Top Twelve Memories of 2012

We all know the entire ordeal of 2012 has been a whirlwind of a time.  Here are things that will make me smile most to look back on:

12) HUSKY HUNT

Some hated the Hunt, some slept through it, and some even went mysteriously missing.  I’m a competitive and enthusiastic person, though, so I took it seriously and went hard, going on a two-hour walk (getting romantic with Meredith under an archway in a park--Sorry, Eric), a six-hour bike ride through Cambridge in the coldest hours of night (spying a rather beautiful sunrise), and a 5-hour walk through Beacon Hill (encountering men dressed as a vampire gangster, a smoking Santa, and a hot dog).  The Rubik’s Cubes (Shannon, LV, Mer, Eric, Laura, Ryan, Al, Andy, Harrison, Joe, Aimee, and myself) did a lot of bonding, invented some creative Lion poses, and placed at a proud 28 out of 50.

11) Fiction of the Year

I need a broad topic to acknowledge a few things I fan-girled over this year: Doctor Who, Rod McKuen’s poetry, and How I Met Your Mother, plus how I reaffirmed my love affair with Harry Potter.  The Whovians of Northeastern (Laura, Lauren Belle, and Mer) turned me onto the BBC show Doctor Who in 2011, but it wasn’t until this year that I watched the 2005 Revival in its entirety.  I am enamored.  Like many, Ten is my favorite Doctor--his cheekiness, arrogance, and scientific, timey-wimey jargon never fail to delight--but I adored Eleven’s relationship with Amy and Rory and cried as though real people died at the end of The Angels Take Manhattan.  Plus, after converting Eric into a more obsessed Whovian than I am, we explored some Scarf-y Fourth Doctor silliness.  It’s an excellent show.  I apologize for losing many of you in that rant.  On a more lovey-dovey note, I fell in even deeper amour 
with the poetry of Rod McKuen.  Don’t take my word for it, just check his books out.  I’ll leave you with some sweet one-liners for inspiration: “I’ll stay awhile / and track the hidden country of your smile,” “I want to see the world within the circle of your arms,” and “You see how easily we fit together, as if God’s own hand had cradled only us.”  Go.  Read.  Bask in the Romance.  Delia and I discovered How I Met Your Mother this year and watch

Character pose!

 every episode together.  It’s our thing.  It’s a brilliantly crafted sitcom that I dwelled on enough in my Broken Jaw post.  Lastly, Andrea, Rebecca, and I rekindled our love for Harry Potter this summer by instating a book and movie club, culminating in a costume party double feature of the 7th and 8th movies: I dressed as Luna, Andrea as Dobby (complete with an authentic pillow case dress), Rebecca as Mad-Eye Moody, and even Jacqui donned feathers and hooted that she was Hedwig.  (Only my character survived.)  Danielle, Paige, and Christina made it to some events, and we even brewed Butterbeer.  Those nights MADE my summer.  

10) Classy Dinner Party

I think that that evening, which preceded Hurricane Monday, is a nice way to commemorate my friendship with the Duplex and generally how wonderful life is with the lovely ladies of WVF616.  My fantastic roomies humored me by helping make high-effort food (a.k.a. it required more work than just microwave preparation), cleaning (you could see the tabletop for the first time in WEEKS), and dressing all fancy for the occasion (not that they needed telling twice, those foxes!).  We had Mer, Belle, LV, Sarah, Laura, Shannon, Chris*, Nick, Charlie, Adam (1), and Adam (2) in attendance.  Lots of inside jokes were born, including those associated with hair gel.

9) North End Adventure

A freshman year classic.  On a whim, Sarah, Meredith, Lauren Belle, and I decided we’d love ourselves some Italian chow for dinner.  No one else was around to invite, so we just set sail for the North End, spawning jokes like “Two ships passing in the night,” Spite houses/babies, and immature playground silliness, in addition to scoring an awesome dinner at Cafe Pompeii.  We still sometimes reference that random adventure, just because it’s such a perfect example of the casual, random craziness of our little group of friends.

8) Sonata Arctica

What would even be the point of a Top 2012 list without the year's top music?  I finally got to see my favorite band in the world (literally, out of all world music), Sonata Arctica, live at the Palladium.  They're a Finnish power metal band that I've been in music love with since I was 16.  Andy took the trek to Worcester with me and we had a good time reconnecting on the long train ride.  Eric was kind enough to chauffeur us around the city, stating plainly that it wasn't a fantastic area to be walking around in at night.  The warm-up acts sucked and the venue was a frigid little cavern, but the band and their loud, melodic music, played at speeds to rival Olympian track runners, lived up to every expectation I've set for them in the last three years.  

7) Family Holidays

I can never stress enough how critical my family is to me every day of my life.  Of course there's my brother, who made me the sweetest Doctor Who themed Christmas card; my sister, who, though full of sass sometimes, still admits to missing me and needing help other times; my dad, who thinks in the same erratic patterns as I do and shares my affinities for coffee, Mulberry Street pizza, and the TNT show Leverage; and my mom, who never stops giving to her children and supports all the endeavors we undertake, from driving to and from rehearsals to cheering on the benches at a freezing November dek hockey game.  

Then, there's all the extended family we see at as many holidays as we can: Nonni, with her world-renowned Christmas cookies; Nonno, with the stern face he wears when he asks about boys; Aunt Terry, who always wore the silly Halloween sweatshirt and socks because I asked her to; Uncle Vic, who teases incessantly; Cassie, who we eagerly catch up with the few times we see her; Bella, who fits in as easily talking with the older cousins as she does making trouble with the little ones; Uncle Ettore, who we always seem to give Pannettone for Christmas; "Uncle" Paul, who said Hermi-one until I corrected him; Aunt Renee, with her sweet smile; crazy Robbie, who hasn't let me hug him since he was 3; Michael, who has not followed in Robbie's footsteps and still smiles for my pictures; Uncle Bruce, who might be the most patient person I've ever met; Aunt Michelle, who designates me babysitter for these holiday gatherings, since being around kids is "the best birth control, and you're old enough to be told this!"; Dario, who has the same voice as Uncle Bruce; Sebastian Pasquale, who's too little to be sassy yet; Uncle Frank, who apparently rolled under a couch as an infant; Uncle Gianni, whose eyes smile when he tells stories about his merry life as a bus driver; (Aunt Maria, who had the heartiest, happiest laughter I ever heard); Uncle Mark, who's young 

enough to make relatable jokes about the craziness of college but also old enough to whack me upside the head for the same craziness; sweet Aunt Angela, who we beg to make pecan pies to every holiday; Luke, the little cousin who's cute enough to get away with making mischief; Ava, who puts on my makeup when I'm not looking; Uncle Mario, who always says "Ciao, bella," when he hugs; Aunt Angela, who's been all over the world and shares my birthday; Aunt Grace, my scatter-brained, silly, and loving Godmother; Uncle Ignazio, who taught us to sing I Dodici Giorni di Natale; and Marianna, who's kind enough to still hang out with the kiddies even though she's thoroughly a grown-up these days.  

Mr. and Mrs. Gustav Samuel Johannes

And so on and so forth.  Any holiday.  Every holiday.  

6) Company

Go on, roll your eyes.  I wander around humming songs, I quote the lyrics whether or not anyone knows what I'm talking about, and I always cite it as one of the most interestingly interpreted shows ever.  Quite obviously, I'm actually just saying how lucky I was to be a part of Northeastern's fabulous production.  I'm lucky I had so many friends come see it and share the experience with me and I can't wait for the next one.  But seriously, give the show a shot.  

5) Freshman Year Move-Out

No, this wasn't a happy memory.  It was actually one of the saddest days ever, but that was purely because my freshman year was such a good memory--and I mean every minute of it.  The whole feeling of my first year as a Husky is mirrored in how sad I was to leave in April.  I was sad to see the end of all those fantastic times: Zombie musicals, late night Dominoes after MIT parties, hours in the piano rooms, gathering the usual suspects for dinner, movie nights, common room shenanigans, and Trojan War tactics are just a few of the ridiculous happenings that gave flavor to my freshman year.  Moving out was a sad day because it would be the end of those times, but the sadness only reflected how fantastic a year it was.

4) Woodloch Pines

I've written an entire blog about this beautiful little patch of the universe already.  If you don't understand how it can be such a monumental cornerstone in the lives of my family and the Schizzanos by this point, then I can't help you understand anymore.  

3) Getting My Braces Off

The joy of being officially done with all things dental (save for wearing a retainer very night) far exceeded the irritation of my gums bleeding for a few days.  That day was a reflection of all the things my family and I had survived: a year of braces and surgical wires, a six-hour surgery, the most horrible night in the hospital, and weeks of numbness and an all-liquid diet.  Well, I'm still numb, but in the scheme of everything else, I'll take what I can get.  We survived!

2) Delia's Sweet Sixteen

I've written a whole blog on this one too, which you should check out if you haven't.  Here's an abridged version: When a Sweet Sixteen is done right, it's both a party and an emotional experience.  We had a fantastic time at Delia's, dancing and singing, watching the video her friends prepared as a surprise, her emotional candle ceremony (I cried my fake eye lashes off), and taking pictures with the beautiful birthday princess.  We had all of Delia's friends in attendance, plus Chelsea, Sydney, Mr. & Mrs. Schizzano, Miss Denise the ballet 

ACTUALLY a fairy princess.

teacher, all the Brengel cousins (even if the boys were being difficult about dancing), Justin (who let us put a pink crown on him for half a second), the Miliones, the Finellis, and Ginger.  We had our traditional eating leftover food and opening gifts into the wee hours of the morning session afterwards.  It certainly was a fairy-tale of an evening with the whole family.






And the biggest, most monumental moment of my 2012?

1) Moving In for Sophomore Year

I remember crystal clearly that when we drove over the I-90 bridge and the city of Boston came into view, Big City Nights by the Scorpions was playing and I was giddy with excitement to see all my Huskies again.  Maybe I didn't know exactly what was in store for the year but we all knew if it was anything like last year had been, every day would be an adventure.  And every day has been a greater adventure than the last, filled with Photo shoots, Mixfest, TV Show Viewing Parties, Aquarium detours, Birthday dinners, Boston Pops concerts, Holiday festivities, getting dressed up to go teach other's concerts, and  random city excursions.  What's most special about life at Northeastern, though, is how sitting at home playing Cards Against Humanity, improvising ridiculous song lyrics, watching Trapped in the Closet, playing enough music to peel the skin off my fingers, having random dance breaks, or even just catching up on each others' lives over a bowl of cookie dough is just as fulfilling as any big adventure.  I can't confine all the laughing, nerding-out, dancing, teasing, screaming, craziness of life at Northeastern into one concise memory, so instead, my top memory from this year is the giddy anticipation I felt that day in the car for all of the times that would be had.  I can't thank my mom and dad enough for supporting me in my decision to be a Northeastern Husky and I couldn't be more blessed to have met the fantastic people that I did. 

Thank you EVERYONE in my life for all the wonderful things you gave me this year.  It certainly wasn't an easy year, what with a broken jaw, a hurricane, losing two elderly aunts, and the lamentable loss of a friend.  I truly don't know how I'd have gotten through without the support, advice, and warm embraces of all my family and friends.  My resolution for 2013 is to give as much back to you all as you've given me.  



*Editor's Note: Chris dislikes when I refer to him as Chrissy.

A Smattering of the Many Things I'm Grateful For this Thanksgiving

Christmas Trees     Chuck Palahniuk novels     Live music     Spotify     Jello     Mom's homemade mashed potatoes     Late nights watching How I Met Your Mother with Delia     The Thanksgiving Day Parade     Considering myself a part of two of the most beautiful cities in existence     Holy Cross Roman Catholic Church     Doctor Who     How Dad never complains about picking me up from the city     That Sandy killed my backyard but left my house and family in perfect health     The incredible amount of support I've had from countless friends and family lately     Starbucks     Gustav, the most beautiful bass I could have asked for     Halloween candy     Being a part of Company     Every tiny, insignificant thing about Northeastern     That I didn't make the kick line team in ninth grade and became a music kid instead     Slippers     My adorable little cousins     The advice and guidance from my older cousins     Skiing     Drummers     Flat irons      Shredded cheese     Harry Potter books     That of all thirteen schools I applied to, I ended up at Northeastern University     Husky Hunt     Crepes     The Pep Band     Nutella     Northeastern Hockey Games     That Nonni and Nonno and Grandma Mary are healthy and happy as ever     Lifeteen     Seinfeld     e.e. cummings poetry     Cozy sweatshirts     The friends who hugged me when I cried at the cemetery yesterday     Buona Sera garlic knots     That Alice in Wonderland exists    Musicals in and about New York City     My correctly aligned jaw     That my parents met and fell in love and got married and had me to begin with     That Laura is so accommodating about my messiness and wacky music schedule     Wedges and high heels     That 2 am no-boundaries conversation with Meredith the other night     Chinese food     Bruce Springsteen music     Nerdfighter culture     New York pizza     Being Italian     That Eric texts me goodnight, every night    That I loved Smithtown High School West so much     Pit orchestras     Flip Flops     Breaking Amish   Aunt Grace and Uncle Kenny, my godparents     That Chris, Charlie, Peter, Lauren V, Lauren B, Laura, Ryan, Sarah, Andy, Harrison, and Alfred came to see and hear me in Company     Blogger     Disney magic     That Chris would rather spend three hours tutoring me in Stats than be bored while I spend one hour at the professor's Office Hours     Yearbooks     Everything I learned from Aunt Maria while she fought cancer     Billy Joel     Mr. Nolan's English class     EVERYTHING from the Romantic Era     Easter eggs     That I could have made things work at any university, but that things just work beautifully at Northeastern     Delia's dance recitals     Andy's unbiased and unabashed honesty and advice     That Christie, Brianna, and Alissa are at Northeastern too     David Tennant     My beautiful and sexy 616 apartment and even sexier roommates     That Alaric gives the best hugs known to humankind     Orange soda     How beautiful everything looks when it's snowing     Holiday decorations     That Mom cares enough to bug me for every detail of my life     That I've had my heart broken so few times     The unfathomable potential of every human being     Board games     Chick flicks     My room at home     All the wonderful things Sarah bakes     The picture perfect memories from the Last Day of High School, Prom, and Graduation     That there's never been anything I can't confide in my sister     J.K. Rowling's entire life     Crappy magazines like Rolling Stone and Cosmo     Cheesy flamingo memorabilia     Woodloch Pines     My fairy-tale Sweet Sixteen and all the amazing things I learned from having it     That Lauren Bell never gets annoyed at me for asking for Accounting help     Husky Hunt the second time around    That Dad was so thoughtful to pick me up a 7-11 coffee this morning     Cinnabons     June Claire Dance Centers     That even though we're stressed like crazy getting ready to have 18 guests over, we do have 18 happy and healthy guests we love and can't wait to see     Wicked the musical, but also the book because it gave someone the idea for the musical     That Lauren V is always telling me how fantastic and perfect we all are     That Nothing Changes     That I have the two legs, feet, arms, hands, ears, and eyes; ten fingers and toes; and a nose, mouth, and brain that God gave me to appreciate the world with     Finnish power metal     Mark Twain's writing     Tampons     Eye lash curlers     Converse sneakers     Facebook     That Shannon visits so often even though she doesn't live with us     That Ginger could come to both my and my sister's Sweet Sixteen     When Mom gives me a back scratch     Harry Potter World     What the Pluck?!    Living next door to the Geriens     Marshall Half Stacks     That one time I got to play a Juzek bass in a hole-in-the-wall jazz shop     IV Dining hall pizza     Elevators, ramps, the wheels on my bass case, and all the sympathetic people that hold the door open     Eleven years of bus rides with Jacqui     Stetson East cookies     Every piece of music I've ever listened to and every piece that's waiting to be heard     That I have a bed to sleep in every night     Books and sheet music that smell old     Paws the Husky     That my family misses me when I'm gone, and that I miss them too     Fourth of July Fireworks     Italian ices     Everything that's caramel-flavored     Music     Too many perfect Blue Flamingo vacations to count     Rebecca's Cafe brunches with Christie     That Northeastern's campus is so beautiful, especially for a city school     The Charles River    That picture-perfect moment when Train was singing "Drops of Jupiter" and I was standing alone in the rain     The sights, sounds, odds, ends, and quirks of New York City     Every confused morning when the story of last night gets told to me     That Marianna is only ever a text away when I need her     That Delia asked me to be her sponsor     Twitter     Stephen Sondheim     That Uncle Vic married Aunt Terry     Apple picking as a family tradition     Woodloch crumb cake     That so many people cared enough to check on me this summer when my jaw was banded shut     That my jaw was banded shut and my liquid diet lost me fifteen pounds     Rubber ducks     Pyotr Ilyich Tchaikovsky     The fantastic family vacations Mom and Dad work so hard to take us on     That I had my nineteenth birthday this year     102.3 WBAB     My mac     Grimm, Perrault, and Andersen fairy tales     That Gustav and I played at Staller Center, Carnegie Hall, and Lincoln Center together     Sade, my creamsicle colored bass guitar     That Delia still asks for my help picking out outfits     My crazy curly hair     Secret brand deodorant     Aerie underwear     Glitter glue     That I'm part of the Honors Program at such a good school in such a wonderful city     Rebecca's Cafe sandwiches     My job at Au Bon Pain     That I'm so in love with my major, literally every day of my life     The bright walls in my room     The Cousins Day we had at Lorella, Danielle, Bob, and Justin's this summer     Those vacations we took to Montauk with Aunt Angela, Uncle Mario, Marianna, and Alessia all those years ago     That Nonni and Nonno care about their time and resource-consuming grandkids as much as they do     All the Tooth Fairy, Easter bunny, and Santa Claus stories Mom and Dad fabricated so well for us     Cursive handwriting     That I was School President in fifth grade     That Mr. Roth, my middle school orchestra teacher, had such a positive influence on my appreciation for music     The Smithtown West Music Department family     That the twelve basses I was Section Leader to still call me Mom     Old photos     The Doll House Nonno made for me and Deels     That Nonni taught me how to sew     Grilled cheese sandwiches     Leonardo DiCaprio movies     All the hours they tolerate my presence in the Duplex     All the classy literature and art and music Danielle and I obsess over     Everything I learned my freshman year of college; in the classroom, about life, and about myself     The entertaining antics of Alfred and Harrison     My friendship with Mary, even if it's so much more difficult to maintain since she moved to North Carolina seven years ago     Sweet Sixteen Season     My twin, Brian     Thelemon-scented candle Mrs. Ralph bought me     The purple V neck that Richie wears     That Brianna, Rebecca, Danielle, and Sean called to check on me last Thursday     Ms. Riccoboni's Italian class     Winky, my little Nissan Altima that's as old as I am     Springy beds     Fan fiction     Bananas     That Mike is so good at pestering me to keep in touch with him     Family Gatherings on every Holiday we can     Lindt chocolate     New York bagels     Becca-Brina Christmases     That Tasha was an awesome freshman year roommate     The Blue Flamingo Tradition     The Northeastern bass family: Peter, Colin, Jason, and me     Cold weather     That Lauren kept me company when I sadly and slowly packed up my life in 933 IV last April     That Rebecca knows how much I love and need her, even when I'm God awful at keeping in touch     That Deels and Alex became friends, and then so did Sarah and I over a Play-Doh bakery in fourth grade     That Kimmie and I grew a beautiful friendship out of seeing each other once a week at tap class     Rod McKuen's writing     That Alyssa lived around the block from me in Kindergarten     Sudoku     Carlsson bass rosin     Centennial Quad     How beautiful and quirky Beacon Hill is     New England Clam Chowder     The memory of Deels and I staring jaw-dropped at each other when Daniel Radcliffe got hoisted into the air for the Opening scene of How To Succeed in Business Without Really Trying     Condiments with Joanna     The Port Jeff ferry     Huntington Avenue     Upton Basses in Mystic, Connecticut     Diaries     My signed copy of Diary, the book     Reeds from Palm Sunday     Northeastern's Husky Hockey team and the hot hockey players     How beautiful Boston is     The T     The way Rebecca and Mike wiped away the tears during our last Adoration together     The fantastic inside jokes Paige and Danielle and I had in Mr. (CrapICan'tRemeberHisName)'s AP Euro class Tenth Grade     Harry Potter as a cultural phenomenon     Eoin Colfer and the Artemis Fowl series     Gas stations     Vanity Plates     Paved roads     That I've never had to go hungry     Charities     The BSO and Boston Pops     The Lilac-themed tea house Brian and I went to for lunch one time     The feeling of being a Goddess when you shave your legs     The color of Dan Frank's hair at prom     The Lifeteen Core that still inspire me     The amazing evening the five of us girls saw Legally Blonde together     That there's a Heaven waiting for all the loved ones I've lost     Rosaries     That Aunt Maria, Aunt Ruth, Uncle George, Grandpa Ken, and Katie will always be a part of me on some level     The feeling of being hugged by someone who loves you     The number of family members and friends I love and who love me back     The way two people's faces light up when they see each other after a long time apart     All the things I take for granted     Every kind of love

And most importantly, I'm thankful for everyone I've ever met because whether you suspect it or not, you've influenced me along the way to becoming the person I am today.  I can't thank you enough for helping me into living the life I do.  

Thank you.

The Woodloch Blues

HI so this is long overdue.  I just get kind of emotional in a bittersweet way whenever I take this out to finish, so it took a few installments.  It won't make much sense or be of much interest to a lot of people and CERTAINLY won't top the 140 views I got on my rant about Italians, but this has to exist anyway.  

Generally, I'm not one to glorify nature.  Sure, I love skiing and I can appreciate a nice panorama, but it doesn't go much further than that.  The sprawling suburbia I call home is pretty, but I don't miss the gardens and pond behind my house when I'm living in a city, nor do I miss the assortment of wildlife that makes my yard its home.  Flowers smell like funerals, beaches require too much sunscreen, and--call me spoiled, but--I'm even pretty unfazed by the myriad of colors in the view of the sunset from my deck every night.

Now that you understand my general lack of enthusiasm for nature, I hope you can feel this as deeply as I mean it: Woodloch Pines is the most beautiful place I've ever seen.

Scintillating Lake Teedyuskung

The love I have for this beautiful corner
of the universe is unreal.

Zip lining

Woodloch is a family resort we've visited every summer since 2002.  Think of Kellerman's in Dirty Dancing.  It's a family vacation spot plopped in the middle of beautiful, nature-y nowhere with activities scheduled all day long to satisfy the whole family.  The lake is open all day for swimming, canoeing, kayaking, and water skiing.  There are indoor and outdoor pools and kiddie pools.  There are all the outdoorsy activities-- biking, hiking, zip lining, rock wall climbing, and trapshoot-- plus go karts, bumper boats, bocce ball, paintball, you name it.  Meals are served in the Main House and are fairly delicious.  Everyone gets dressed up for night shows and events.  

Annual battle of the bumper boats.

We spend four days every summer, and we come away each year insisting that was the best trip we've had yet, (with the exception of the years Mrs. Schizzano sprained her ankle and my mom had kidney-stones, of course).  We missed Woodloch last year to go to Florida for the first time since fourth grade.  We loved seeing Grandma Mary and Aunt Tara and meeting our new little cousin Emma.  It was fantastic to see Ginger, Mom’s best friend from high school, and her daughter Erin.  It was absolutely unreal to live out my childhood fantasy of standing on the Hogsmeade bridge and staring up at what honestly could have been Hogwarts.  I wouldn’t trade those experiences for anything, but it was weird not visiting Woodloch for the first time in a decade.  We built this trip up so much in our minds, it seemed impossible it could live up to our expectations.  We had counted down, spent weeks preparing for the Scavenger Hunt, made T-shirts, gotten our nails done, and spent hours agonizing over our evening outfits.  (That moment when Chelsea's boyfriend is explaining which outfit is more cute and which outfit is more "Sydney.")  We sat fidgeting nonstop on the four hour car ride, laughing nervously and practically twitching with excitement.

Scavenger Hunt Gold,
anyone?

Then we stood in front of the Main House, with its duck pond, hook-on-the-ring game, pristine garden, and classic green awning over the painted red wooden doors, all that tension just floated away.  It felt as though we’d never skipped a beat.

I swear they aren't paying me to sound like an infomercial.  I just sincerely wish everyone could experience the intense appreciation I have for this place.

Insane love for
employees

I'd love to list all the events (Scavenger Hunt Gold anyone?) and traditions (It's a CRIME if we bid on any horse besides our numbers) and inside jokes (DOES THIS LOOK LIKE A MUSTACHE?) and insane love for the employees (This year is for Nick and HIP HIP JORGE!), but the truth of it is that no one besides our families would care.

OUR Horses

     

Just know this all this goes on for a jam-packed four days in the most beautiful little corner of the universe filled with hills, winding roads, pine trees, flowers, wildlife, and the huge, scintillating Lake Teedyuskung.  

Priceless Bonds

The most beautiful thing about Woodloch is the priceless bonds it forges.  The Schizzano family and mine are beyond blessed to have spent ten Woodloch vacations together.  I'll forever be thankful for how close we've become, from diving through chocolate syrup and Cheerios for Double Dare with Chelsea when we were nine to kayaking to the end of the lake at nineteen.  

Sealed with chocolate syrup and cheerios.

It’s not the Buckingham Palace, Times Square, or Mount Everest kind of beauty.  It’s sunlight poking through loose hills of pine trees beautiful. It’s kayaking along the lily pads with kids laughing on the dock beautiful.  It’s home-away-from-home beautiful.

Home.

Lord, we needed that vacation.  Going on this trip proved our nightmare months of a broken jaw and liquid diet were over.  Actually, because of those hard times, every minute of this vacation was that much sweeter.  It’s more than that though.  In the time that passed since we had last dangled our toes off the dock, many of the constants in our lives have changed: some of us graduated and spent a year living somewhere new, while some of us adjusted to having one less family member live at home.  Some of us got our licenses, while some got their permits.  We were in our first school plays and picked what new language classes to take, and we bought our first cars and picked colleges.  We gained some relationships and let some others go.  We each had our fair share of laughter, tears, and growth. Then, without needing to discuss, we sat in our usual spots around our window table Saturday night, and watched the sky paint itself a hundred different colors as the sun set behind the lake.  Not all that much seems to have changed after all.  

All the symptoms
of the Woodloch Blues

When we got home I showed all the symptoms of the Woodloch Blues in full force:  I snuggled in my Woodloch sweatshirt, wore my gold medal and bracelet, savored every sugar crystal of my slice of crumb cake, and obsessed over the pictures Chelsea put on Facebook.  This time though, there was less sad nostalgia and more of the sweetness of happy memories.  A million more things will change in all our lives, but we’ll be back before long.  We’ll always find our way back to Woodloch for more of those perfect, golden days.  

Perfect, golden days. 

All Hail Northeastern

Friday night was my last night living in International Village.  A lot of summer goodbyes were said, each of which was highly emotional.  Shannon, Lauren, Sean, Iris, Chris, Alaric, Meredith, Sarah, Andy, and Tasha all left before Saturday.

It's more sad than I'd have ever conceived.  Tasha's part of the room had been packed for a few days, but there were cardboard boxes and suitcases and food splayed across the desk.  Once she really moved out, there was this pervading sense of emptiness in the room.  I had to face my own wall when I was on the computer to avoid looking at the blankness.

Saturday morning was an early start to pack up the entire room.  Lauren was up too and sat with me while it happened.  I'm glad I didn't have to pack alone.  She and Ryan left over the course of the day, and I helped Laura move into Smith for Prism.  After these thirteen farewells, it got really lonely.  My family packed me up and moved me out, and then I just had to empty the recycles and trash one more time.  When I was standing in 933 IV for the last time, I got kind of overwhelmed.  That room was my home for eight months.  I had a really beautiful view of Roxbury everyday.  I slept, studied, laughed, cried, lived, and grew in that room.  To see it return to looking exactly as it did on Day One two semesters ago was beyond sad.  I had one last view out the window, shut the lights, and left the room dark and empty.

What bothers me is that it looks EXACTLY as it did when we first moved in.  This is exactly as it will look when the new freshies move in.  My opinion when we first moved in was that the undecorated room looked a bit like a jail cell: it was a blank diary, waiting for Tasha and I to fill its pages.  Now, I KNOW we've written all over every page of it, but the unforgiving white walls don't reflect that.  It's like all our memories are erased.  WE know those adventures live on, but not a single soul to live there next will.  It's disconcerting.

What will I remember most about this year?  Decorating the room that first night till 2 am, The Good, the Bad, the Weird in Andy's room, the time we watched Bill and Ted's Excellent Adventure in Scott and Sean's room, Harry Potter Movie-thons, the time Tasha and I went Christmas shopping at Marshall's, the Doctor Who marathon, girl talks, girl talks accompanied by beverages, Christmas decorations for all of second semester, that time we all agreed that if I was a phone company I'd be Virgin Mobile, piecing together the previous night over a noon breakfast, Russell Brand tickets, Halloweekend, bringing home ABP goodies, The Vow for Valentine's Day, HUSKY HUNT, jamming in Ryder at 11 at night, lik-ing dis if u cry evertim, doing homework in the room of whoever's door was bolted, watching Thomas the Tank Engine, playing Kings, shooting A True Gentleman, Relay for Life, impromptu adventure in the North End, two ships passing in the night, cleansing my palate, stealing dining hall cookies, the midnight Hunger Games premiere, the Rageous War, family dinners, Snow Ball, ALL the That's What She Said and Sounds Like My First Time jokes, Grease-Sing Along, eating sushi in class, agreeing that Indian food is always a good idea, questioning each other's taste in fruit, maneuvering sailing/musical debris every night, surviving the Poltergeist, LOTS of tickling, that time we wrote a musical about dancing zombies, an eighteen page paper on Wicked, getting through Saint Patrick's Day, reading the Manual, CALL ME MAYBE?, suggestively reading Cosmo to each other, the Christmas Rager, fermenting yeast, the Hot Guy Wall, The Art Exhibit, long walks by the Charles, NUSO concerts, erratic sleep schedules, those times we shared all the details of all the stories, and most vividly, seeing each other off one by one.

Next fall as the Sexy Six of Six-Sixteen can't get here quickly enough  Those I haven't hugged in person recently took some photo spamming to the wall, and I'm just more anxious to see your smiling faces. Come back, please?

THANK YOU.  Everyone who played any small part in making my freshman year at Northeastern so fantastic deserves the most sincere thank you, from my parents, for letting me go, to the dining hall workers who didn't speak English.  All the Tremont Street Raiders, all the music majors, the RAs, the Pep Band people, the professors, and every student I met helped make this the most epic year I could have dreamed up.  There are things I'd do differently, and things I wouldn't change for the world.  I'm just glad it all happened.  I'm proud of who this year has helped me become, and I owe it to beautiful Boston, Northeastern, and every single Husky I've met for helping me grow so much.

I truly can't wait to see you all again soon.

"The Time Has Come!" the Walrus said.

Today was honestly wonderful.  Playing piano, seeing friends, having your mother cook delicious Italian style pasta, getting Starbucks, and watching Doctor Who; it literally does not get any better than today.


My one and only complaint would be the two vaccines I needed this morning.  Yech.




Rebecca and I had a wonderfully long lunch today.  It is not New York until you've gone for pizza.  Now I'm officially home.  One thing it made me realize though was exactly how much has changed since we graduated.  I obviously knew when Graduation came that life, my friendships, and my goals would undergo major revamping in the months to come, but I underestimated how permanent those changes would be.  What I truly resent is the limited time I have to see my friends when we're home.  Columbus Day, Thanksgiving, and now--it's "When can I see you?" with everyone.  If you're lucky, you can see some people multiple times, for a good few hours each time.  The messiness of that sunk in with me today:  It will always be about forcing these people to fit into spare room in our lives.  We're too busy spreading out all over the country to study, and then later trying to find work.  From now on, none of us will ever be free to hang out whenever and wherever with whomever we want.  I never really considered that before.  I was so fixated on dealing with missing each other when we're apart that I never considered the time constraints associated with seeing each other.    The same goes for the friends we've made at school--away from college, we're from all over the country!  We're from New York, Massachusetts, Connecticut, Florida, Kansas, Kentucky, California, Maryland, and Pennsylvania.  As soon as school's out for a break, it's impossible for us to all see each other.  


That was a rather disheartening conclusion.  Additionally though, I did get to considering just how long ago Graduation seems.  Prom?  Concerts?  Senior Trips (or whatever you want to call what Nolan managed)?  It all seems like more than a few months ago.  I don't mean it seems like a longer time ago--I mean it feels like a deeper measure of time ago.  It's almost as though those days were several people ago.  A bunch of versions of me ago.  This, I can't categorize as good or bad.  It's just a fact.  




I saw Mr. Nolan today also. Nolan in a nutshell:
Mr. Nolan: The single greatest teacher I've ever had.  He is responsible for keeping me sane through high school and pushing me to work harder in English than I even knew an English class could make you .  He can make any classroom discussion relate to his lesson plan.  He helped me with my college essay, college apps, and wrote my letter of rec.  He's strongly opinionated, but also always right, so it works, somehow.  He's definitely the teacher I miss most.  


My sister has not had the joy of having Mr. Nolan yet.  When we were chatting in his room today, he gave her his signature "GPAs don't matter and you need to appreciate the important things in life" speech.  It was so weird seeing him give that speech to someone besides me.  Between when I met Mr. Nolan in tenth grade and Graduation, I needed a ridiculous amount of those talks.  Apparently the time has come for Deels to need them to.  Godspeed, Mr. Nolan.   She's even more neurotic than I was.




We had spaghetti with red clam sauce for dinner. HEAVEN IN A BOWL.




After dinner I met some of the girls for Starbucks and to catch up.  Those girls make up half of the Amazing Eight.  I shall explain the Amazing Eight tomorrow because that will require effort and brainpower, neither of which I have the energy for at the moment.  




Oh, and I just watched "The Impossible Planet" and "The Satan Pit" Doctor Who episodes.  No clue what the hell just happened, but I'm pretty sure it was a genius plot line.


"GET HAPPY."  Rebecca's idea of an appropriate treatment for the clinically depressed.