Post 67 on Route 66

Orientation has been great. Yesterday after listening to Dr. Loomis and Dr. Quatrano (and other various planned seminars), I helped make the banner for the WashU Ultimate Floor Challenge (WUFC). Lien 2's flag looks bomb! I also bonded a lot with people and went out to dinner with them. Then we went to this floor meeting where we were directed to Graham Chapel to see a play about date rape. Girls and guys separated into separate discussion groups where we talked about the situation.

Then I got inducted as an Wash U Engineer! I am not sure if I am allowed to say what I did there, so I will just say I now own an Engineering Creed card and a brand new Wash U green hard hat (The engineering school is under a lot of construction!)! Then I went to bed. Yesterday was awesome in general. I met people and actually talked to and learned about them, so instead of "Speed Dating" for people's names, (Name? Major? Hometown? Dorm? NEXT PERSON!) like everyone was earlier, I am actually getting to know people. That is preferable, of course. Today is going to be crazy busy. I am always running around and rarely home.

Today my parents leave. Bye, Mom and Dad!

Love,
ATT

Getting Oriented.

Yesterday I moved in and was convocated. I met a million people. It was like speed dating for friends. Name, hometown, major, NEXT! It was a blast though! Light sticks, Ted Drewes frozen custard for free, etc. I like my dorm a lot. So neat and lush! I have had to make a few adjustments, but I like it overall. Today was fun. 8:30 AM engineering dean's mtg, peer advising/advising with faculty, overview of BME, etc. Then I met a nice girl who loves art as much as I do, and we went through the on-campus Mildred Lane Kemper Art Museum, which is a must-see in my opinion. I fixed my tech problems, too! Now I am still working on my printer/a few other lesser evils! Good times!

TBC! Love, ATT

Here!

Today was awesome! I woke up at 4:00 AM Pacific, headed to the airport, took a very short flight (or it seemed so) to STL, went to Panera in our rental car (or should I say Bread Co.), and went to the Knight Center. It is like, a 4 star hotel. So cool. Then we went to Target and Bed, Bath & Beyond for some stuff. Then we went to the Delmar Loop for dinner. Fitz's has great fries and chili. MMMMMhhhhh yum. I went on a WUSTL walk with my mom. Tomorrow is move in. : ) So exciting.


And here I am... MEET ME IN ST. LOUIS!!!

I officially call it my home. : D

(Shocker!)

Today I made a big long list of things to do. I actually did most of them. That includes writing my friend a thank you note, grouting the frame of my mosaic into place (which wasn't as terrible as I anticipated and only took a half hour), swam in my own pool (shocker!), rode my bike to mail the thank you note and buy stamps, stretched, tracked my shipments to Wash U. Very productive. Read my sister's birthday blog.

Here's a shocker: It's her birthday today. Happy Birthday to the coolest 24 year old in existence!

Countdown to the 25th... Well come on, it's the 20th. You do the math! I've got to get packing soon!

Love to all,
Nicole AppleBirthday!

Hunger games and beach day!

I stayed up until 2:00 to finish the hunger games. I read 3 hours on Sunday and 4 hours on Monday. It was amazing and addictive. I could write a review on it as long as the actual book, so just go invest a few bucks in Suzanne Collin's Hunger Games. The third book comes out on August 24, so I ordered it and shipped it to my St. Louis address this morning. : D

I was invited to the beach last night. I had a very nice time today at the beach. It was a less frequented part of Newport. I really enjoyed hopping over the swelling waves before they crash. Plus, I may not see those friends or that beach for a very long time. I started catching fire this morning. I am so excited to navigate the trilogy. I have at least read 3 books this summer. Not too bad, considering I worked a lot, learned a lot, etc.

Best,
Nic E. Coli

Pleasantness

Life is becoming more and more pleasant. I am excited for college! Good things are coming my way, I hope. Sometimes it's hard to be optimistic, but I chose to be anyway. : D

Hiatus

I didn't realize people had commented on my blog. So I took a hiatus. Today when I realized that someone beside my mom reads this, I decided to go for it again. This week has been boring. I have been having an internal struggle lately. Who am I going to be when I go back? It's not a question of whether I'll be Nicole or not. The question is which Nicole I'll be. People are so complex, made of up so many shades of themselves. Which shade of Nicole will I be? Will I ever reach my goals? Who knows. Not something to worry about yet.

I was getting antsy because so many blogs I read aren't posting new material three times a day. Or even once a day. So I thought to myself, HYPOCRITE! Hypocrisy at its finest. I mean, no one hangs on my every word, and honestly, the blogs I am waiting on are mostly picture-based blogs. But still. I realized that in order to feel better, I can't keep all of my Nicoles at bay. I have to go off of this hiatus.

I shipped some things to Wash U today. I caught up with some people, ran a million errands, walked, rode my bike, stretched... No matter how old I get, I will always regret not being a contortionist. Being super limber is so relaxing. To just be a noodle without the weight of the world (or a heavy backpack) on my shoulders.

I have a lot of wishes/goals right now. I don't know that I believe any will come true. I am not used to that...

Anyway. More to come. I promise

Nic E. Coli

Post 60

Friday: Symposium was awesome! Free breakfast and lunch. Then I went back to my lab, played cards, said bye to people, etc. I had $98.00 in meal points left, so I asked my lab if they wanted to have a dinner/spades night. We did, and it was a blast, until I had to leave to go to the City Museum. That was also a blast! I got back home afterwards, played Bananagrams for the first time (so fun!), and went to sleep.

Saturday: I went home. I was tired. I got some things done that I can't remember. I also unpacked.

Sunday: Exercised, caught up on TV, etc.

Monday: Opened B of A account since St. Louis and Wash U are owned by Bank of America. I also did a bunch of other random errands and then had my friends over for a night of Rubios (which I missed in St. Louis, but not as much as I thought I would), fun, and conversation. It was a blast.

Today: Going to do more errands and exercise. Sorry for the brevity!

TBC,
ATT

PS. Home is awesome.