Priorities

Have you ever had problems prioritizing? Well, I am guessing you have, at least once in your lifetime. Why is it so hard for us, humans, to make a list of things, grade them based on their importance, then go down the list and scratch things off one after another? It all sounds so easy on the paper... I used to struggle with this quite a bit, especially right after I first came to the US. However, over the years, I have definitely made a lot of progress... Currently, I feel that I am way better at balancing my life between school, work and social life. Yes, yes, sometimes school and work do take over social life, but once the finals are done, I usually make up for it by reconnecting with people and taking some time for myself. I have been thinking about all this since the school just started and I already have a ton to do. But my plan is to take one day at a time and get things done.

Well, a little bit about today... today was quite sad and emotional, for a few reasons which I will not name. But the day is almost over, and I am feeling better...

Summer!

The summer is almost over, but today was the most summery day I've had this year! Ingrid, Tina and I went to lake Calhoun and lay on the beach for 2 hours. After we got back, we went up to the rooftop (the building where Tina and I live has a rooftop with a grill) and made delicious burgers. So right now, I am stuffed and trying to stay awake since the day is far from being over. We'll be going out tonight since Ingrid and Killa are leaving us tomorrow - Ingrid is going back to Norway and then to London where she will be working next year, and Killa is going to China for a year to teach English to the Chinese students. And well, Tina and I, we will be staying in Minneapolis, but we don't mind, since we both feel at home here (well, I know I do, and I think Tina does too...). All of this makes me a little sad I guess, but the good thing is that all of us are doing something that makes us happy.

It's been too long...

I have been very bad at keeping up with my writing, but right now I am in the middle of transitioning to a new lifestyle with the school starting up this week, so I will try to make some time every day to write at least one paragraph each day.
This summer went by too fast... each year I feel that time just keeps speeding up, and I really, really wish that it would slow down... A few things happened this summer, some good, others not so good. Overall, I think that it was an important time in my life since it gave me an opportunity to think more about the future and make some important decisions. I got a new job, which I enjoyed very much and which allowed me to learn new things every day. Another thing that happened (or actually, it would be more accurate to call it a "string of events") was that I broke up, made up, and broke up again with my now ex-bf. The truth is that it should have been over a long time ago, but neither one of us was strong enough to do it. Finally, it happened, and I am glad it did because I feel much better now. I am so much more confident in what I want (and what I do not want). Also, my mother came for a visit which was very nice since I hadn't seen her in two years. However, right as she was leaving to go back the war started in Georgia which caused both of us a few sleepless nights. Well, I guess there was at least one good thing about the war - my mom ended up staying here for an additional week. Now she is back home safe and sound and I miss her a lot but I am also glad that she is there with my dad and the rest of the family. And lastly, the summer ended with my Norwegian roommate from college - Ingrid - coming for a visit. I hadn't seen her in 2 years so it was a nice surprise to have her back. The best thing is that even though I haven't seen Ingrid in such a long time, I still feel that it was just a couple of months ago when we shared an apartment at Augsburg... It's amazing how fast time has gone by, but fortunately, it has not managed to cause any damage to our friendship. And now, now I am back to school. I just finished the first week of classes and I am a bit overwhelmed by everything that has been going on lately but hopefully I will get used to my new schedule soon.
Well, that was my summer in a nutshell. I hope that everyone else had a great summer and got to do some interesting things. According to Ingrid, the summer is not over yet - she was shocked by the fact that the temps are still in the 70's in Minneapolis since in London, where she will be living next year, it's only 10C (that's around 50F).