It's official

I am halfway through my graduate degrees! It's 1:52 a.m. I just finished my last paper of this quarter. I'm home, safe and sound. Wish I could sleep late tomorrow, but I have class at 9 (a mere formality, no?).

I have now completed:
3/5 law semesters
2/3 masters quarters.

Woo! I'm doin' it. Making my way...

Me sleepy, time for bed.

Made it to Friday

Quick updates --

I have been laying off the running this week (and next) because my heel is sore. I'm afraid it's plantar fasciitis. This means lots of elliptical. I miss running and being outside. :( I think riding should be okay, so I'm going to head out for a ride this weekend.

I was offered my dream internship in DC! Very excited about it for so many reasons. More on that later. The jobs, the friends, the family, the new (diverse! international!) city -- cannot wait!

I went to PILG Auction last night. Open bar (which I can never seen to get my money's worth), fun mingling, dressed up fancy, and had a good 80s cover band. I thought I was going to get pulled over when I was driving home because I was so tired I was driving terribly.

The quarter ends next week. I have 1 15 page paper; 1 10 page paper/final exam; 1 25 page paper; 1 presentation; 1 20 page paper. I'm sleep deprived and my head is spinning. Spring break is coming up!

Um, hi. It's March. Can't believe that.

A taste of freedom

I was at a playground last night and had a moment of freedom - the swings! There is something truly liberating about swinging. Swings seem so simple with just two chains and a piece of rubber. Of course they are wonderful for kids, but I really think they're even better for adults. When else do adults get to feel weightless fluidity? There I was, pumping my legs, feeling the winter air run through my fleece coat, and falling into an unconscious rhythm. It was so relaxing and energizing, a moment of mesmerizing trance in the smooth movement. I felt like a pendulum tracing the lunar shape of a moon cookie. I also felt like I was back at BWB. I know that part of the allure of swings is probably connected to nostalgic days of elementary school because those were good days. (Note: I don't say, 'Those were the good days,' because I really believe every day has potential to be a good day. Many days since childhood and my days today are equally, yet differently, good days. I can't stand to believe that the best days are behind me.) But, really, the swings were good for the soul. Go find some swings. Go at night, if you want to be stealth - or, if you want the experience to be all yours.

In the wise words of my brother: They can steal my GPA but they can't steal my freedom.

Musak

After a few days where things were pretty touch-and-go, I found my iPod! I was whining to my (poor, kind) friend over a little elliptical gym date how I couldn't find my iPod and probably was going to get a new one. I'm not really sure how this happened, but my friend said, "Oh! I think I have your iPod in my car!" Hurrah! She said she listened to it on her drive up to the mountains last weekend. I'm sure she was appalled at my mix, but it's worth the mild embarrassment to have it back in my little pocket. She's probably now aware of all my secret guilty pleasures like Christina Aguilera, Mariah Carey, and (gulp) Hanson. Whatever, people! You try motivating to run at 5 a.m. in 8 degree weather!

In any event, if you like Techno-y-eletronica music, check these out.

OceanLab
"On a Good Day"
(this video also won some awards)
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=X7pOY-ZdXQI

Offer Nissim featuring Maya
"Only You"
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zSvCJ9WBIl4

Taxi-Girl (with DJ Tiesto, I think)
"High Glow"
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2oZkUnJOj48

Reflekt
"Need to Feel Loved"
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Bxsv2iJwijI&feature=related

Ian Van Dahl
"Castles in the Sky"
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=iicAw-gsDUE&feature=related

Winter

Au milieu de l'hiver, j'ai découvert en moi un invincible été.
(In the depths of winter, I finally learned that there was in me an invincible summer.)

-Albert Camus

I find that there is something special about people who hold winter are their favorite season. Winter is hard. Winter is bitterly cold. It freezes your boogers and turns your (my) fingers and toes white. It's dark at 5 a.m., still dark at 6 a.m., and somehow still dark at 7 a.m. Your bed seems much harder to get out of and the sun-shiny day ends before you leave work, should you be lucky enough to have a sunny day in winter. There are fewer colors in nature, fewer varieties of fruits or vegetables to eat, and life in general is undeniably a bit harder to love. All this to say, I have much respect for people who like winter. They seem to have strong will power, self-generated energy and admirable adaptability.

For me, today was a test: Monday morning. Dark, icy and 8 degrees, I dragged myself out of bed for my run at 5 a.m. I packed my hot pink tights in my gym bag because they brighten up winter days and give me a little perk. I am already considering a second cup of coffee this afternoon, the bribe I made to myself this morning. If you get yourself out of bed to go running, Carrie, then you can have a second cup of coffee as a reward this afternoon.

And, so, fall is still my favorite season. But, winter has always been my second favorite. It's a challenge that makes me stronger. I'm still learning its ways and my ways of being happy during it. Winter makes me a little more creative by forcing me to search for the beautiful hidden gems and traditions that lie within it.