Pics as promised!

So here is the visual record of some of the adventures from when my sister was visiting.

It's been awhile!

So life has run away with me and I haven't been on the blog scene for almost two weeks now. Huh, well I'm back in school, back among those getting a full night's sleep, and there is even a glimmer of hope that I might be able to do some things outside of school this semester. Summer classes ended well and I thoroughly enjoyed my week and a day off before getting back on campus today. Turns out there are more than just 38 people that go to Villanova. It seemed like we had the whole place to ourselves over the summer, so it was kinda crazy to see a campus alive with activity. The undergrad$ were running around with their Gucci, Burberry, and Coach handbags and I'm realizing how Villanova gets away with charging so much. It was kind of fun to watch all the freshman seeking out their classes, remembering the exciting feeling of being on my own for the first time and also realizing I'm glad I'm where I'm at in life. After sitting through 8hr lecture days all summer, our 2 1/2 hr clinical overview seemed gloriously short. I guess it'a all a matter of perspective since my 90 minute classes used to seem painfully long.
So my sister cam out to visit me on my break and we had a great combo of relaxing and outing filled days. I'll post some pics, of our adventures to spice this place up a little bit. We had a great time hanging out and playing tourists.
So I've decided I'm going on a bit of a spending diet. Not that I've been spending tons since I got out here but I think I'm going to simplify even more and avoid extra treats until I find some employment. It's actually kind of fun. Is it weird that I sort of like being poor? Of course there is the occasional anxiety, especially with all the big checks for school, insurance, and 100+ degree air conditioning that I've been writing lately, but there is a lot of pleasure in living simply. Yeah, it probably a good thing, since I also like working with poor people and as a result don't expect to make a ton. There's a special about Operation Smile on tonight, and it just makes me feel so inspired. The organization sends medical staff all over the world to operate on children with facial deformities. So Cool! I'm not quite sure where exactly I'll end up nursing, but I just dig that I'm going into a career where I can spend my whole life helping people.

Movie moments...or maybe not :)

So I'm wondering if I'll ever get used to this Pennsylvania weather. It seems like we're in a constant state of influx with humidty coming and going and the heat raising and receding. This morning was one of the best rides to work I've had thus far. The air was cool and clean, the sky blue. A great day to be riding my bike. But in typical PA fashion the weather changed and by 2:30 when it was time to leave the skies had turned gray and it had begun to rain. It was still warm out and not coming down very hard, so I decided to bike home anyway, turning down the ride offers made by friends. I got on my bike and pedaled out and found myself really enjoying the cool rain on my face, enough to make the humidity bearable. I was getting a little wet, but seeing that I was just going home, it didn't matter. I was having a Singing in the Rain moment. The world was good, I was carefree. And then the skies unleashed and I was in the middle of flash flood-style rain. It was coming down so hard I was instantly drenched, with water dripping in my eyes so fast I could barely see. I found myself laughing out loud at how incredibly unromantic and un-fairy-tale-like my ride had suddenly become. People in their cars looked at me like I was crazy, my shoes were beginning to squish and I was praying the papers in my bag and the MP3 player in my pocket would survive until I got home. Well, the electronics survived, but the papers looked like they'd been through the wash. Oh well, thank goodness I didn't have to write up a care plan this week! I stripped off my clothes in my entryway, confining the puddle action to one area of my house and took them staight to the washer. So I made it. And I'm pretty sure I'm gonna drive tomorrow :-)

A break from the heat

Last night I went out for a drink with some girlfriends and as we left to head home, the night air actually felt good. It was such a refreshing feeling to actually enjoy being outside after the incredibly oppressive heat wave that's been hitting this area. With my roommate, the lover of AC gone for a few days I took the liberty to shut off the air and throw open all the windows. And I slept like a baby with my fan blowing in the cool night air. Ahh, respite! I then had the pleasure of sleeping in til I woke at 9 (AWESOME for a girl who has had 6:45 clinicals). When I realized it was still nice out in the morning, I threw on some workout clothes and went for a jog, OUTSIDE! I don't really think I can emphasize just how great it was to actually hang out outside without wanting to die. I think my favorite thing about great weather, even greater than having a lower energy bill or an excuse to put off studying, is that it just seems to make everyone friendlier. This morning I got hellos, smiles, waves, and even a little casual conversation from the others enjoying the beautiful morning. Maybe that's why Californians are so friendly; an abundance of good weather.
It's afternoon now and it has heated up a bit outside, but the humidity has resided for now at least, so I'm still a happy camper. Maybe the good feeling will remain through my study session...let's hope!

Busyness and Peace

My friend Becka came to visit me this past weekend. It is her first trip back to the US after living in Chile for the past year. And I think it was God's way of forcing me into taking a full day off from any sort of school work. If I thought school was my life when I first got here, it has become even more so! But I think I'm over the toughest part and should be heading somewhat downhill from now on...trying to stay the optimist:) Because I hate to talk about school as if it were some sort of torture or something. I really love what I'm studying, it's just the sheer quantity of it with no time for rest that has made me, like everyone else in my class, feel so burned out. But this Saturday was a wonderful break! Becka got into town on Friday night and after waiting at two different bus stations on the same street for an hour and a half, we found each other :) It was amazing to realize it had been my first trip into center city Philadelphia since I arrived in May! However did that happen? I got to church in Philly, but that's near the Art Museum, right on the outskirts of the city ( as evidenced by the fact that I don't have to pay for parking). We spent the day doing touristy things, walking around, eating cheesesteaks, taking a carriage ride throught the old city, basically being tourists and catching up after a year apart (except this time in both Spanish and English!). Playing tourist reminded me that this city really is amazing and I'm so glad it's where I ended up.
Everyday I discover more and more things that reassure me it's where I belong for the time being. I kind of wondered before I arrived what it would be like and if I was making the right decision going to the other side of the country, and the same city where my ex lives just for nursing school. While he wasn't the only reason I was looking into Philly, it was a hugely influential factor at the beginning...but I think it was in the plan for me to get out here and the means God uses to accomplish his will rarely make sense to me. I actually talked to Mike for the first time since I've been out here just a few days ago. And admittedly, I was taken aback that I could enjoy talking to him without being overwhelmed by any feelings, good or bad. I think we might actually be friends. Funny that it happened just a bit of time after I became absolutely certain that wasn't a possibility for us.
In so many areas of my life, I think I'm tired of asking why, what if, and dwelling in the past or thinking tons about the future. I feel like lately, I'm too tired to do anything but trust God. Things have worked out for His glory and my good thus far, so I'm just trying to dwell in his promises and laugh liberally at the weirdness that is often my life. We read this psalm last night and home group and it brought peace to my soul. I don't need all the why's, I just need
Him.

Psalm 131
My heart is not proud, O Lord,
my eyes are not haughty;
I do not concern myself with great matters
or things too wonderful for me.
But I have stilled and quieted my soul;
like a weaned child with its mother,
like a weaned child is my soul within me.
O Israel, put your hope in the Lord
both now and forevermore.

Awe, rest, peace, and trust...Amen to that.