Notes on a rainy day

It's, as James would call it, a "perfect Seattle day." In my eyes, this means that it's cold, cloudy, and barely raining. First of all, my philosophy on rain is the same as the rest of my life: Go big or go home. I hate sprinklings, or little April showers. Either be dry as a whistle or go for the gold and soak someone. This spouty rain just makes me think God is eating watermelon and spitting the seeds, and the rain is somehow his leftover saliva. Even holy spit isn't appealing.

This is the kind of weather that makes it ok to be a nerd. It beckons you to make a huge mug of weak hot chocolate and either read a trashy/sappy novel or watch "You've Got Mail" over and over again with your best friend. It's why I didn't go to school on the West Side: I knew I would never get out of bed. And as ridiculous as my father found this, I know myself. And I know that pitifully rainy days are no match for my willpower.

life as an upperclasswoman

As I finish out my first full week at school, I have been struck by the reality that I'm halfway done with school, and I can tell. Here are just a few of the realizations that have come with my new "higher" standing:

-Sometimes homework really is a better idea than hanging out with friends
-Keep your mouth shut until you have something really important to say. People will respect your opinion more if it doesn't come out every three seconds.
-It's okay to like the music you like. It's your taste, and you shouldn't have to defend it to others that disagree. Unless you like Nickelback, in which case we need to have a serious chat about your common sense.
-Community is not a state of being. It's a process.
-Journalists are viewed as right above lawyers on the morality scale of the professional world. Considering the only thing I wanted to be before I went into journalism was a lawyer, I guess I'm just drawn to "shady" professions. Take that as you will.
-Studying abroad is a really really good idea that I should have planned for earlier.
-Being honest about how you feel about someone shouldn't be as scary as it is.