Check-in

This evening after my turn during Check-in over dessert with the Unitarian group from Campus at Rev Johanna's house, Johanna suggested I get a blog. I replied that I have a blog, but the my posts are rather impersonal... perhaps because my Dad and Grandma read it. She replied that they can "deal with it." So here it is, a Check-in blogged for all to see.

This week has been amazing, with the crew season starting again. We psyche ourselves up for practice, and we stay psyched. Perhaps too psyched. Yesterday I'm sitting there enjoying breakfast, reflecting on my quiet and composed partying the night before when my friend comes over and all the sudden is like, "Whoa boy, last night you were totally belligerent." I felt disappointed in myself for a day or two, but now I feel like I don't have to be that way because I'm setting boundaries. For example, perhaps I won't play refined games like slap-the-bag anymore, or at least not twice in one night.

Ximena, my new councilor suggested I set boundaries. For example, I might hang out for two hours with friends on a Monday night, but I wouldn't then watch a movie for another two hours. Ximena is more forceful than my previous councilor, who is abroad. When I told her I had asked someone out on a date for the first time at Middlebury, she had absolutely no qualms telling me that it was a little odd not to set a specific time or place. So I afterward clarified the time and place, but the date fell through anyway--mostly because my date was taking a nap when I sent the text message.

I originally scheduled a meeting with my councilor at the suggestion of the health center. I went in because I had a sore throat and fatigue. The nurse told me it wasn't normal to have a sore throat for 4 weeks and drew blood for a mono test. Other than that, I had no symptoms at all, so she suggested in most diplomatic terms that the reason I slept through my classes the day before might be psychological. Last semester I figured out how to get to bed early enough to wake up for classes. Unfortunately, this semester I resolved to do my homework as well. I'm working it out.

The blood work came back sero-positive for mono, but also indicating I don't have it anymore. This is good because having mono means I can't do sports lest my spleen and my liver simultaneously explode. The blood work also came back negative for anemia. Too bad!--I was hoping for a medical excuse for why I'm so bad at crew. I'm working on a new theory involving too high a ratio of quick-twitch muscle fiber accounting for low endurance.

I recently catharticly purged my Facebook profile of pretentious material again. I guess I feel like I've been getting a little cocky lately. I've been feeling as if as a second semester sophomore, I've got it all figured out--we ain't freshmen no more. [At this point the 4 seniors at the dinner table scoff.] For example, last night I come back to my room and my friend says, "I'm not feeling so well"; I pull out a bucket from my closet--we got this, we got it figured out.

Over break I shopped at Costco and saved so much money. I bought two cases of v8 and a 250 pack of red solo cups before realizing it wouldn't fit under my seat on the bus back. So my dad recently drove through Middlebury and dropped off essentially a huge care package. I keep trying to get my friends to eat my chocolate--I tell them to stop being so selfish and take on some calories themselves. Papa also randomly dropped off a huge jar of pickles. I thought that was a bit odd until my friend came over, saw the pickles, and exclaimed, "Now we can do like the Russians!" I was enlightened.