on graduating college

a few days ago i officially officially graduated college.
i pretend-graduated in june (with a ceremony and a cap and gown and everything!), but this time it was for realz. i finished my last exam at precisely 1:37pm on monday afternoon (december 6th, 2013 - for the record) and to be honest with you, it wasn't as victorious of a finale as i was imagining. in my head, it went like this: i would answer the last question on my exam, throw my paper up in the air, run through the halls (towards freedom), burst through the door, do some kind of victory dance (complete with fist pumps, high-kicks, twirls, spins, the whole thing). i expected there to be a full marching band playing and confetti sparklers and fireworks and probably a big banner saying "you do it, heather! you are the champion!"

or something like that.

surprisingly, it didn't happen quite like that.
first of all, my exam was on a computer so i didn't have any papers to throw into the air when i was done (instead, i just typed my last answer really loudly so everyone around me would know that i was done). second of all, the test was hard as all hell which didn't leave me feeling victorious and triumphant but more like, i think i just graduated? ....maybe? third of all, it's been snowing this past week, so all the floors were especially wet and slippery and i wasn't willing to risk my life just to run down the halls. i sort of just walked out. and finally, much to my dismay, there weren't any fireworks or sparklers or banners. just a bunch of cold, miserable students shuffling through the snow. (where was the band???)

so, with few other options to choose from, i shuffled right along with them and went home.

despite this extremely anticlimactic ending, i am done. you guys. i'm done!
i actually finished school one year early (go me), but getting to this point still felt like a long (long, long) haul. school really knows how to knock the wind right out of a girl, you know? the idea of actually finishing school always seemed like a mystical and slightly impossible dream. but here i am! it hasn't sunk in yet. i think i was expecting to feel instantly different. like, as soon as i finished that exam i would stand up and be instantly taller or something. (if nothing else, let's hope that i'm at least a little bit wiser)

and so. the end. that's it! no more school. official college graduate, party of one.

p.s. my very talented photographer-friend took these photos of our campus. aren't they magical?

p.p.s. this post is a big fat spoiler alert - surprise! it snowed! stay tuned for more of that.

I'm back!

hey, blog! remember me?

i've been away for the past couple days on account of graduating from college! wooooooo! 

it hasn't really sunk in yet. oddly enough, i still have to take a few summer classes which might explain why it seems so surreal. you graduated! now, back to school. still, it was a big day. caps and gowns, balloons, bouquets, pomp and circumstance, and lots of tears (mostly from me). also, lots of family.

j & i have both had family in town for the past week.
there's something nice about having a house full of people. it was loud and crazy and just what i needed. i'm already feeling nostalgic for the past  week. there are little reminders all around the apartment of the past few days - bouquets of flowers from family and friends, leftover cake and watermelon in the fridge from different parties, graduation cards sprinkled across our windowsills. i'm not ready for it to be over!

having my mom here was so nice. like mother like daughter, she has been just as busy as me, so by the time her plane landed we were both ready for a little vacation. there was a handful of things we wanted to do while she was here, and we were able to do them all! (except for wine tasting - we took a rain check on that one) sometimes no matter how much you plan, vacations can end up being more stressful than anything else. but luckily for us, this week was pretty perfect. things just fell into place. we took our time, didn't rush, and played things by ear. we went on long walks, enjoyed late breakfasts, watched movies, and even spent an entire day at the spa. it was very luxurious indeed.

as far as pictures go, stay tuned.
if you don't already know, my life is a constant comedy. so to nobody's surprise, my camera died right in the middle of the ceremony. classic me! (who forgets to charge their camera before their own graduation?) thankfully there were plenty of iPhones in the crowd, so my phone has been beeping all day with snapshots from different camera phones.

it's amazing how quickly vacations fly by (and how slowly our work days can drag on). hi ho hi ho, today it's back to work i go. i can't complain, though. this has been a pretty great week.

What have I missed? What have you been up to?

all quiet on the blogging front

it's been a little quiet around here. I know.
but sometimes life just gets in the way and there's hardly enough time to sleep!
c'est la vie.

last week I had a bit of a breakdown. heh. sometimes life is just too much, you know? school and work were kind of taking over everything (or so I felt) and there was laundry to do and the apartment was messy and J & I never had time to just be in the same room for five minutes without having to work on this or return that call or run that errand or blah blah BLAH. sometimes I stretch myself too thin. I like to think that I can do it all, handle everything, and juggle a million things at once. and sometimes I can! sometimes I do it well. and sometimes (this time), it just wasn't happening. so last week, right in the middle of our chinese takeout dinner, I burst into tears. all over my orange chicken.

and then, everything was okay. sometimes a good cry is all you need. you know?

in more exciting news: next week, J & I are GRADUATING!!
it hasn't really sunk in yet. with how crazy these last weeks have been, it doesn't seem like one of those big "milestone" moments is about to happen. I guess that's always the way, though. they never seem real until they're happening, or until they're over. it seems like just yesterday I was graduating from high school, and suddenly, here I am putting on a cap and gown all over again. time really does fly. (all those people were right!)

he & I both have family coming into town this weekend which I am thrilled about. family time is just what I need to make me feel sane again. miraculously, we get to take a few days off (the same few days!) and escape our schedules for awhile. my mom will be in town (hooray!) and we have a handful of frivolous, girly things planned like wine tasting, a day at the spa, etc. a true girl's weekend indeed.

it'll probably be quiet around here for the next couple days, but stay tuned! exciting updates to come.

(check out that dreamy bedroom, here)