C.O.L.L.E.G.E.

Here's to college. The time in my life that I can stop being bombarded by the Bedford environment and can become more of the person that I want to become. So many times I've had to make choices now that I'm on my own, and whether or not they are the right choices, I feel better about them because they were mine. I mean, during highschool, yes, you have to make choices, and you have to start getting more and more independent, but it's nothing like college. And I love that fact. I have tons of time to hang out with friends, AND to study. Which, is so different from highschool. I always felt like I was running around trying to do everything and get everything completed for school. But now, it's like I have time to do the things that I want to do and the things that I have to do.
Yay for growing up!(:
I'll post more later.

Pennsylvania, Pennsylvania

This state is just beautiful. Hard to describe really, the short mountains covered with deep green trees, the houses squashed together with loads of history in each piece of wood, and the people walking out and about at all times of the day and/or night. I've tried to keep up with the pictures, but sometimes there's just not that spunk of a little "burough" in the side of a mountain that you can see with your own two eyes. The trip up to Kittanning, PA was a long one, to say the least. I think it took us about nine hours. Crazy amount of time to be in a car. It wasn't too bad though, me and Kayla (Luke's wife) stayed in the car for the most part and we had tons of fun. Lots to talk about and such. I'm pretty sure that we talked almost the entire time we rode together. I've decided that me and Kayla are crazy alike, which is awesome!

I'm not sure how to describe the rest of our trip. From day one we were cleaning and unpacking and cleaning some more. Sometimes it felt like the girls did all the work, and the guys worked slower. I know by the end of the day all three of us girls, Kayla, Mom, and me were very very tired and went to sleep whenever we climbed into bed. But maybe that's just because it I saw it from our point of view, who knows. We made a huge dent in their empire of cardboard boxes, but by the time we left this morning they still had a long way to go to finish moving in.

We walked last night around town to go see Luke's "Youth Center" for the youth group. It's a really nice building, about three and a half blocks away from the apartment, and the main church building is just down the street from the center. The youth center actually has a little kitchen area that the youth run, and they sell things like drinks and candy there. Luke's office is just upstairs, and its nice and spacious. (It does have a Steelers football flag on the window though. I'm surprised he hadn't already taken that down.) That was pretty cool to see.

This entire trip, ever since Monday morning, I have been trying and trying to be happy and upbeat, to try and have fun while I'm having a great experience in a state that I've never been in before or dreamt of being here. But it's so hard to do that when the entire time John complains about being here, and not helping out when asked to do something totally simple, something that would take probably ten minutes at the most. But he complains and complains and then it takes about asking him twenty times before he gets up off the coach and does it. I'm not sure how he does that, sits around and plays video games or watches tv all day. If I'm inside for just a few hours, I get snippy and have to go outside and get some fresh air. I can't even imagine wanting to be inside doing nothing all day. I'd be fidgeting and crabby and jumpy all day. Maybe I don't always understand what goes on in that brain of his, but goodness.

Gettysburg. That's where we are right now, and I wouldn't say it's as beautiful as Kittanning, but it's pretty dang close. Here, there's an air of something (I haven't quite been able to name it yet). Like, you know some pretty big crap went down on the very land that you're walking on. It's pretty neat-o. We're taking a tour tomorrow of the battlegrounds, and then we'll walk around and look in on the museums and some of the other places we've heard are good to go to. Apparently, we're staying in the first modern hotel that was built in Gettysburg, which, is pretty cool because it was our last resort to finding a hotel room last minute. I'm pretty excited about being here, because it's one thing to read about a hugely historical battle, but a totally different learning experience being here at the same exact place that those men were hundreds of years ago.

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A Big Girl,

that I am. Or so I feel. But sometimes, people make me feel like a child, and I don't always appreciate it. Yes, I was raised to not do that. But yes, I am old enough to make my own decision. I am not totally incapable of protecting myself if need be, but I trusted that I would be safe. And I was. Totally and completely. Life is crazy, yes, but it is what you make it. And I don't want to live in the shadows for the rest of my life, I'm not that kind of girl, even though I was raised in a shell. Shoot, I'm gonna be living at college soon, in a little over a month, and I'm going to make choices, some wise, some not so wise, but that comes with the property I think. I always think about the choices, and what might happen, goodness, I worry like crazy. I was ridiculously nervous today, until I got there. And everything fell away. I had fun, felt like a big kid. But hey, you can't win every battle I guess.

Welcome,,

to the girls of Ruston Hall, Room 107. We're wild, crazy and all Christians. Two nursing majors, two occupational therapy majors. Four girls ready for their new life as college kids. =]

those lazy Sundays

I love it. The lazy Sunday afternoons after church or lunch, where you just sit around and relax. You have so many different options to do, talk with friends, sleep, watch movies, read a book, or all of the above. Just sitting around, not caring what the world thinks of you, or how you look towards other people. You can just sit back and relax. Who cares what the time is? Time is on your side on Sundays.

This past week wasn't totally horrible, I guess. The days were long, hot, and slow, but the week itself passed quickly. So maybe this week will go just as fast. I sure hope so. Then, I will be able to go to Evansville next Sunday and look around, which, it turns out, is my plan. We'll see how that turns out though.

A Day At Holiday World

Today was kind of difficult. Not only was it extremely hot outside, so much that ride operators were dropping like flies, but the guests seemed much more troubling then usual. It seemed like the entire day I was just thinking to myself, I hope that they'll just walk past this ride..Too bad they didn't. There was one highlight though. At the end of the day, I overheard a little boy tell his sister that when he went on Reindeer Games(which is like a miniture Liberty Launch) that it tickled his weiner. I cracked up. My best friend, basically my sister, was there today too, but I didn't get to see her..Her and her cousins stayed in Splashin' Safari all day.
And of course, it didn't start storming and raining until I got home. Luckily, Semy loves me and the male counterpart went to Wendy's and bought me food. (: Yum!
Well, I work open to close again tomorrow, so I'm going to get offline and go to bed like a good girl. More later. =]

A New Start

I decided today that I would start a blog. Some friends have told me that it gets their feelings out, a sort of, theraputic thing to do (thanks Haley!), so I have. I don't really know if I want tons of people to read it, sometimes I just think it would be cool to have a sort of online journal that wouldn't necessarily be silly and childish. So here we go.
I've been living with my oldest brother, Seth, and his wife, Amy, (together known as Semy by our family) for the summer and it's been a great experience. I've not only come to realize that friends and family surrounding you is what makes your life interesting, but I've also, in my mind at least, grown and matured in ways. I help clean and run errands, seems to me like I'm starting to slowly progress into adulthood. Slowly but surely, I guess that's how it could be said. The reason that I am living with them for the summer is because I got my first real job in the working world. A ride operator at Holiday World & Splashin' Safari.
Jobs in the real world aren't always fair, and it's almost always their word against yours. I guess that I've grown up in that way some too. I've gotten past working for my dad, where I could ask off for whatever nights I wanted to, like if a friend called, I'd just tell him that I was leaving, and that John (my brother) could handle it. I can't do that now. I have to ask off at least three weeks in advanced, and then they may or may not give it to you. For now though, I can handle that, considering that I have turned my two weeks in as of yesterday and my last day will be August 3rd.
It's been fun not living at home, but some nights, like this past Sunday nights, it gets really lonely. I'm not necessarily lonely for people in general, that's covered by Semy, and they're great to hang around with. But there are days when I just want my parents. They've been such a huge part of my life, and not having them around all the time the summer before college may not have been such a great thing, but I guess at least I'll have a taste of what it's like not living with them..maybe it'll help with learning to live with my unknown roommates.
As for now, I'll stop "blogging" and help Amy clear the living room/dining room floor so that she can mop.