The First of Many Sappy Georgetown Posts

As of today, there are- count 'em- 27 days until I walk across the stage (hopefully without tripping and falling flat on my face) and become a graduate of this fine institution. "Freaking out" does not even begin to describe how I'm feeling about graduation in this moment, because, honestly, I'm a mess of emotions. I thought I had crossed that threshold, leaving behind teary thoughts of leaving this place that has become my home and embracing all of the change that will come my way before I know it. But I still have many a teary moment (and will, undoubtedly, even after graduation) and moments to doubt, where I question whether I'm really ready to go out into the real world, to make adult decisions, and to leave the padded, secure little world that is the Hilltop. Am I ready to work a 9-to-5 (assuming I get one of those-still very much a work in progress)?

Can I bear to leave the Tombs? Because God knows it won't be acceptable, after I graduate, for me, the Super Senior, to creepily hang out there for hours on end like I do now while all of the younger kids think, 'Why doesn't the old lady find her own bar?'. I had a really emotional moment the other day, as I sat at the bar sipping my habitual lemonade, chatting with one of my favorite bartenders. I thought to myself, 'I'm so glad I did 99 Days.' There's something about walking into a place and being "conocida", as they call it in Spain, having everyone know your name. The bartenders and many of the waiters don't ask for my ID anymore, and I often don't have to ask to be put down for 99 Days, because they know that I'm one of the regulars. Tombs is like my Cheers, it's where everybody knows my name. And it has been the setting for the forming of new friendships and the deepening of old ones- hey, who cares if they may or may not be based entirely on a shared commitment to over-consumption of alcohol. My friends may laugh at my craziness (because, let's face it, you have to be a little crazy to commit to buying at least one food or drink item at the SAME BAR for 99 straight days!), but 99 Days has really brought my senior spring full-circle. I couldn't think of another place where I would rather celebrate turning in my baby, my monster of a thesis (76 pages in French, including bibliography and appendices!), especially with our usual Trivia crowd.

I guess this sort of turned into an "I Love Tombs" post, but whatever, it just happens to be on my mind a lot. There are certainly a plethora of other things I'll miss about Georgetown, but I'll talk about those in later posts!!!! My philosophy, though, is to live the next 27 days to the fullest and not take a single moment of this place I love and the people I love for granted. I don't want to be that woman who says, 'I wish I could be back in college again'- I want to have lived my experience to the fullest, so that I couldn't possibly top it!!!

In interesting news, I crossed two items off of my Georgetown bucket list: I sat in John Carroll's lap, and I frolicked in the Dahlgren fountain (granted, I felt like I was covered in parasites after the latter, but it was still more than worth it!).

Dating Rant #1

Okay, so I don't plan on making a habit of writing every day, but I was reading The Guide (The Hoya's weekly magazine, for those of you who don't know) yesterday while I was waiting to go into my job interview, and the dating column for that issue really struck me...so naturally I wanted to share it with the rest of the world! First of all, here's the link: http://guide.thehoya.com/node/387

The article is short and definitely worth reading, and sums up some of the confusion that I think a lot of us college girls have about dating. I have learned that trying to get inside a guy's head and figure out how the hell he thinks is literally the most useless exercise on the face of the earth, because while they proclaim to be easy to read, they are most certainly NOT! Now, I'm a pretty old-fashioned girl when it comes to dating, so I would say that guys should be the ones doing the pursuing, but, according to the author of the article, a lot of her guy friends were too "scared of rejection" to ask a girl out. What's this? Masculine insecurities? I used to think it was the male gaze (I hope Molly reads this!) that made girls insecure, but I'm learning, more and more, that guys are insecure too! I guess not wanting to be rejected is a valid concern, but it isn't an excuse for doing nothing, for dancing around the issue and playing with a girl's emotions.

Of course, there is also the classic "I'm not looking for a commitment" refrain- it seems like this excuse, or some variation of it, is rampant on college campuses. I do understand that it takes a certain degree of emotional maturity to be in a relationship, but what is the harm in asking a girl out on a date? The author echoes this sentiment when she says, "for those boys who fear that they will take a girl on one date and she will suddenly be doodling Mrs. John Smith all over the margins of her notebook, you ned a reality check. I'm sure you are charming and completely desirable, but one date does not mean you two will be getting engaged a week later. Perhaps, with time and after several dates, you will find yourself getting ore serious, but if you don't want it (even if she does), then it won't happen." This paragraph not only made me laugh aloud, but also caused me to nod my head in agreement at the newspaper spread out on my lap. She's right. Going on a date is not a one-way ticket down the aisle. You can make it as formal or informal as you'd like! And if you don't have a good time, you don't have to do it again! No one has a gun to your head!

This article seems to challenge the ideas put forth in the book (and much more pleasant film) "He's Just Not that Into You." The book, a relationship bible for some and the devil's book making you want to pound your head against a wall because of your own stupidity for others, says, in many more words than I would care to use here, that if he's not asking you out (or sleeping with you, marrying you, or taking some other step proving his commitment and utter devotion to you), HE'S JUST NOT THAT INTO YOU (I will tell you, the more you repeat this phrase, the more you start to believe it). But could it really be that he just needs a little encouragement, a guarantee from you, the object of his affection, that you will not reject him? If he's "not looking for a commitment" (a cover for immaturity and self-involvement???), he may be a lost cause, but could there be a glimmer of hope (I hope Lauren is reading this part) for the timid guy?

This is one reason why I'm glad to be leaving college soon...and I just have to say, I'm having a Carrie Bradshaw moment writing this post.

I'm back!!!!!!!

Yes, my dear readers (maybe just Kate and Kristin), I couldn't resist staying off the blogosphere any longer! There has been a giant blog-shaped hole in my life since I got back from my year abroad, so I have been thinking about starting up a new blog (unfortunately, not European in theme, because, I'm sad to say, I don't have a swanky European job waiting for me). And then, last night, Kate created a new one of her own to chart her life as a military bride and law student. That provided me with just the motivation I needed to create this blog. This morning, Kate laughed hysterically at me as I excitedly pored over blog template websites, complaining that "none of these are pretty," and "SHIT, why does that one say 'Merry Christmas' on it???".

But I'm back. Here I am, sitting in my Introduction to Catholic Ethics class, blogging away (not that I necessarily needed another project to distract me from my classes!). And what, pray tell, could this blog have to do with, if not my fabulous travels around Europe? Well, for those of you who are keeping track, I'm graduating on the 22nd of May, which is 40 DAYS (yikes!!!!!!) from today. Well, I suppose I'm being a little presumptuous, because my work ethic this semester certainly leaves a lot to be desired (except for the fact that I am chugging along, well ahead of schedule, on my thesis; I think I use "thesisizing" as an excuse to not do my regular homework). But, barring all disasters, I should be getting my diploma on the 22nd! That being said, I asked myself, 'What excuse could I possibly give to write yet another blog?'. Well, I thought it might be funny (hopefully "haha" funny rather than pathetically funny) to chronicle my life as a recent college grad, trying to navigate the labyrinth of the job market, the real estate market, and, if we're going to make it a market theme, the meat market of dating. And, as you may have guessed from the cherry blossom motif, I'm hoping that all of these adventures and misadventures will take place in the bustling metropolis of Washington, D.C.

You may be asking yourself, 'Wait, since when does she have a job? Where is she going to live? How is she going to finance her unfortunate shopping habit?'. In response to the first part, I would say that I have a job at least through the end of the summer- I am going to continue on part-time in my current job in Georgetown's Office of Communications, which I'm very excited about. You couldn't ask for a lower-key introduction to a 9-5, and the people in the office are great. And, with the website redesign set to pick up this summer, I will hopefully have added responsibilities that will look good on my résumé (because, who are we kidding, a girl has to have a job!). I am hoping to pick up another part-time job on campus. With that being said, I am hoping to live on campus for the summer, so IF YOU KNOW OF ANYONE LOOKING FOR A SUBLETTER IN GEORGETOWN THIS SUMMER, LET ME KNOW!!!!! As far as the shopping, well, all I can say is, I have an embarrassingly large selection of clothes in my closet (and the rest is currently being stored above my roommate's closet, because there was no way I could have had all of my winter and summer clothes in my tiny closet at the same time). Since I will almost certainly NOT be living permanently in Georgetown, I think a little bit of separation from the irresistible temptations of JCrew and Anthropologie will do me good!

In all seriousness, though, I have no idea what I want to do with my life. I was actually asked in a job interview today (my first real-person job interview ever!) where I thought I would be in five years. I had to word it diplomatically and say that I am "very much in the self-discovery phase of the job search" and am "open to all possibilities". Really, I can't say that I would rather be preprogrammed into a career right now- I like being able to keep my options open. But I am actively looking for and applying to jobs that I hope will pique my interest.

The hardest part of the job search for me (well, and the whole grownup life thing in general) is figuring out how to play my cards. It is exhausting to try to determine how best to word a cover letter, how to deal with a possible conflict in start dates for jobs, how to find an apartment when the people you were planning to live with are probably going home for the summer, etc. Add to that the fact that I now have to worry about paying for health insurance, food, happy hour a few times a week, a gym membership, basketball tickets (because don't even try to dissuade me from that last one), not to mention rent and public transit and my head starts to spin.

Now, I just want to clear up one thing. I do not pretend that my life is just THAT interesting, but I am very much in a transition period in my life and I hope that my experiences will inspire some reaction in you, my readers (whoever you may be; N.B. I may not even tell my parents about this, my latest blogging adventure, because I know that they did not read my last blog). And although I seem to be picking up right where I left off with this unnecessarily long post, the fact that I won't be describing the minutest of detail my travels and offering up my commentary on the strange grooming habits of Spaniards should give you hope that my posts will be more manageable. So sit back, dear readers, and maybe my posts will provide some entertainment for you on rainy days like today when you may be sitting around in your pajamas drinking cup after cup of coffee.