Monday is Monday.

What are you going to do?

I realized today that the weekend had completely caught up with me.  I was exhausted, I was in tears for no reason; I laid down on my bed only stir nearly two hours later.  It was crazy.

I feel a ton better now, though.  Sleep is an amazing thing.  I don't think people give it nearly enough credit.  Without sleep, I can seriously not function.  I'm already planning which day this week is going to be my sleep in day.  I'm thinking Friday or Wed.  Both look promising.

I have school tomorrow.

It's only the second week of the spring semester and already I'm not sure I want to go.  I like my classes, even if I don't feel like I'm completely prepared for all of them.  I like the subject matter and the professors.  My classmates aren't bad. 

I think the thing I dread is the hour and half that I have between classes.  Normally breaks are good.  But last week my breaks were just lonely.  And they felt long.  Granted, Tuesday wasn't bad - I was having a feud with the bookstore (ask me about it sometime, it's a thrilling story...) and spent most of my break on the phone with my mom.  But Thursday just sucked.

Don't get me wrong, I'm not complaining.  I'm just not used to having time by myself like that.  I've gotten used to having people around me almost all the time.  Solitude in a place like school isn't a new experience; just one that I have to get used to again.  I can actually get a ton of stuff done during that time if I let myself.  I know that about myself. 

I just have to get used to being alone in the halls again.  At least for a while.  Cause at some point, I'll know someone - anyone - in the halls and will have a friend again.  It just takes time.

I did homework today.  Granted, not all of the reading is going to get done.  But the journaling is caught up, the bulk of the reading for my first class is done, and I think I'll read the speech stuff between classes.  It's a good use of my time.  I need to get my routine back in order.  Last semester, I had it worked out beautifully.  I went to class, I read on the days that I didn't have class, and everything was done with time to spare.  It worked.  I got plenty of sleep, I was able to maintain a somewhat social life (some may not call it that, but I like the one that I have, it works for me), and I was able to enjoy my semester.

The previous week did not have a good routine.  This week I'm going to do better.

I need to, or I'll be buried alive.

My neighbor's dog is doing a ton better.  My neighbor got home last night and was so relieved.  I was happy; one less thing to worry about now.  With any luck, the dog will never die on me.  And I'll still have steady job.  Next month I'm watching my neighbor's dog and son.  It should be ok.  I'm excited.

It's cold today.  I can't wait until the weather becomes more spring-like.  I wanna wear flip flops.

Ok, that's enough blogging for today.  I have another chapter of reading I need to attempt to get read before dinner.

Until next time, my dear readers.  Have a brilliant rest of your Monday. =)

~Meaghan

One Paper Done.

The first paper of the new semester, I might add.

I thought it would feel incredibly exciting, like "oh look, my paper's done, the semester really has started" or something.  No, not really.  It's more along the lines of the "I'm-not-sure-I-liked-how-that-turned-out-but-I'm-not-interested-in-re-writing-it" type of thing.

Oh well.

I am glad to be back in the swing of things.  This week got off to a kind of rough start, but it's already getting better.

I talked to the people at financial aid today.  Turns out, I was right.  I have like a hundred and thirty dollars still to use.  The people in the book store were wrong.  So it's nice knowing that it didn't just magically vanish or something.  I mean, stuff magically vanishes all the time for me - erasers, socks (I blame the sock gnome, but that's just me), books, etc. - but having money vanish is stupid.

It's just wrong, you know?  Just wrong.

Thankfully, it's there.  My head has stopped hurting, my heartburn has calmed slightly (I get that taken care of on Friday), and I'm feeling pretty good.

I'm faced with a choice right now, though.  I can get the rest of my reading done for all my classes today while I have a chance, or I can slack of ceaselessly.

I'm going to get the reading done.  I'll feel better if I do.  I want to finish this blog first, though.

So, it's Wed.  I'm looking forward to school tomorrow.  I'm not actually nervous, which is good.  I know more or less what to expect.  The only thing that seems like it might drive me nuts is the fact that I'm at school from 8 in the morning until after 5 at night.  I think it's going to be okay as long as I pack a book to read and a decent lunch.

I think I might get a lot of reading done this week.  I figure that I can take a lunch that doesn't need to be microwaved and just stay on the fourth floor the entire day.  I don't really know anyone who has a break with me (one friend is taking a semester off to explore the world around her, one friend was going to have class on Tuesday/Thursday with me - she's in the nursing program - but ended up having class on Monday/Wed., etc.), so it will give me some time to catch up on things. 

I'm thinking free reading tomorrow, maybe homework next week.  You know, time to be constructive or whatever.  I had the fleeting thought this morning that I could make mini paper cranes and leave them on the tables in the halls when I go to class.  I'm not sure how that would be received, but it's an interesting thought nonetheless...

I have faith that this semester is going to end well. :)

I'm still writing my story, though not as aggressively as I had been.  I'm at just over 3,500 words, which is pretty good.  I still want to see it through to the end; I'm going to try to work on it a little each day until it's done.  It's my relax project.

I think that about sums up my life here.  I'm reading "the Mists of Avalon" which is pretty good, but I'm not sure I'm going to get it finished before it's due back at the library.  I am going to buy a Kindle or a Nook as soon as I have the money together - I think either one will be a good investment for me.  That way I can have all the books I can read at my finger tips without dealing with due dates.  It just seems convient.

Also, I think I'm going to have to watch the "Darjeeling Limited" again.  I thought I didn't like it, but I can't stop thinking about it.  Ultimately I think that means it's grown on me and I need to borrow it from the library again to confirm the theory.

Ok, I've rambled enough.  I have reading for speech and Psychology to have together before tomorrow.

Until the next random update,

~Meaghan

It's Time.

It's official, my dear readers.  The spring semester begins tomorrow.

I'm having rather mixed feelings about it at the moment.  I had a wonderful semester last fall; school is always an adventure of sorts, with new people to meet and new things to learn.  But at the same time, I don't feel like I'm ready.  Normally by now my backpack is organized, I have my class times and room numbers memorized by heart, and I've thumbed through the books.

Instead, my backpack is lying open-mouthed on my bedroom floor.  I know that my first class is at 8:30 in the morning on the fourth floor, but as for room numbers for any of them, I have no idea.  I did look through my books, though.  I get bonus points for that one.

I don't know why I'm worried.  I think it must be the day-before-it-happens feeling.  After all, I know I am capable.  I know I'm friendly, smart, and studious.  I know that I can handle whatever comes my way.

It's like when you're a kid.  Summer break is nearly over and suddenly you have all these things you don't want to let go of: playing outside with your friends, sleeping in, staying out late, etc.  But then when school starts, you realize that you gain new things: you still see your friends, you still play outside, you sleep in on the weekends, you learn stuff you never thought you would like, you gain new friends, etc.

That's how it is for me.  Within this recent winter break I've written more than I've written before, it seems.  I've been able to sleep in almost every day.  I've knitted, I've watched movies, and I've gone out with friends.  I've been able to actually relax.

But even though I'm worried because I don't know my classroom numbers and because I don't have a lot of classes with people I know, I know it's going to be ok.  And even though I love sleeping in and writing all day, I am ready to do something with substance.  The classroom is such a stimulating environment for me.  I don't think I would have it any other way.

So bring it on, spring semester.  I may have butterflies in my stomach, but I'm ready.  Truly I am.  And I'll prove it to you.  You don't scare me.

Until next time, dear readers.

~Meaghan

You Know What?

I think it's almost ironic that they make us register for the spring semester while we're still in the middle of fall semester.  I mean, think about this.  You're in the process of getting papers done, pulling your grades out of the proverbial gutter (not like I have any experience with this...), and just trying to survive until winter break. Then all of a sudden, the school expects you to know what you want to do next semester and to get all the necessary paperwork in order before break.

Um, hello?  I'm a stressed college student, and while I happen to like registering for class, I still think it's kind of dumb that we have to do it so early.  Honestly, people.  I only know what I want to take next semester because I've been obsessively trying to figure out what I need to take to graduate sooner.  Otherwise, I'd have honestly no clue as to what I would want to take.

(BTW, guys and gals, as it stands, I should be able to get my degree in the spring of 2012.  So, before the world ends.) 

Another weird rant from the community college level: who decides when fall break is?

I like having Thanksgiving off and whatnot, I really do, but come on.  We get a week off only to have to come back for (in my case) two days of class to finish finals and whatnot.  Again, I'm not really complaining about having Thanksgiving off.  Don't get me wrong, I like being able to have turkey with the family and all that jazz.

But it would also be nice to have a week off in the middle of October.  That seems to be the burnout point for myself and all of my friends.  If we could have a week off in October, I think we'd be a lot more motivated toward the end.  You know, for whatever that's worth...

So now that that tangent is out of the way, here's what I'm taking for the spring semester.

1. English 122

 This is basically the second part of English comp.  It's a necessary evil and I'm not sure I'm looking forward to it.  Which, if you think about it, is kind of ironic in a way, as I am an English major of sorts.  But creative writing is so much more fun that traditional English writing.  So, papers and possibly boring, technical stuff.

2. Psychology 101

 This one knocks out the remaing requirements for my behavioral science catagory.  It was either this, Ethics, or Political Science (which might have been interesting.).  I chose this one because, let's face it.  It's fun getting into other people's heads and messing around.  Again, though, I anticipate lots of papers.

3. Public Speaking

 *shudder* Um, necessary evil.  Major necessary evil.  I do improv and I don't mind speaking in front of people sometimes, but anything that I write and then have to either read aloud or present freaks the heck out of me.  So, this is going to be character building as well as possibly horrifying.  And again, lots of speeches, so lots of papers.

4. Creative Writing II

 This is a requirement for the creative writing part of my degree, so I have to take it.  I'm in Creative Writing I right now, and I absolutely love it.  My writing has improved a lot, and I really want to keep it up.  So even though this is required, this is also a fun class that I am really looking forward to.  Lots and lots of papers/writing.

It all adds up to 12 credit hours, which is the most I've taken ever.  Normally I work while in school, but this year I'm not, so I should be able to handle it fine.  Spring is going to be fun, I think.  However, I feel like the commone theme is going to be paper writing...

And that's all we have time for today, kiddies.  I need to finish some homework for tomorrow that I pushed off this weekend.  I hope you guys have a great rest of your day.

~Meaghan