Details!

I finally have a little bit of information to work off of! Woo hoo! I will start Monday morning at 8 am, I have an address, a suite number, and directions on where to park, which is a good start. Apparently shortly after I arrive we will be leaving to spend the day in New Ulm for a project that they are starting, and I will get the details of what we are doing/I'm doing on the car ride down.
Nothing like quickly learning the ropes! I'm thinking a car trip with my new boss will be a good way to get to know her quickly-- and hopefully its not too awkward. I have no idea who we are meeting with or how long the meetings will be, but I am thinking it is an all day thing. The internship and summer in Minneapolis is starting to seem more real now.
Now I just need to finish packing!
--brianna

The Last Few Days

I leave for Minneapolis on Saturday morning, which isn't very far away. I have managed to adjust to the time off to relax and enjoy life, so it seems weird to be leaving, even though I'm looking forward to the internship. I still don't have any details on the internship, other than that I start on Monday (don't know where I'm going, other than the address on the website, don't know what time to show up, anything).
I have been attempting to practice the art of polite email reminders to the future boss on getting me the details without being rude. I think if I don't hear anything by Thursday afternoon, I will at least ask for the where and when info. But, as my mom pointed out, if I don't have any details, they can't have any expectations of things I should know, which is at least a little helpful.
Cody and I have been attempting to spend time together and with our friends before I go, which has been fun. I managed to make it to Moosewood for lunch today, the first time I had been there. It was fun, good food-- I got the vegan ratatouille, which was pretty dang good.
The packing thing hasn't actually started yet, but I think I will work on it this afternoon. The plan is to watch a chick flick and pack while Cody is at work, before meeting some friends for a movie later. Hopefully I will maintain my motivation to get some packing done, or I think I may end up packing until Friday night, which means that I will be completely sleep deprived on my way to Minneapolis. And, I have to say, the prospect of needing to get up early in the morning next week to fight rush hour traffic into Minneapolis for work is not too thrilling. And, I haven't started readjusting my sleep schedule yet. Maybe soon, or maybe not. We'll see.
--brianna

Beginning of the Summer

So, the summer has unofficially begun! I realize that technically the seasons don't change for awhile yet, but the celebrating has started. It began Friday night when I went to a party with some friends to celebrate the end of the semester, and making it through the econ final that morning. It is the first time in my life I have been to a party that the cops came to. It was a little odd to be the first one to be told that the cops were coming (by some people out on the porch), but they were only there because the neighbors were complaining about how loud the music was. It still seemed a little surreal, and somehow typical of the college experience that I did not experience at Bethel.
Cody and I spent Saturday and Sunday in Skaneateles, which was a lot of fun, and a nice chance to relax. It would have been better if the weather had cooperated, but no such luck. We still enjoyed the town though,and the opportunity to check out some new restaurants.
Now I just need to figure out what to do with the free time that I have. I spent the day on Monday cleaning-- its amazing how last week every day seemed like there weren't enough hours in the day, and this week I don't know what to do with the time that I have. I'm sure I will adjust, and can't get too bored when I start my new internship. Well, that's about all, it hasn't been too exciting here.
--brianna

Almost Done

Well, I have made it through most of finals week relatively unscathed. The only class I have left is International Trade Policy, where I will hand in a paper tomorrow morning as I begin my final exam at 9:00. The paper is almost done, and the studying at least has been started. However, I will be incredibly thankful when the week is over and I can sleep stress-free, without questioning if I emailed in the right version of the paper to the professor before I went to sleep (yes, this actually happened, at 4 am earlier this week, and I needed to check my email as soon as I got up in the morning to make sure that it was the correct draft, which it was).
And, to celebrate being done, and an excuse to get out of Ithaca, Cody and I have decided to spend Saturday and Sunday in Skaneateles, a small town on one of the nearby lakes. I'm looking forward to getting away at least for a little while, and Skaneateles reportedly has a number of good restaurants, so now we just need to decide which ones to visit!
It's less than 2 1/2 weeks until I leave, which seems nuts. Hopefully Cody will find out soon when he can get some vacation time this summer, so he can get a plane ticket to Minnesota. The goal is for sometime in July. I haven't heard any more details on my internship yet, but I am hoping to hear soon. When I have a better idea of the projects I will be working on, I think I will feel better prepared. But, I also realize that some of this may get figured out once I get there.
But for now, I am simply trying to stay motivated until tomorrow and enjoy life in Ithaca for the next couple of weeks, by doing things like visiting the farmer's market before I go, hopefully making it to moosewoods at least once, and taking walks through the gorge.
--brianna

Finals...

Well, I have completed one of my finals, and have three to go. I should be able to complete the second in the next day or so, which will be followed by my stats exam on Wednesday, and my econ exam on Friday morning. And then, I will officially be halfway done with graduate school! I will admit that this is exciting, as well as a little nerve wracking, mostly because in the back of my mind, the further through grad school that I am, the closer I am to needing to complete my master's thesis. After watching the hell that my friends have gone through to get their theses or professional reports written, I am not looking forward to being in the same place a year from now.
It seems crazy that in three weeks, I will start my first day at my new internship. And, weird to think that I will be in Minnesota. But, fortunately, I have completed my last day at Barnes and Noble in Ithaca until next fall, so I will have time to relax and get ready before I go. Well, now off to do more work for the next final!
--brianna

Summer Plans

Well, my tickets have been purchased (thankfully, the parental units were willing to donate some airline miles so my whole stipend for the summer won't be wiped out with the cost of a ticket). I will arrive in Minneapolis on May 31st, and return to Syracuse (and Ithaca) on August 16th. It is definitely going to be weird living apart for the summer, but I think this gives us the best chance of being able to move back to Minnesota next year with some solid connections that could lead to a job.
So, Cody will be here in Ithaca while I am living with my parents (or more specifically my dad) for the summer. Hopefully this separation will go well, and when Cody comes to visit we will be able to spend some good time together. But, this will be a different experience to be sure. Fortunately, I know that my parents have managed to do this successfully, so that should be some help.
I'm trying to come up with a list of things I should try and do while I am around, as last summer was pretty much shot with wedding planning, grad school details, and planning a cross country move. If you have any ideas, let me know!
--brianna

A Final Decision

So, I just got off the phone with the VP of the Minneapolis Heart Institute Foundation, where I will be spending the summer working as an intern with the Education department. This will involve looking at grant proposals as well as writing them for new proposals that are going out for the projects that they are currently initiating. From the looks of it, I will be focusing on the implementation of new projects related to women's and girl's health, and doing research on collaborative efforts that MHIF is looking to participate in with other local non-profits. I'm really excited about the opportunity to get involved, as I think this will be a good chance to build skills that are helpful to any non-profit work (which I want to go into next year when I graduate), as well as an opportunity to build on the classes I have taken on women and community, which I am deeply interested in. They would like me to start the 2nd or 9th of June, so now it is simply a matter of finding a plane ticket. Yay! Just wanted to let you all know!
--brianna

Decisions, decisions

So, I haven't actually made a decision yet, but I have plans to. I have narrowed it down to my top two choices-- one with a foundation in Minneapolis, and the other with the non-profit in Connecticut looking at human rights. I will be talking with the VP of the foundation tomorrow to discuss details of what the internship will look like. I wrote a proposal for this position, so I am waiting to see if/how they would like to make changes to my proposal before deciding. I think the position will entail looking at women's and community health, which I think could be interesting.
So, in 24 hours I hope to have a decision made. Which I think is pretty exciting. I am looking forward to having a definite plan, as opposed to this whole idea of a plan that currently exists. Fortunately, I have managed not to get overly worried/stressed about this whole process, which is something kind of new for me. Hooray for progress. Anyway, I just wanted to give you all an update. And, I should get back to my research. I am sitting in Starbucks right now, taking a break from reading books for my paper that is due Friday. And, being that it is not remotely written yet (and needs to be 20-25 pages in a few days), I should probably stop my momentary procrastinating.
--brianna

The Year so far in a 5 Mile Radius

Its hard to believe it is already May. I know I say this with every month that comes along, but this one is especially crazy. Bri had her last class of her first year of grad school today. By all accounts, she won't be living in the the same state as me at the start of next month. It is an interesting time of life.
The other day at work, I was thinking back on the year so far, and I came to a kind of startling realization: I have been no farther than 5 miles from my apartment at any point during 2008. Stop and think about that, it is now May, and I have travelled no farther than 5 miles in any direction. Bri and I flew back from MN on the last day of '07, and that drive marks the last time I was outside the town of Ithaca. In some ways, this is a pretty exciting discovery. I have not felt confined at all, I have enjoyed this time, and I have been very busy. To top it off, I have avoided excess driving and having to pay $3.60+ per gallon on gas. It feels like Ithaca is starting to have an effect on the way I view the world. At any other time in my life, I would feel extremely confined, and be going out of my mind, now, it is something I am proud of.
This will all change soon. With the warmer weather upon us and Bri's impending departure, I am sure to get further away from town, but for now, I am proud to challenge anyone to beat this little story.