Starting Senior Year and Turning 21!

It’s been a bit of a hiatus since I last blogged, but to be fair, it’s not 100% my fault. My WordPress account wouldn’t let me post anymore without upgrading my account to premium and because money haha I only just upgraded my account as a part of my birthday present from my family. So now that I’ve financially committed to this, I’m back and gonna be posting content a lot more regularly 🙂

To recap, a lot has happened since my last post. For starters, I came back to the U.S. from London and went through that whirlwind culture shock and transition period. I still look back on my memories from this past semester and sometimes wish I was still there, but overall I’m happy to be settled and back into a normal routine. Abroad was amazing, but also put significant stress on my mental health. Over the past few months I’ve still been sorting out my anxiety and learning how best to cope with it through medication and therapy. I have a ways to go, but my anxious thoughts are definitely more under control than they were during abroad, which is a good sign.

Senior year has been lovely so far. I feel happy with the close friends that I have surrounding me and am trying to make the most of my final year. I joined The Rival and WVAU web staff to get more involved in the student media community. I also will be hosting my own radio show for WVAU and am currently holding a leadership position in my sorority along with continuing with my involvement in AmLit as an eboard member (blog editor). I love my new apartment that I live in with Maeve. It is located right by the cathedral and feels homey since we decorated it with lots of plants and art.

There is definitely a lot of stress in the back of my mind when I think about the future; the world after graduation feels daunting and full of unknowns. I’m just trying to not overthink all my choices and am attempting to stay positive about job prospects. More on that to come when I start actually applying.

A lot of exciting events have happened in my life over the past few weeks that I feel super grateful for. On September 18th, I turned 21 (finally, since I am definitely the last of my friends to reach that milestone). The day of my actual birthday was lovely, despite it being a school day and one of my busiest days in terms of classes. My sweet roommate: Maeve made me breakfast of pancakes and eggs and toast, my classes went well and I got lots of birthday hugs and treats from friends throughout the day (shout-out sweet Maddie Hull and Carol Wright). After my block that ended at 8, I walked down to Chef Geoff’s for a birthday dinner with a bunch of my close friends. I ate pasta and drank a pineapple sangria. I felt very loved and appreciated by the people in my life. My birthday present to myself the day following was a tattoo of a magpie that I’ve been wanting to get for forever.

The following Friday of that week, I celebrated more formally by hosting a party at my apartment. So many of my friends showed up to wish me a happy birthday and it was a huge success (completely worth the mess and the vacuuming and mopping Maeve and I had to do the day after). I did get a little too anxious and overwhelmed when we went out and had to leave, but I’ve since realized that’s ok. I was worried that I disappointed people or seemed lame in the moment, but now I know that it was good that I listened to myself and went home when I started to feel panicked. It happens and I am trying to remind myself lately to celebrate the good moments and let go of the bad. Life is too short to waste feeling frustrated and upset with yourself for things that are out of your control.

The day after my 21st, I celebrated my one year anniversary with my boyfriend: Albert. It was a really big milestone for me because this is the longest relationship I’ve ever had by a long shot. He is such a considerate and funny and weird person and I love spending time with him. We ate out at a Michelin star restaurant called Bresca (the bread was incredible) to celebrate the occasion and went for a walk and watched a movie together at home afterwards. We both are obsessed with food and the show Master Chef, so needless to say, we were pretty pumped about the experience.