Ahhh

Well I am finally back in New Jersey after one of the scariest car rides of my life. We, Stephen Sarah and I, were supposed to leave on Friday morning but at about 5 0'clock started hearing about a terrible storm headed for GR. So I watched the news and realized this was going to be bad but wasn't sure what to do since Stephen had a paper to write, an apartment to clean, and pack up his stuff. My mom called and advised us to leave that night instead of waiting for the morning. And after a few frantic calls we deicded that would be best. It was about 7:30pm. At about 8:45 I decided to take a nap and wait for my fellow travellers to come over. At about 10:45 they finally drove up and it took us 15 minutes to barely squeeze everything in the car. So we hit the road at about 11:15 after grabbing gas and energy drinks. You have to understand that all of us had a rough week; Stephen and Sarah with finals and me with holiday mall hours and parent wacth week at the studio. We were all exhausted. But we were brave and sang songs. Then we hit Ohio and the freezing rain, then it started snowing, then we hit Pennslyvania and the roads were covered. Then we were driving on route 80 and it got really bad. It was about 6:30am by this point and I still hadn't slept. So once the sun came up it was slow going. To make a long and scary story short and somewhat less scary, it took us over 15 hours to get back (it should have taken 11) and we slid all the way from PA to New Jersey. And I didn't cry once. Needless to say, I am thrilled to be back.

Just a few more weeks...

We all know the classic line from the "Wizzard of Oz": "There's no place like home". Now although Grand Rapids is officially my new home I am so excited to go back to New Jersey for the Holidays. I can't wait to spend time with my parents watching movies (and Sienfeld!), going to diners with my friends, relaxing, shopping with my mom. It's those very small things that often meant nothing at the time that I'm really missing. I can honestly hardly contain my excitement to see my friends. I never thought I would miss them all so much. I just miss being so comfortable with people. I don't have that here. At both my jobs I have to be assertive and aware and I don't have many friends, and even if I did I wouldn't feel very comfortable with them at this point. My friends from New Jersey are amazing. They have been always there for me weather I need some cheering up, or some grounding. I mean how many friends do you have where you feel completely comfortable saying "Hey, you're being a jerk!"? I can say that to my friends and have it mean something. They can also say that to me and I listen and don't take offense because I know they care. It's interesting because as hard as it's been to be away from my friends I know with all my heart that I will always be friends with them; they aren't going anywhere. And that makes me feel so secure. So to any of my friends who read my blog: Thank you for being so faithful in friendship, you are loved and cherished.