old little girl who I love to play and have fun with!

7. Babies frighten me. I think they're cute and what not, but they scare the crap out of me. I'm not even sure if I want to have kids.

8. One thing that I wish I did more often is take pictures. I love taking pictures, but it's hard to find the time to do it with everything else goign on in my life.

9. My favorite holiday is Christmas. Not too original, but that's okay.

10. I desperately want an iphone.

11. Cooking is my passion. Someday, I want to open a bakery. Maybe someday I'll go to culinary school. That would be awesome.

12. My dad gives me flowers on a regular basis because he knows how much I love to have them in my house.

13. My dog has a bed that's about 8x the size he needs. Why get a twin when you can afford a king size? Oddly enough, the big one was cheaper at costco than the little ones are at petsmart. Pet stores are a rip-off.

14. My major weaknesses in life are candles, wine, makeup, and office supplies. You can never have too much of those four things.

15. Peaches are my favorite fruit by far.

Vday

Happy Valentine's Day everyone!

Nothing too big going on in my house. Woke up to 2 dozen beautiful roses, a balloon, and a lovely card. Then I worked 7:45-1, went to class 2-6:30 (the class is scheduled 2-8 but she let us go early to celebrate the day!), then grabbed a heart-shaped Papa Murphy's pizza for me and Chris. I'm too tired to cook! Gimme a break! Maybe tomorrow I'll pull out all the stops and make a delicious dinner. Tonight, is pizza and wine, and spending time with the one I love. That's what this day is all about right?

Miluji svůj život.

School and Work

First week of school at CSUMB is now over and done with. It was quite a good week actually. Typically I'm not HUGE into the first week of school because it's just syllabi and the like, but this year was actually quite fun. Here's a little break down of my classes:

Psych 200/L: This is a statistical psych class that is the intro to research with data and statistical analysis. This class is going to be FUN. I hate hate hate math with a passion, but my teacher is SUPER awesome and knows that most people don't really like math and she's making it into something fun for us. Our first assignment is to pick something about ourselves that we want to change (lose weight, drink more water, procrastinate less, stop smoking, etc) and for one month we have to track our progress on it. I'm doing a mixture of two different things. I'm tracking how "on track" I stay with my 5k training, and also I have a goal of drinking 64+oz of water every day of the week. We start on Feb 1st, so I'll be letting you guys know what's up with that.

Psych 300: This is "Experimental psych and human assessment". Basically, the goal of the class is to teach us a bit about what psych majors can do after graduation. She is going to help us pick a concentration, tailor the class towards our interests, if we want to go to grad school, if we want to pick a career with only a BA, etc etc etc. Basically this class couldn't have come at a better time for me because only recently have I chosen what I want to focus my studies towards. Special needs children, specifically with autism and anxiety disorders.

SBS 318: This is an online course I'm taking and it's basically a class that is for all SBS (social and behavioral science) majors that teaches you how to use the computer programs that are required for your field. I'm only taking it because I have to as a graduation requirement, I know basically all of the stuff on the syllabus. Whatever.

Span 102: Pretty straightforward, this is the second semester Spanish language class. This class is going to be a BREEZE. I took 2 years of Spanish in middle school and 4 in high school and then 1 semester in college. I am highly proficient in Spanish, and probably should test out of the 102 and 201 courses, but I like the easy A's.

GS 362, Global Literatures: This class is focused on the world, post-colonialism. We will be reading a lot of very global books that are about Vietnam, South Africa, Korea, etc etc. It will be an interesting class, and the books seem like things that I'd like to read but wouldn't have ever found on my own, so that's a plus. If I like reading the book I'll most likely do the work more often! Downfall... a LOT of writing. This is my upper division writing class (my last, thank god) and it's also a graduation requirement, but I think it will be a fun one. Oh, except that she assigned 170 pages of reading over spring break. Not cool, not at all. Guess I'll just have to take my book poolside.

So, those are my classes this semester. I think it will be a decently easy workload, none of them seem too strenuous that I can't do them all, I just need to not procrastinate so much. Always my biggest issue. I am my own worst academic enemy.

Work! Well, this was a very disheartening topic for me until about a week ago. I got a babysitting job with the COOLEST little 6 year old girl, and even though I'll only be watching her 4 days a month (2 days a week, and she spends 2 weeks in Santa Barbara visiting her dad. She's obviously home-schooled), it's still enough money to cover my entire rent. SWEET. Then maybe 3 days ago I got a call from Ken's brother Keith, saying that they're looking for someone part time at his company, Doors Unlimited, and that my mom suggested me because she wasn't able to do it. Excellent! I met up with Keith and the general manager, Dan, yesterday and all seemed to go well! I have another interview next week, but if it works out then that will be something I can do until I graduate and possibly beyond (until I find a solid career, obviously) and they'd be willing to work with my school schedule! Whoaaaa. Hope it works out, fingers crossed!

New Year

Okayyyy, so I kinda sorta really suck at blogging in the last month or so. I can't even use the excuse that I've been busy, because I'd say a solid 60% of the time I've been not busy at all.

So, let's reflect on what's happened...

I came home from Prague. AAAAAAAAAAAND I experienced reverse culture shock. Do you know anything about that? Maybe not. Here's a little clip from the last newsletter that AIFS sent me:

PREPARING YOURSELF FOR RETURN CULTURE SHOCK

Strange as it may seem, returning home means you will have to re-adjust to life in your home country.
Many people experience a sense of alienation known as "return culture shock." It’s the term for what you
experience when you return home and have to readjust to your own country. This is a difficult procedure
for many people and is usually unanticipated. If you find yourself feeling unhappy upon arriving home, keep in mind that this is normal and that it usually does not last. If you have trouble re-adjusting, the first
thing to tell yourself is that this is completely normal. For some it is more difficult to re-adjust than it
was to adapt to a foreign environment.

You can prepare yourself somewhat by considering the following factors. Family and friends may show less interest in your stories and experiences than you expect. This may make you feel lonely, misunderstood, or unappreciated. If you are unhappy about your return home you may try to withdraw from or delay from reestablishing good relations with family and friends. You will no longer stand out in your surroundings. When you were a foreigner you may have attracted more interest and developed new friendships. Once you are home your friends will not find you so unusual. Being at home is not challenging and exciting in the way that life is in a foreign country where you have to struggle to make a success of everything from food habits to behavior, dress codes and language. There is a sense of achievement in having to stretch yourself to meet challenges in a foreign country. A sense of achievement or personal growth is not the same at home where you do not face so many challenges.

You may miss foreign friends as well as the culture, the climate, the food and the language. Your hometown may not seem as glamorous, interesting or exciting as the cities or towns you visited or lived in while you were abroad. Many students experience return culture shock without realizing what is happening to them. Not being aware of what you are suffering just adds to your feeling of anxiety or depression. Family o rfriends may not understand why you feel unhappy, depressed or even homesick for the country and friends you left behind. In fact, they may not realize what you are going through. The good news is that eventually most people do get used to being home. They stop longing to go back to where they were. They start focusing on the future at home. With the passage of time they develop a more balanced view of the pro sand cons of both home and abroad and put their study abroad experience in a more realistic perspective. Once this happens, feelings of depression, dissatisfaction or stress tend to subside. However, study abroad is not something you need to “get over”. The experience remains with you and your outlook on life.

Positive aspects of study abroad will always remain with you. You will have a wider outlook, appreciation
and understanding of the world. You will have knowledge of and sensitivity to another culture and people
from another country that may increase your sensitivity and awareness of the differences between
Americans and many other people around the world. You will have acquired another language that will in-
crease your appreciation of the literature, culture and people who speak that language. This may also pro-
vide you with skills that enhance your career prospects and make you a more attractive candidate to po-
tential employers. You will be more independent, flexible and able to cope with new or difficult experi-
ences. You may have a new set of friends with whom you will stay in touch. You will see your own culture
more objectively than you did before. Living abroad is worth the effort and brings untold and indefinable
rewards. As you struggle to re-adjust to your home environment, remind yourself that the rewards make
it all worthwhile.

So that totally sucked. Nothing too overwhelmingly terrible, just a few days of feeling down and blue about it. Then, I decided I didn't want to be sad anymore. So, I stopped sitting home on the couch being upset and went to work at my mom's office so I didn't have to be alone all the time. Plus, a little moolah never hurt anyone! Especially since the job hunting front isn't going too well. No one's really hiring, but I'm ever hopeful I'll get something!

The biggest thing that I brought back to Europe was a smaller pants size (pun totally not intended, but now that it's there I like it!). I lost 1 pants size in Europe, however now that I'm home I can feel that I've started gaining it back and that's just not okay with me. It felt so good to lose the weight, and I don't want to put it back on. SO! I've been hiking at like 4x a week with Toby (about 3 miles roundtrip), and tonight I started the "Couch to 5k" running plan with my mom! We're going to run a 5k in March, and I couldn't be more excited about it! I'm just hoping that having a goal is going to help me stay motivated to do it. I also have a pilates DVD that I LOVE so I'll be doing that a few times a week. I figure that as long as a change it up so I don't get bored, it can be fun! And I happen to love elliptical machines, so I'm hoping to get a gym membership soon (when the job happens and the moolah starts flowing =/ ).

Christmas was at Bear and my new apartment! It was soo much fun! My Grandma Connie came up and spent about 10 days with us (staying at my Mom's though) and my brother was here for a night so we all got to get together and have a big dinner in my new place! It wasn't totally unpacked and what not yet, but it was just what we needed =]

New Years Eve was awesome. I had a party at my house and totally irritated my neighbor (who I come to find out has nothing better to do than complain since he's a retired Marine and all). The irritating my neighbor thing wasn't exactly the highlight of the night, but there was good friends, good music, loads of fun, and obviously some alcohol involved. Everyone who drank either stayed the night or has a sober driver though, no worries there.

All in all, it's been a good month. Still searching for a job, and school starts in 11 days.... ahhh reality is finally kicking in. Guess I'm not on vacation anymore, Toto.