Busy week!

Such is the life of a grad student working full-time.

Because I've had almost a month off from school (classes start on this coming Monday), I have felt an enormous pressure to do something incredibly significant and awesome with my time off. And yet, relishing my precious time off, I have spent my time split between work, the gym, and my bed. Honestly, I have wanted to do nothing but sleep since Christmas!

Which, while completely necessary, also makes me feel like I am wasting this beautiful gift of free time!

Which causes stress and anxiety and (mental) exhaustion!

When I should be relaxing and enjoying my time off.

This is why I have not written anything this week. I have been busy trying to accomplish 1,001 things and trying to sleep away my to-do list at the same time. Next week, things should be back to normal when I'm tossed back into the school/work routine. And then I will continue to (attempt) to accomplish incredibly awesome things.

Lesson learned: free time is gift best spent snuggled in bed with 2 naughty kittens & a good book. Don't stress about reorganizing the closet, cleaning out the pantry, doing your taxes (yet), and cooking gourmet meals every night. Those things are best when saved for the rare free & calm Sunday during the school semester!

The year in review.

I feel like this year has flown by. So, so much has happened in 12 months. January 1st, one year ago, I was freezing my butt off trying to haul all my clothes and furniture up four flights of stairs into my first apartment. Here are a few highlights from the year:

1. My first apartment, completely newly renovated before I moved in, on the Upper East Side of Manhattan.

2. Hammie & Misko. I have 2 adorable, naughty, smart, cuddly kittens. And I've had them for almost a year with no (major) disasters!

3. I started my first full-time job in May. After being an unpaid intern for 4 months, I worked my @ off to impress the right people and got the job offer. I now love what I'm doing everyday and love going to work.

4. I am halfway done with my Masters! As of fall 2010, I have completed 24 of my 42 credits toward my graduate work. Besides all the group projects, I really enjoy what I'm learning and can definitely see how it applies to the things I'm doing every single day at work.

5. New & old friends. I'm happy that I ended up in NYC because it's so easy to hop a train down to DC and visit my besties from college or for them to come see me. I've had some amazing times in DC, Maryland, and New York this year with amazing friends like Becca, Tamar, Endrit, Jen, Arden, Amanda, Jess, and so many more!

(me & Becca in February outside the Met)

(me & Krista before her wedding in Minnesota in July)

(with Becca & Endrit on top of the Kennedy Center for my graduation in May)

I've also made amazing friends this year at NYU: Gillian, Natalie, and Charity have really made this year great for me. I love my Subway rides and bagel dates with Nat, lunches all over Midtown and one epic trip to IKEA with Gillian, and all the wine and adventures (blowing off yoga) with Charity. (See The Birthday Weekend of Bad Behavior for more examples of fun with friends)

(me & Charity at the NYU SCPS Semi-Formal, i.e. Grad School Prom last spring)

(with Gillian, Erin & Natalie at Coney Island this summer. Charity was there too! She was taking the picture!)

6. Last, but not least, I'm so happy with how much I've actually seen my family this year. My parents and brother have come to visit me quite a bit, and I've made it home several times as well. When I moved last year, I had no idea how often I would actually be seeing them. And especially now that I have to take PTO every time I want to come home! My aunt & uncle in New Jersey have also made a big difference for me this year. They've really helped me out by bringing me groceries and such things or by picking me up and getting me out of the city for a night! It's been a very busy year, and I couldn't have gotten through it without the help of my family!

I have a lot to look forward to in 2011. In March, I'm meeting my friends from high school, Erika & Jenny, in Paris for 6 days, then visiting my friend, Arden, from GW in Copenhagen. I am planning to come home to Minnesota for a weekend or two this summer to spend some time out on the lake! And hopefully, I'll be planning a trip this fall with Natalie, perhaps to Las Vegas or somewhere else warm & fun! Also, hopefully various friends (like Krista&Brady!) will be coming to NYC to visit me.

And a happy New Year to all! I'll be spending the night out on the town with Jess, Amanda, Ashley, & Morgan (all from GW) & Gillian. Here's to a fantastic evening in the GREATEST CITY IN THE WORLD!

Happy trails to you etc., etc.

I'm finally headed back to NYC. Cross your fingers! It looks like I'm on time as of now... So while I'm killing time, I thought I'd start on my new year's resolutions list. Here goes:

1. Set a household budget and stick to it. This will be one of my first projects next week. I think I'm going to use a tool like mint.com to keep track of everything. I'll keep you posted on how that goes...

2. Hit the gym at least twice a week. This is trickier once classes start again, but I think I can maintain a Tuesday-Saturday schedule.

3. Clean out/organize my closet, desk, book shelves, TV cabinet, kitchen cabinets, bathroom drawers, and front closet... These will be conquered one at a time... hopefully.

4. Replace picture frames/pictures with new ones that actually match!

5. Drink more water, eat more vegetables, play with the kitties more... all those things I say every year (well, not that part about the kitties) and will try for a while before abandoning. Likewise, I'll keep you posted on these general efforts at healthfulness and how quickly I abandon them...

NYC, 2011, here I come!

Published with Blogger-droid v1.6.5