ohmygoodness.

I've graduated, and as I hinted to, the up in the air "things" are now conclusive.

The place I had arranged to live in, which was to be ideal financially and otherwise, got smacked in the face with a brick.  IE landlord/mom of roommate wanted to be more than a landlord (and more of an imposer of how/what I should do). There were also some problems with the lease. Well this offended me, so after some phone calls and some emails to try and work "things" out, it didn't work out.  As I expected.

So, that's all fine and dandy, but I'm really big into having everything situated and organized and planned out well ahead of the necessary timeframe to which it pertains....

Me two weeks ago: hmmm I have no place to live come June 1, a temporary job with an unknown take-home income (serving) that I'm not too thrilled about, and a heaping tablespoon of schoolwork to finish.  Then I'll graduate.

I couldn't devote all of my energy to finding a new place bc of that big fat nasty hairy capstone paper, so I had to put it off until after the paper was turned in.  The paper turned out, or so I thought, great (I ended getting a B in class, so it obviously wasn't as great as I had hoped).  Then I had to graduate. YAY?!?!

Here's blurry pictures.  My parents have the good ones...

And the glory of your best friend having the same major as you is that you get to sit by each other at commencement.

The last week, I have tirelessly and endlessly and exhaustedly searched for that right place for a very picky tenant. My list of must-haves.

• It be in Norman
• It not be in a bad neighborhood
• It not be completely trashy
• It be under $500 a month (or under $650 if all bills paid, which is common in this college town)
• It be available ABSOLUTELY NO LATER THAN JUNE 8.  (I had a few people offer to let me sleep on their couch for a few days if it came down to it.  I also had my piano-mom, Nancy offer me her guest bedroom with open arms, because that's just how nice she is)
• It have a good landlord

My list of I-really-really-want-these-things-and-not-having-enough-of-these-would-take-it-off-the-list.

• It be available May 30 to move in (yes, earlier then June 1)
• It have w/d or hookups (you would be shocked at how many places DONT) or even an onsite laundry if I really had to...but I was not going to do my laundry at a laundramat.
• It have 700+ sq ft.  I am cramped in my 500 sq ft...really really cramped.
• It have a porch/balcony of some sort
• It have hardwood floors OR new carpet.  I don't like other peoples' old carpet.
• It have some cuteness factor.
• It have new-er appliances and finishes.
• It have 2 bedrooms and 1 bathroom or an enormous enough living room to have the desk setup in there.  I'm done with college, so I don't want my computer and desk in my bedroom any longer.
• It not be on the east side of Norman at all even if it's in a good neighborhood.
• It have fireplace. (This is not necessary at all, but I was constantly swaying towards places with a fireplace)
• It have more than 1 parking spot per unit (Many of the "Apartmentalized Houses" only allot 1 per unit)
• It allow for pets (I want to get a puppy very badly)

Yup.  I'm picky. BUT.  I found a place!!!!! Thursday morning, I went to go see a place that was owned by my friend Drake's landlord.  Turns out, it wouldn't be ready until June 20. So, she referred me to her brother in law, who owns a giant lot near campus with 4 houses on it, each is "Apartmentalized" (self-containing, self-sufficient, no shared spaces like kitchens or bathrooms or whatnot, separate bills, etc.).  I go to see two units (of 15!!! on the lot).  One has no w/d hookups and is a bit tiny.  The other one is PERFECT.  And I love it!!!

• It's in Norman
• It's near campus (all good neighborhoods and streets)
• West side!
• It's freaking adorable
• It's under $500 per month (not by much, but it's under)
• It's available June 1
• The landlord is nice
• It has w/d hookups (my dad has been trying to pawn off to either Ryan or me my Granny's w/d from before she moved into a retirement community)
• It is huge.  Maybe 850 sq ft??
• It has a fireplace
• It has a private and lockable screened in porch off of the bedroom
• Appliances are nice (stand-up shower only, but who cares)
• Hardwood floors in living and bedroom.  Tile in  the kitchen and bath.
• It allows for pets :o)
• There are at least 30 places to park on this lot, most of which are in the back.  It's insane because you would never know from the street that there is that much!!

I had a deposit down within an hour (I saw it with another girl needing a place, and I didn't want her to steal what I was already expecting to be my new place) and I move in on June 1!!!!  Plus, my landlord where I currently live said I could stay until June 2nd to get everything out and cleaned without too much of a rush (best landlady in Norman...too bad I can't afford to live here any longer....).  I am so excited!! The layout is a little weird, but I love the place!!

It goes something like this: walk in: living room, next room: bedroom (off of which is the patio), next room: kitchen, next room: bathroom/laundry room/biggggg closet (bedroom closet isn't so big).  So, guests will have to walk through my bedroom to get to the kitchen or bathroom.  Odd, but I don't really care.

I have some pictures, but I didn't take my usual 30 pic photo shoot when seeing a place because the girl living there now was showing us around.  I didn't want to be awkward and take photos of all of her stuff.

  The best part of the giant living room: fireplace and built-ins.

Living room big enough for a desk so it's not in the bedroom!

Part of the bedroom, closet in the corner. Big enough for a queen, and I only have a full.

Screen in patio: it's a mess and they use it for storage, but I have bigger plans!!

OK that's enough for now. I'll talk about work later.

And if you want to hear God laugh, tell Him your plans..

Time check.  12:11 am.

French Literature Final. 8:00 am.

Good.

Well here's to my "final" finals week.  One final down, which went well.  One final in the morning, which will go just fine.  One final on Wednesday which will be easy "as piss," according to a fellow classmate (sorry for the PG13 Jaymee).  

And one big fat hairy nasty French capstone paper.  It's not even CLOSE to being done.  I have about 8 pages handwritten.  In English.  And I have some books.  UGH!!  I'll get motivated when I'm out of time.  Right now I'm just plum exhausted.

No, not tired.  That would require my energy level to fall.  But exhausted works.  College is exhausting.  Yes.  WC = good. 

• WC in America: word choice.  
• WC in France, and most of Western Europe: toilet room.  
• I was referring to word choice. The other is good too, though...
  

So, referring to my Blog Title, there are some "things" (read: plans) that are up in the air right now that are stressing me out just a bit...but I'll post more when said "things" are said and done (or said and started, if you're feeling optimistic).  It's cool.  I'm fine.  Thad's fine.  Thing's are fine, just inconclusive.

So, on a lighter note, I am working on a list of things that I learned in college (that maybe you didn't need a classroom to learn).

1. The "common sense" rule that libraries are quiet places does not always apply. (I don't like this)
2. "Stealing" tv from the internet isn't so bad.
3. The food you cook yourself will always taste better than fast food.
4. Bedtimes aren't just for babies.
5. Clean toilets make all the difference in the world.
6. You can never have enough blankets, hoodies, or sweatpants.
7. There will always be some people who you can never keep happy.
8. There will always be some people who don't need you to keep them happy.
9. There will usually be 1 or 2 people that can always make you smile.
10. Take more photographs.
11. Though I usually don't eat much in a given sitting, my stomach is an endless pit if Papa John's Pizza is involved.  I embarrass myself.
12. Most people don't care as much about everything as much as I do.  We should all try to meet somewhere in the middle.
13. Whatever you wanted to be when you were 10 is probably what you're going to want to be when your twenty (two)...it took me the extra two years to figure this one out. Ouch.
14. The best classes aren't always associated with the best career paths.
15. My really good memory is hauntingly good....and it doesn't go away when I want it to.
16. Taking yourself out of the comfort zone is the best thing anyone can do.
17. Doctors aren't always right.  WebMD isn't either.  
18. I'm a neat freak like my mom, and a germophobe like my dad.
19. I'm orderly like my mom, but a packrat like my dad.
20. My nails are overly oily.  Nail polish doesn't stick to them very well. Nor do acrylics. Sad.
21. Trying new things is the zest of life.
22. Too much zest isn't always so good.
23. I hate to tell you.  Americans are unhealthy.  The options in America are unhealthy.  McDonalds in Europe has significantly less fat and calories. Go outside.  Walk to the store.  Eat more fruit.
24. I used to think that I'm a "loner".  I'm not.  I just have really bad social anxiety.  I'm afraid of people.
25. The length of time spent procrastinating is inversely related to how fast you finish the dang thing! (ie papers and other time sensitive material.  taxes.)
26. Classic > Trendy
27. Go to the same hairdresser.  Every time.  It's worth it socially AND hairily (???)
28. Don't speed.  It doesn't cut down on time all  that much, it's not worth it if you get caught, and the scenery is nice.  SLOW DOWN!
29. People sometimes tell you to "know your limitations". OK.  This is good.  Knowing your limitations so as to not get close to exceeding them is good.  BUT....knowing your limitations so you can push them is not.
30. If I don't take care of my body, it punishes me.  Be good to yourself.
31. Nyquil IS "the best sleep you ever got with a cold...medicine."
32. Sticking up for yourself is healthy.  Sticking up for someone else is brave.  Do both.
33. Responsibility is rough, but rewarding.
34. Stop looking.  It will find you.  I don't know how to stop looking; but once I do, it's gooooood.
35. I can go about a week without washing my hair, but not without washing my body. (Well I knew the latter half, but wanted to assure all of my readers....)

Okay I guess 35 is enough for tonight.  I have a headache and I need to go to bed.

Peace.Love.Sleep.

Less than two weeks away...

OK, so this is definitely procrastination (but only in the sense that what I am doing was to get ahead)...but anyway.

So I will be a college grad in less than two weeks. Saying it, thinking about it, talking about it...makes me very nervous and overwhelmed. I can't stop the clock, so here it is. College went by way too fast. I kept myself way too busy and did way too much just in order to graduate in four years with a double major. There was never enough time for my friends or myself, and now I'm sad about that. Everyone keeps saying "You're done! You're done!," but I'm not. I WILL go back to school to get my master's degree. But that's not the same...I will be working and going to school. I won't be able to get away with just NOT GIVING A CRAP one week. I won't have the support of my friends in the way that they're going through the exact same things. I'll be one of the ones who went back for some unknown reason (I know the reasons, but nonetheless).

My classes are nuts, but after this week I'll have no more classes in French or in International Studies. Just so we're keeping track, I have been taking French on a continual basis for eight years now. That's almost a decade of my life. That's more than a third of my life. I write better in French than I do in English because I do that more often. I mispell words in English because their French counterpart has two consonants instead of one (Ex: literature and litterature) or a vowel change (Ex: exemple and example) and I form the most part of the sentences that I say in English as I would if I were writing/saying them in French. I think in French, and I translate in French. This was a much longer tangent than I intended, but I HAVE to find a job where I need to speak French everyday because it's a part of me, and I love it. Last semester, I convinced Thad to take International Law with me (it was really really really hard, and Thad regretted taking on such a difficult class, even though he did really well in it). I wrote the notes in French most days just because I was thinking about them in French anyway. Thad didn't like this, because I was the sole note-taker, but I always (everyday!!) typed them up later...and in English. But it's not just the French thing I'm freaking out about. I'm a good student. I LIKE being a student. I like (most of) my classes. I don't know if I will be a good [insert future job here] that loves to go to work everyday.

I have been trying to do things to get my mind off of graduating. Studying doesn't count because it is directly related to graduation. Mostly, I have been designing (not just decorating) my future bedroom that I am moving into in a month (with all of the money I don't yet have). My mom was really nice and bought me a dresser, which I find to be fantastic and I love it.



There will be more updates on the room design as they progress.

And, I am still only sleeping four hours a night, but I am taking an afternoon nap for about an hour everyday also when I feel like I am going to collapse. Right now it's 10:00. I have been awake since about 7:30, but I layed in bed until about 8:00. I went to bed well after 4:00. I have never been like this before, so it's still a little weird. For example, the other night I started to freak out because it was 5:?? and I could notice that the sun would soon be rising. Have no fear, I was up and out of bed at about 9:00 to get stuff done. I know it's my medicine and I am always go-go-go and I am talking really fast and my brain won't slow down...but for now it's nice to not have to worry about getting 11 or-so hours of sleep a night so that I can be half-way productive the next day.

Other benefit of endless energy: I read 140 pages Wednesday night in an hour. Two things are odd about this. I didn't start reading until about 8:45 (typically impossible for me to do any reading after 8:00 pm because I will fall asleep). Drake was over so there was more potential for distraction than usual (Thad <3).>

This was a really long post, but I've been really long winded the last week or so.

A plus tard...