My last first football game =[

I've been in marching band since my freshman year of high school, and now, 7 years later, I am starting my last season of marching band ever.  Last Thursday was my last first football game ever. It was definitely a day filled with emotion.  Seeing the freshman so excited for their first ever college band performance, while the seniors were a lot quieter and, while happy to be performing, also sad to be starting their last season in marching band, was such a shocking disparity because as a freshman I could not ever have imagined the emotion I would feel that day.  From the moment I put on my uniform that afternoon, the one thought that kept running through my head was that it was the beginning of my last season ever in marching band.  I know all of the other seniors were thinking the same thing.  The emotion we all had was evident.

Each year at the first football game, running out of the tunnel for pregame brings tears to my eyes.  The overwhelming emotion of seeing tens of thousands of people watching you perform is indescribable until you are actually on the field.  This year was no different for me- in fact it was probably the most emotional pregame show I've ever had, even more so than my first game freshman year at Rutgers.  Unlike previous years, I knew exactly what to expect running out of the tunnel.  And I knew that it would be my last time ever feeling that first-game-of-the-season rush of emotion.  I got chills as I saw the packed stadium for the first time, and I bit my lip so I wouldn't cry and would actually be able to play the show!  I had tears in my eyes during the whole pregame show (but I wasn't crying so much that I couldn't play!).  And I made sure to march the best pregame show of my life.

I think maybe the hardest part of it all was knowing that years and years from now (and even next year), students in the marching band will be running out onto the field for the first game of the season, but I won't be a part of it anymore.  All I can do is make the most of the time I have left in marching band and hope that this season is the best one ever.


Seniors <3

Trying not to think ahead

In just under 36 hours, I will finish my last final of junior year of college.  I'm actively trying not to think about the fact that next year will be my last year at Rutgers, that a year from now I will be the one thinking about graduation and looking forward to the rest of my life.

On one hand, I'm excited and thankful to be in this place.  Since getting to college, I've been worried about not being able to complete my majors on time due to the sheer number of credits they take.  Now, I'm down to three classes and two one-credit seminars, plus a thesis.  And that's it- then I am done.  A part of me is really happy about this.  I am finally sure that I can finish both of my majors on time, so, no more worries about not finishing in four years, and having to worry about paying for a fifth year of school.

On the other hand, I can't believe that I've already been at Rutgers for three years.  The time has just gone by so quickly.  I volunteer as an academic adviser for incoming students; the past two weekends I have helped these students pick their classes for their first semester at college, and think ahead about their major options and career goals.  As I talk to these students, experiencing a small taste of the college life for the first time, I can't help but think about when I was in their shoes three years ago.  Like them, I was overwhelmed and apprehensive of all the choices in front of me, and struggling with the freedom that Rutgers was shoving at me.  Now, I am on the other end of that spectrum.  I know what classes to take, what I am interested in, and I have ideas in place for my future.  It's amazing how much can change in just a few years.  Suddenly, I am the one people are asking for advice.  I know something about all the craziness that is Rutgers University.  And one year from now, it will all be over.

I don't want to think about it too much; after all, I still have a year left that I want to take full advantage of.  I'm excited to continue working in my lab, and give a greater time commitment to research.  I can't wait for marching band season to start up again in just a few months- and the fact that it will likely be my last ever just makes it all the more special.  And even now, I am looking forward to seeing my friends again in September that I won't see all that often over the summer because South Jersey is too far away from everything else in this state.

At some point, I'll have to come to terms with the fact that next year is the end of my Rutgers undergraduate career.  But...not right now.

It's been a while...

Now that the semester is finally rolling here, I've suddenly found myself with no time at all =[  Exams have already started taking place, as have a number of papers, presentations, and rehearsals... So as much as I am trying to budget my time, I'm still insanely busy with all of this.  As such, while I am trying to keep up with posting here a few times a week, I'm not going to guarantee that it's going to happen that often.

I announced yesterday that Lisa was the winner of the free Coffee-mate coupon!  So congratulations to her!

I have some posts planned for this week- at the very least, a review of Paranormalcy, another free samples post, and a Waiting on Wednesday =)

So thanks for bearing with me :)  And keep reading!

And the semester has begun!

It's been a crazy first week of classes for me!  None of my classes seem like they will be particularly difficult (or at least, not worse than last semester!), and my schedule is not awful.  But with all of the snow we've gotten here in NJ over the past few weeks, just physically getting to class has been like a death trap!  There is so much ice everywhere that walking to the bus stop is a gamble for your life.  But I made it through =) and can't really complain.  Some of the classes I'm taking could have turned out to be much more difficult than they did, and a couple of them are actually interesting, too ;-)  As long as I don't procrastinate too much, the workload should be manageable.


Of course, that makes it sound like I've had all the time in the world to update the blog.  I wish!  But unfortunately, that is not the case.  The first week of classes is always crazy because of trying to purchase textbooks, but this year that craziness is compounded by the fact that I also have to get special permission numbers for one of my classes...but I can only get it after I get three people to sign a form.  Shouldn't be that hard...except that the last person only has office hours on Tuesdays and is not in his office at all except for then.  So I've spent hours running back and forth between campuses to try and register for this class...which I still haven't been able to do, by the way.


But although I haven't had time to update the blog until now, I have been reading!  Which means that there are reviews coming soon =)


I started reading Ash by Malinda Lo.  This is the companion to Huntress, which I wrote a review of earlier.  At the moment I have to say that I prefer Huntress, but a proper review is definitely coming next week!  The book is due at the library next Friday, so I don't have a choice but to finish it by then!


Other than that, my reading list is everything that was In My Mailbox last week.  And I still have reviews to post for the rest of the Hunger Games series, which I finished last week.


Hopefully the next few weeks calm down a little bit, and then I will update here more often.  Hopefully...hopefully...