2 Weeks

Today marks 2 weeks since the end of my program in the lovely Siena, and tomorrow will mark 2 weeks since I have been back home and in America. It's been a bit of a whirlwind with Cesca graduating and starting work again, but I'm happy to be home and have been relaxing (not to mention I came home with a respiratory infection, making rest kind of mandatory).

Well, relaxing except for last weekend when we packed my grandfather's house up to move him to Missouri. That's right. My 82 year old grandfather decided to move down to Joplin, Missouri (sound familiar? It is. It was the town that got wiped out last year in the terrible tornado season last year). The fun part? My parents got to drive him 1,000 miles down there with all of his stuff. My father was thrilled. So Ces, Ted and I have had free reign these last few days while they've been having what I can guess is the most interesting (and probably terrifying) experience ever. We consider this repayment for that time we went down to South Carolina with him.

Anyway. Moving on.

I've made a few goals for the summer to try and keep myself motivated and happy, since readjusting to life after being abroad is difficult when you go from jetsetting and living the Italian life to handing out whoppers and cheeseburgers at Burger King.

1.) Drinking more water. My aforementioned job at Burger King tends to mess up most parts of my life- my sleep schedule, my hair, and my complexion to name a few. I also fall into the trap of drinking pop all the time when I'm at work. Water is way better for you and I'm hoping it will combat what the grease normally does to my face every summer. Nothing like smelling like french fries every day for a just-above-minimum-wage job.

2.) Not getting so frustrated with work. I'm hoping that since it looks like I won't be working all night most nights that I won't get so frustrated with the job. Granted, I've only been back for 2 days so I don't know how it's going to go. I need to work on not taking the job to heart, because it is disheartening and frustrating a lot of the time. But there's some great people that work there and hey, it's a job. I don't have the luxury of getting an unpaid internship for the summer, something I will probably agonize over until I get a post-grad job, but two study abroad sessions has left my bank account perpetually empty. Totally worth it. I just have to keep reminding myself that my slaving away at Burger King for nearly 5 years probably payed for my trip to Portugal or something, so I can't really regret it. I'm hoping my dedication will pay off someday.

3.) Make a trip to Vegas. Since I can legally drink AND gamble in the good old US of A, I think this trip is highly in order. It will be both an early graduation present for me and a graduation trip for Cesca, as well as an early Phanniversary celebration. Yes. That's what it's called. 2013 marks 10 years since Ces and I first saw The Phantom of the Opera tour and we were going to celebrate both the anniversary and graduation next summer by taking a trip to Las Vegas to see Phantom: The Las Vegas Spectacular. Unfortunately, the show announced it was closing in September, making it imperative that I go this year. Don't worry, we'll do some gambling too.

4.) Watching an Italian movie a week. Considering I have 2 TA sessions to teach next semester and a conversation class to attend, my Italian needs to be refreshed over the summer so I don't lose it to my lifestyle of fast food work and terrible TV marathons. I have a few books as well to keep up with my practice so that I can retain a bit of the things I learned in Italy. Hopefully.

5.) ZUMBA. Something I sorely missed in Italy but didn't need. Because I had to walk everywhere and in Siena you literally walk uphill both ways ANYWHERE you go. Despite the carb overload in Italy, I felt good about myself. Now that I'm surrounded by burgers and fries all day, I feel like Zumba-ing with Cesca may keep me fit. And sane. Plus it's just fun.

Meh, kind of a boring post but Lockport is definitely not as happening as, oh you know, Europe. Though admittedly it has been nice to slow down and not have to travel on Ryanair every weekend. Thank. God.