whirl-wind week

Friday I finished my class, sent in applications, did some shopping at target to get travel essentials: quick dry red nail polish, dr. bronner's magic soap - tea tree, plastic travel bottles, bikini top, and a super awesome $40 duffel bag with WHEELS!! Dragging my dive gear around the San Juan airport last year was a little too much for me, so I gave in and bought non-army issued luggage for the first time in my life, haha.Saturday was a long drive up to NJ for Linda's graduation party. We've lived next door to eachother for 3 years, and been best friends since the moment we met. She's been going through a rough time, and for some reason her life is always more drama filled than daytime TV, but she has such a great sense of humor, is extremely raunchy, and has the best, loudest, most infectious laugh you have ever heard in your life. 12 hours of drinking, 1 dip in the pool, 2 tearfilled conversations, 4 meals, and 5000 laughs later I left with a massive headache but a smile on my face.

Sunday I got home late from Linda's and tried studying for my final. It wasn't easy, between small snacks and naps I managed to do my best to get through 8 chapters of biochemistry.

Monday I took my final, hopped on the train for the last time, got home, packed and headed to our camper in the Poconos to meet with the bf, and had a phone interview for a job out in CA. Last time we saw each other was mid-June for a few days, and before that mid-May, and this time just one night, one day, and one morning, that's all we had, not much time but its better than nothing. Lunch on the pond followed by a tearful goodbye and a 3 hour drive I'm back home.

Now it's all about packing for my month long research trip to the BVI. !!!SUPER EXCITED!!!

one last class!!

I have my last class of my biochemistry course tomorrow!!!!!! Officially the last class of my undergraduate career. Final exam on Monday and then done done done. Needless to say I'm excited. Even better than finishing the class, I finally get to visit my best friend in NJ for her graduation party on Saturday. Monday I'm jumping in the car as soon as I finish the test to visit the bf for a few days, and I leave for the British Virgin Islands on the 1st. Ahhh, it's like I can finally relax/work and do what I love, I'm stoked!!

Craftwise I've been working on some buttons, hair sticks, and shawl pins. My parents had to trim up some of the rhododendrens in the back yard so I cut down and sanded the branches into new wonderful things. I've already made a bunch of beautiful buttons for a sweater I made in May/June, and they add just the perfect touch of nature.

I've also added a bunch of pictures to my flickr of past projects that I will be adding to my etsy site, here's a few for you to chew on.

-click to zoom-

out of the hole

Found something to get me busy and overwhelmed: intense biochemistry class at Villanova. I have to catch the 7:12 train to get to my 8:30 class on time, and most days I can't get home until 12:30, and then I drive to work. The class is 2 hours a day, 5 days a week, for 1 month. We do between 5-7 chapters a week, and have an exam every Friday. It's kicking my ass.

-villanova train-station-

So with new found energy I have actually taken the time to look for job and I am completing applications right now, yay! I'm applying for some crazy stuff: internship on Catalina island at a boy scout camp working in the marine science center/ lab, salmon research and public education projects in Washington, Save the Bay job in Rhode Island, and teaching at Seacamp in the Florida keys.

I just need to keep myself going full steam ahead before I leave for the islands, then I can relax, sort of.

-this is the beach I will be on every day of my research trip-