So, it is now the end of August and I will be (inshahallah) boarding a plane in six hours. Yay? Yes and No.

Yes

-I'm anticipating independence

-Columbia is exciting

- New York is exciting

-Finally being thrown in a situation where I have to figure out how to make it without my parents.

- Snow!

-walking culture

No

-I'm apprehensive about Northern culture

-New York is expensive

-Warm weather and flip flops all the time

-My heart is lodged in too many places...I'm dealing.

-I'm going to miss Atlanta

-I'm going to miss my familiar friends and faces

-I'm going to miss The South

-I'm going to miss my REC class from last year...they're irreplacable. I wish I could hug them all at once.

-I miss my brother and what we used to be...

-I'm going to miss dependence on my parents

-getting cheap pedicures

-Cafe Intermezzo

-driving

-walking around the Decatur area

-my awesome Clairmont apt.

-Jana Jade.

-Being able to see my family at Jamatkhana (khane)

I hope and pray all works out...I'm apprehensive. Please pray...

So, I have just completed a 3 week session at SIG @ Emory. It was fine, I guess. I had more fun on the days I was not responsible for any children. Well, that's not entirely true. I enjoyed all the chocolate I got to eat first period, loved my survival class, and felt intelligent in my Spanish class. Also, being an RA took a little getting used to, but it was fine after a while. I just felt disconnected from everyone; it's like everyone understood each other except for me. I was just grateful to have Sarah and Chelsea and the New Sarah around. They made the experience bearable.  It was awful because early in the camp a director mentioned how she was sick of the 'returnees' commenting on how camp should run when clearly they did not know! The lack of organization and down time made me want to cry nearly every day. I, sadly, could not wait for the camp to be over so I could hang out with my adopted SIG sisters.  Oh well, I know not to do camp at Emory again...or in the South for that matter. 

This is why I like the North. Education is valued there. There does seem to be something lacking here. I feel as if people in the South are laid back about the wrong things. Being laid back is fine, as long as it does not jeopardize one's future. The reason why I enjoy teaching in the North and enjoy the culture so much is because I have yet to run into people who aren't lazy, but they are a bit rude.  Individulization is a reality in the North and the West...just not so much in the South. I hate the response I get from people here when I mention that I want to teach. I know how much a teacher's salary is, how much my loans are, and the kind of life I will have. It's nice to know how supportive and comforting people are in the North. Sometimes a nice word or two can go a long way. If some people were a little less uncouth, then this world would be a better place. 

So, I am flying out tomorrow to Boston, MA and on Saturdy I will be bussing it to Amherst, MA. Yay...I hope. I just grow so much as a person in the North and change as a person altogether. Plus, it's nice to be in a culture that reads, analyzes, and thinks for a change! Here, I have yet to find someone who does all those three and isn't struggling with some issue.  Sigh. I'm a complainer. I should stop. All in all, I'm looking forward to Amherst not only because it's in a state I really like but also because there is a wonderful starbucks around the corner. YAY.

Anyway, this is just to inform you that I will be MIA until August 13th...unless I get down time to update. 

In the meantime, entertain yourself with photos from SIG @ Emory.