who i like

Dudes, I have figured something out about myself. I was sitting in front of the hot plate with the grad students from Ghana squishing warm brown wax between my fingertips when it hit me. You see, whenever I'm in a new classroom I try to figure out who to sit by or talk to. When I'm the teacher I try to figure out if I was a student, which kids would I be friends with?

Those students are usually the easiest to talk to in order for me to break the ice and ease myself into normal conversation. And today I figured out what differentiates those students from the others. We all know that I don't like people, and I like talking to them even less.

Okay, not quite true. But I am incredibly introverted in almost all senses of the word. I also don't start friendships. I was definitely not the kindergartener who sat down next to you and babbled at the mouth saying "Let's be best friends forever, please?" So how do I determine who to initiate contact with first?

I remember in 7th grade there was a new girl in my art class and Mr. Bain asked if I would sit next to her and talk to her and make her feel welcome. I think he picked me because he knew that I was nice, but inside I freaked out. You want me to do what? What do I even say to her? Ummm....excuse me, but do you know who you are are talking to here?

7th grade me was so dramatic. Shocking, I know. It turns out that I didn't even have to talk at all, the new girl just chatted my ears off. I just had to plug in a couple of strategically placed nods and 'yeah, cool's.

And then when I met Belle sometime in middle school it was totally her loudness and extroversion that helped us to because fast friends. I know I didn't start that relationship and to this day I'm not even sure how it got started at all. She was loud and I was quiet and we were the bestest of best friends.

Which leads me back to my discovery this morning with wax covered fingernails.

I like funny people.

No, not funny looking people. What kind of person do you think I am? But no, people who share a similar sense of humor - nerdy, witty, you know. And those grad students sure know how to make a joke. Which is what got me thinking about this whole thing in the first place. I like to be around people who like to laugh - they generally know how to have a good time.

Laughter is good for the soul. A good giggle fit lifts your mood and makes life not seem so dull. So really, why would you not want surround yourself with howl inducing friends? There's a boy around my life lately, which is a story in and of itself, and he asked me three things that I look for in a guy that I want to date and the first thing out of my mouth was "he has to make me laugh" followed by loves Jesus and traveling.

(I wonder what my priorities are in life...hmm...)

So is it really surprising that I look for the comedic relief? Not at all. I appreciate charming wit and really bad jokes. You know the ones.

not much of anything, really

Today the sky is the greyest of the greys, folks. I thought this was supposed to be warmer weather? Tricks, mother nature. Cruel tricks. But on the flip side, the clouds! They are mighty spectacular these days.

Observe:

Days like this are ones that should be best spent curled up on the couch next to someone lovely obsessing over ridiculous(ly awesome) television series and drinking tea. Or hot chocolate. Whatever floats your metaphorical boat. Maybe throw in some deep conversations about life as well. And silly faces - definitely silly faces. Why, you ask? Because those are the best ones, of course!

Silliness is something I will only show you once I feel like you will not unfairly judge my maturity level. Act your age and not your shoe size, they say! But it is much more fun to be 6 than it is to be 21 sometimes. Although being 21 does have its advantages, let's be honest. I do what I want.

Yesterday I colored my hair. Again.

I know!

But the red? It was just time.

See? Much better. Don't you agree? Dark is more my style - even though I have to admit that I got more compliments from strangers on my red hair than any other color I've ever had it. I'm not sure if maybe that's because they felt like they couldn't tell me that they hated it? It's okay, I can take it. Now I can wear pink shirts again and not be self conscious of whether or not I clash.

It's a big deal! To clash with one's shirt! It has the potential to be a whole day ruiner! Imagine! Okay, so I'm being overly dramatic. Remember? I do what I want.

And on a completely unrelated to anything else is this blog note: look for my first post on Once A Week Vegan on Friday! I'm stoked to share that part of my life with you guys!

Sunshine and Summertime

Hey guys! I know I have been a little more absent than normal, so excuse me for a second while I dust off some the cobwebs and sweep out the extra dirt that has accumulated in my little corner of the internet.

I have been as busy as they come since the summer session started, not just with school work but also lounging around by the pool with T-Lily and staying up incredibly too late because I'm having too good a time to say goodnight. Also, I don't have a home computer at the moment so I've been using my mobile for Facebook and Pinterest, but not much else. It's hard to blog on that tiny little screen so I usually don't try very hard...although this keyboard for the computer I'm using on campus isn't much better...

So far this summer I'm taking Molten Metals (a 400 level sculpture class) and Digital Imaging (a 300 level computer/graphic design class). So far Molten Metals is my favorite, despite the fact that it's at 8:30 in the morning and I slept through my alarm today... Digital Imaging has so far proved to be a less challenging easy course that I already seem to know how to do. Hello underwater basket weaving credits! Nice of you to help me graduate on time.

I've also come pretty far in transitioning to a mostly vegetarian sometimes vegan diet (where occasionally I slip up and eat some chicken). So far I have been loving the changes. I feel more energized throughout the day and less guilty about stuffing my face with apple slices instead of cupcakes...not that I ever do that... Pilates seem to really be helping out my attitude too. I don't need to be a lean mean fighting machine, but I'd like to look nice in a swimsuit. You know how it goes.

Other than that, I have just been spending copious amounts of time with my friends before I have to move an hour and a half away the end of June. Sometimes I just wish I could hurry up and be back already and sometimes I don't ever want to leave. I don't want to give up proximity to people I love dearly to go student teach, which is something that I don't think I even want to do. I'm gonna go ahead and get the certification anyway because I think it will be beneficial and I'll regret it in the future if I don't, but lately I have to keep talking myself into it more and more to justify the fact that I'm not backing out of it. I think it will be an interesting adventure.

And we all know how much I love a good adventure! 

ready or not, here i come

Ladies and Gents, we have reached the end of the spring 2012 semester. This is the end of four years that I have spent in Moscow, a journey I started at merely 17 years of age. I have four days before I start my two summer courses, which will end in six weeks and then I will move away! Forever! Ah!

But of course, you all knew that already because I feel like I don't talk about anything else over here in this corner of the blogosphere. I would apologize, but school has been my entire life since I began kindergarten when I was five. My life is about to drastically change into something that I have never done before.

End of school? Shut your mouth!

As crazy as it is to realize that there is this huge light at the end of the tunnel, I'm interested to see how my life will start unfolding once it's not so structured anymore. After I graduate in December (on the 8th!!) what will happen to me? Where will I go? Who will I meet?

Exciting!

Sometimes I spend copious amounts of time on Pinterest. It's seriously a worse time suck than Facebook, and believe me, I love me some good Facebook time. But there are all sorts of things worth pinning to me, among them are interesting quotes, wedding ideas, food recipes, home decor ideas.

I look at all those pictures and I see possibilities.

And then I get all wanderlustful, wishing for my life to actually start. But it already has. I'm just in this weird transitional phase. So close to being done with school I can taste it, no boyfriend, no boy I'm even interested in at the moment, no job with a promising future, and on the precipice of moving to a different town.

I get so caught up with where I want to be that I forget to enjoy where I am. I am in a town where I have a lot of great friends who love me dearly. I am involved in a church that I truly enjoy being a part of and is an answer to prayer about finding Godly people I can connect with and get involved in. I am doing what I love, painting and printing and creating. I am young and wild and free.

Life will not always be this way. One day I will have bills to pay and a house to take care of and a husband to love on. So it's nice to take trips and do crazy things while I'm still here in this crazy place with these crazy people.

Dudes, it is basically summer time and I'm about to enjoy every second of it. Flip flops and tank tops. Tan lines and shorts. Camping and the smell of hot asphalt after it's rained. My absolute favorite time of year and my favorite season of life so far. I am blessed beyond words and so grateful for this whole college experience. I have grown a lot, loved a lot, and lived a lot. And the best part? It's not over yet.

the trees are finally green again

It's that time of year again, the end of another semester. My last dead week before my last finals week. My last May in Moscow. What a weird feeling. I often think to myself 'you know, this could be the last time I ever do this.' And but wow! What a thought!

Leaving is a subject banned in conversation around my apartment. My best friend can't stand the thought of having to live without me next semester. But it's only one semester and then she will move back up north with me. We'll be reunited and it will. feel. so. good. I can already tell you.

But I have been trying to stay busy and fully enjoy what little time I do have left here at school before I take that huge jump into student teaching this fall. I went to my friends' daughter's birthday party yesterday where I lived on the wild side as I painted each of my finger nails a different color and got myself a temporary blue skeleton tattoo. Those elementary schoolers, man. They know how to party.

And after we wore ourselves out on the bouncy house and rock wall, we came home to read a book. Yes, they really do all pile on me like that. Best feeling in the world, I tell you what! Those kids. They pretty much have me wrapped around their fingers. 

To round out my day, I doodled some at work and made some prints for my final critique. It feels good to draw and sketch. And feathers! My favorite thing! There will be adventures to come, my friends, adventures filled with feathers and a very good friend! This last summer in Moscow, you will be mine! We will do things we have never done before and go places we have never been before and meet people we have never met before and it will be awesome. I'm just sure of it.