Distractions

I began this blog hoping to post every day or every other day. But sometimes we get to the end of a day and realize we are just plain lazy. 

You know what? That's okay. We have responsibilities of course and those do need to get done in an effective and timely matter to lessen our stress levels. However, how nice is it to just be able to sit back or lay down, maybe with the person you love, and just do nothing. 

For the last few months I have been stressing myself out over finding a full-time position, a "real-life" job where I can breath easier knowing I have some sort of financial security (and I can stop eating away my savings / mooching off of others). On Thursday afternoon I was visiting UCONN Health Education to say hello to some friends and my advisor and join in the Homecoming celebrations. Of course, that one hour that I had my phone off for a meeting was the hour that Eastern Connecticut State University called me to give their final word on whether or not I had gotten the position I have been interviewing for since August. 

While the timing could not have been more on par, that is how life works doesnt it? I would just have to wait until the morning to find out because my contact at ECSU had already gone home for the evening. Life is often a waiting game, but who is to say that all we have to do while waiting, is wait?! We don't :) and don't ever let someone tell you otherwise. While we wait, we can DO! 

New at Storrs, CT

That night I joined my advisor for dinner at a new restaurant and watched the infamous UCONN Homecoming Lipsync performances. I sat with friends from my years at school as well as a few new folks who had joined in the months that I have been gone. People come in and out, but the same feeling of acceptance and friendship were there. We laughed and acted like fools dancing to the songs and singing even when we didn't know the words. I stayed a few minutes after the performance to congratulate my friends at the Rainbow Center on winning for the Cultural Center category. 

The morning came. I woke up laying next to my partner knowing that no matter what happened when I called Eastern, I was still so lucky. Having an incredible family, group of friends, and someone who loves me means that no matter what happens, I am the luckiest person on earth. She was still half asleep when I went into the living room to make the call. I came back, smiling. I got the job! She knew by my face when I got back and the first thing that she said, as she was smiling too, was "call your mother."

The following day I met up with my younger brother, who now goes to UCONN too, and we headed down a few towns to visit with my Grandparents. Ever since they moved to Connecticut we have taken a lot of time to be with them. They are two of the most genuine people you will ever meet, and often very honest haha. Grandma likes her curses and Grandpa likes to roll his eyes, and I love them both very much. Hopefully in the weeks to come I will get to go fishing once or twice more with him before the season ends. 

Saturday began how most homecoming weekends do, with the guys above us screaming "we are going to get wasted!" Not usually my preferred wake-up, but it happens haha. My brother and I carpooled down to Rentchler Field where we met up with our longtime friend Laura and my mom, who had just gotten lost going the wrong direction on the Merritt while they were chit chatting. Oh distractions! We took a nice long opportunity to laugh at that while enjoying homemade pulled pork and cheeseburgers with Mimosas, at 9:30 am. Hey, we like to tailgate and the game started at noon so it doesn't give us too much time to prepare. None of us are big drinkers, but we really enjoy the company and the atmosphere of the fall football season. We watched UCONN play to a 40 - 21 win against Vanderbilt. (A team whose name came up a lot as the "villain" in Thursday night's Lipsync performance)

After a disgruntled police officer sent us the wrong way on the exit attempt, creating an hour line to get out of the stadium, Tucker and I headed back to UCONN and a quick shower before dinner. Kate and Tucker decided to use my recent job acquisition as an excuse to go out for a celebratory dinner at the Willimantic Brewing Company. Its one of my favorite places downtown, and once I move up to Eastern it will be within walking distance. We had a great time and, although it is a brewery, had Coke and  Birch Beer to accompany our delicious meals. We dropped Tuck off at his dorm and headed back to the apartment where Kate's roommate (my roommate last year) Dayna, asked if we wanted to go out. . . Long story short, two hours later the three of us and two other friends, Nat and Alice, headed out for a 1.5 hour drive to a RI club. We got back around 3 am and were asleep before our heads hit the pillow.

By Sunday morning I was exhausted from having fun, and that is the way it should be! We didn't spend too much, and enjoyed every second of our events, both planned and spontaneous. We didn't get out of bed until almost 11 and even after that, we laid back down at 1 to watch the Jets game. For 2 full hours we did nothing but rest and hold each other. Now how often does that happen the average life? How often do we slow down and just be with the person we love, or the people we care about the most. Both of us, have very hectic lives (mine has been slower this fall while job searching but I imagine the pace quickening again very soon) and often forget to actually relax. Mornings like this are irreplaceable and priceless, as much as Mastercard would like to say otherwise.