Summertime Craziness!

Yikes! I realize in my past few posts that I've hinted at impending doom within my life…while my life has been crazy, now that I think about it, I was probably being a tad bit irrational. I’ll quit leaving everyone in suspense (???) and get on with the story!

I’d venture to say that the vast majority of the craziness of my life has revolved around my summer class. Whatever I said about it last time, forget it. This class was just as difficult as my infamous Modern Algebra class from this past semester! I spent almost every day posted up in my professor’s office trying to understand our homework, and I almost lost my sanity in the process. After one particularly trying weekend, I ended up simultaneously failing a homework assignment AND a test. (Not my finest moment, I know.) After lots of crying, mini panic attacks about my future, frantic prayers, and an email to my professor, I came to terms with it and proceeded to work even harder for the last section of the class. I spent even MORE time on homework (and in my professor’s office), and I still didn't feel that confident about the final test, which wasn't comprehensive! By some miracle and LOTS of divine intercession from pretty much all of my friends and family, I somehow made a high B on the final and brought my course grade up to a solid B from what was a very low C!!!!!! Hallelujah!!!! When my professor emailed me about this on Tuesday, I almost shrieked from joy/shock! I could not and still cannot believe it, but it’s officially in the OSU grade database, so it’s for real!!! Wow!!! Praise God!!!!

At least that part of the story turned out well! There were plenty of other trying things that happened…

After the Fourth of July weekend, we received the unwelcome news that my cousin Keith had an inoperable brain mass and by Wednesday of that week, he passed away. He was only forty years old, so it seemed like quite the untimely death. Needless to say, it was not a good week for my family.

That weekend was looking up for me because I was able to attend a Matt Maher concert at Frontier City that weekend! It was the second concert that I've ever attended, and it was probably my favorite! Matt Maher sounded just as good live as he does on every recording I've ever heard of him, and I even got an awesome t-shirt from concert! I ended up seeing quite a few of my friends at the concert, so that was an awesome highlight, not to mention the fact that Isaac accompanied me, and we had tons of fun on the rides before and after the concert! I had a blast, and the whole night was definitely on my short list of the highlights of this summer! As a side note, after some discussion, Isaac and I have decided to hold off on “officially dating” one another for a while because we both have a few things we need to work out that would be better to do if we aren't boyfriend/girlfriend. That’s not to say that we aren't still good friends, because we still are, we’re just not “official”, just FYI. I’d be lying if I said that I wasn't disappointed by this development, but I’m confident that good things will be coming out of this time of my life, regardless of the outcome! (Yes, it was after this weekend that I had the epic fall-out in my class…there’s that, and life obviously goes on and gets better, hence me passing my class!)

At the end of that week, most of my trailer electrical system wasn't functioning properly, which I almost thought was caused from a faulty converter (a part that could cost upwards of $500 and a week or so to order it and have it installed), but turned out to be that I needed a new battery, which was MUCH less expensive and easier to acquire/install! Thank goodness for simple solutions!! It was still a stressful day, but all’s well that ends well, I suppose! Oh, the joys of being a home (or trailer) owner!

Thankfully, everything started looking up from there once I took my second standardized teaching test, the OSAT, which was to show proficiency in my subject area. While looking at the online study guide, I was slightly nervous, but it turned out to be one of the easiest math tests that I have taken in the past two years! I get my results next weekend, so hopefully my hunch is correct and I don’t have to worry about retaking this test so that I can move on with my life and get ready for student teaching! (I can’t be placed for student teaching until I pass, hence my urgency!) I had to drive all the way down to Norman to take my test, which was a bummer when I was expecting to be able to take it in Stillwater like I did for my OGET, but it ended up being a pretty interesting day! After the test, I decided that I wanted to attend Mass down in Norman, so I had an hour or so to kill between my test and Mass, and I had no idea where to go in between! More so, I was considering meeting up with friends after Mass, and had no idea how I’d get there being that I’m not so familiar with the area, so I proceeded to use all of my inner navigation sense to find a Walmart, Target, or even a Best Buy so that I could buy a GPS…why yes, I’m one of a handful of twenty-one-year-olds who does not have a smartphone, and at the time I had no GPS either, so I basically relied on printing off Google maps and hoping for the best! After a while of realizing that Norman has a slightly complex system of one-way streets and a short time of feeling pretty lost, I ended up finding a Walmart off the interstate, where I successfully found my GPS! Maybe there’s more fun in accidentally happening to find specific places, but considering that I've been lost and in stressful situations more times than I care to count, I’m willing to let technology work in my favor!

Work was also interesting through the whole stream of craziness. I’m thankful that they understood whenever I needed to come in later on certain days because of office hours for class. Currently, I only work on Saturdays until Labor Day weekend, when I will be done working here for good, whether that means until next summer or forever, I'm not sure yet! I've also been occupied by a side job for one of Fr. Stuart’s friends who needed someone to keep an eye on her pets. Most people know that I’m not a huge animal person, but I really enjoyed getting to take care of her dogs and cats! I've become slightly more comfortable around animals, so that’s probably a good thing!

The highlight of my past week was that I was able to spend quite a bit of time at home, thanks to the fact that my old boss from NOC invited me to come back and assist her with a one-week intensive study program for students wishing to attempt to test out of remedial math classes. It turned out that there was only one student who signed up, but we still had a blast! I loved getting able to be back in the classroom and gain some valuable observation experience, not to mention the fact that my boss is an amazing math professor! After this week, I was presented with a few opportunities for my future (both near and distant) that could turn out to be VERY fruitful, but I’ll just wait and see how everything turns out! More than that, I have to keep reminding myself to stay in the present and not try to stress myself out over the future! Nevertheless, I’m really excited to see where life takes me over the coming year or two! :)

Let’s see, what else have I been up to? During my time at home this week, I was able to steal away some time and go get pedicures with my mom! We've wanted to go all summer, but things just haven’t worked out the way we thought it would. It was a great bit of much-needed pampering and stress relief that I've desperately needed after my whirlwind summer! I also got a haircut! Fun fact: I think that I’m going to start growing my hair out to donate it to Locks of Love! It’s something that I've thought about for a while, and I think now is the time to do it! I’m super excited to be able to do something big for cancer patients!

Other random fun stuff, Fr. Stuart has always loved the TV show Joan of Arcadia and has had the DVD set of the series (all two seasons of it) in the lounge at St. John’s for any of us to watch. I didn't really have time during the school year to devote time to watching a show, but I decided to make time this summer! Before I started watching it, the last time I was attached to a show was when The Office was still on the air, and I just haven’t been able to get into a TV show ever since, not for lack of effort though! All of my friends were obsessed with shows like White Collar, Psych, How I Met Your Mother, and other shows of the like. I tried to get into them, but honestly, I just couldn't. Not the case for Joan of Arcadia! I've been told that it ends abruptly and in the middle of a big cliffhanger because it was canceled, so I’m trying to prepare myself for the inevitable end! I’m considering getting into Downton Abbey, but I’m not entirely sure that I’ll have time to watch it between all of my other activities that I intend to do this semester, and be caught up in time for the new season in January. (I think that’s when it starts again…that tells you just how much I keep up with things!)

My current excitement revolves around the fact that my dear friend Heather, the missionary, stayed with me last night and will be staying again tonight! She’s on her way to her new campus in Iowa, where I’m confident that she’ll be doing BIG things :) We had great times staying up late and talking about any and everything exciting that has been going on in our lives! We had wonderful chats about God, vocations, boys, friends, (but not boyfriends!) and other fun things…I loved it so much, and I’m really thankful that God brought her into my life when He did last year! She has turned into one of my best friends, and for that, I am eternally grateful! On a related note, I should be meeting the new missionaries for our campus tonight, including my new mentor, Sarah! I've heard nothing but great things about her from Heather, so I’m excited to make a new friend today!

I’m getting really excited about all that awaits me this semester! Here’s hoping it’s a great one!!!