So, I decided to start a different blog for Cambridge. That way, I can give it out to everyone (Dad's coworkers, sister's friends) and they won't be reading all of the somewhat more personal stuff I post on here. Most likely, I won't post on smile in trouble until I return from Cambridge. I would love for you to see my England blog, so here's the link: ashleyacrossthepond.blogspot.com.
Also, I wanted to let everyone know that my grandmother did have her surgery on Wednesday and she was able to come home yesterday. They did a mastectomy and also took two lymphnodes that were marked as possibly being cancerous. Though it sounded like she was a bit grouchy, the surgery went well, and my grandmother seemed to be in good spirits. Thanks for all of your prayers and positive thoughts!
I need to go because we're leaving for the airport in 3 hours! I can't remember the last time I was this excited (it's a different excited than basketball season...)!!!
Cambridge Countdown: 3 HOURS!
5.18.2007
5.15.2007
Busy Bee
This weekend, I was in Nashville for Dessa's wedding. It was beautiful. I am so happy for she and Taylor (and perhaps a tad bit jealous). Then, on my way back from Nashville, I stopped by my grandparents' house in Humboldt. I got to see my grandmother, which was really great. She seems to be doing well. Her surgery is tomorrow, and she seems to have come to be at peace with it all. I will certainly keep everyone updated on that front.
As for preparing for England, I've got a list as long as my arm of things I have to do in the next 76 hours. Is my passport here yet? Nope. Has financial aid sent me my money yet? Nope. Have I gotten some new teacher clothes yet? Nope.
Ok, this is stressing me out. Why am I posting, again? Off to take care of all this stuff...
Cambridge Countdown: 3 days!
As for preparing for England, I've got a list as long as my arm of things I have to do in the next 76 hours. Is my passport here yet? Nope. Has financial aid sent me my money yet? Nope. Have I gotten some new teacher clothes yet? Nope.
Ok, this is stressing me out. Why am I posting, again? Off to take care of all this stuff...
Cambridge Countdown: 3 days!
5.11.2007
Hoping
First of all, I should probably warn you that this is not the light-hearted, loving-life type post that I usually have.
Today I found out that my grandmother has breast cancer. They don't know how much it has spread or really how bad it is, but she will be having a mastectomy on Wednesday. She is about 70 and lives outside of Jackson, TN (halfway between Nashville and Memphis). She went into the hospital a couple of weeks ago for a cough she couldn't get rid of. Before they allowed her to leave, they made her have a mammogram. That's when they found the tumor.
I leave for Cambridge on Friday (in 7 days). I suppose that's what's most difficult for me...not being here when I should be for my family. I hope that everything will work out, she will be fine, and I can come back to see the same Mamaw that I know and love. I hope for that.
This is one of the most difficult and scary things that I have ever dealt with in my life. For those who know me, you know that I like to have a plan. The unknowing kills me. That is difficult, to leave the country not knowing if my grandmother will be here when I come back. No matter what happens, I know that she has lived a good life, has raised a good family, and got to live out her dreams. I hope that she is granted the chance to continue living them. As for me, I am a believer that there is nothing in this world that we can't handle. So, I'm positive that my family will make it through this stronger than we were before.
I'm not sure if it's okay to ask or not, but if you could remember her in your prayers, we would all appreciate it. I will be lighting a candle for her at church on Sunday, which is our strange Unitarian equivalent of a prayer. I know that things will work out, but it never hurts to have a little help ;-)
Thanks for reading this far, and I'm sorry for the downer of a post. It just feels better to write it down, and I feel like I should share it with those who care.
Today I found out that my grandmother has breast cancer. They don't know how much it has spread or really how bad it is, but she will be having a mastectomy on Wednesday. She is about 70 and lives outside of Jackson, TN (halfway between Nashville and Memphis). She went into the hospital a couple of weeks ago for a cough she couldn't get rid of. Before they allowed her to leave, they made her have a mammogram. That's when they found the tumor.
I leave for Cambridge on Friday (in 7 days). I suppose that's what's most difficult for me...not being here when I should be for my family. I hope that everything will work out, she will be fine, and I can come back to see the same Mamaw that I know and love. I hope for that.
This is one of the most difficult and scary things that I have ever dealt with in my life. For those who know me, you know that I like to have a plan. The unknowing kills me. That is difficult, to leave the country not knowing if my grandmother will be here when I come back. No matter what happens, I know that she has lived a good life, has raised a good family, and got to live out her dreams. I hope that she is granted the chance to continue living them. As for me, I am a believer that there is nothing in this world that we can't handle. So, I'm positive that my family will make it through this stronger than we were before.
I'm not sure if it's okay to ask or not, but if you could remember her in your prayers, we would all appreciate it. I will be lighting a candle for her at church on Sunday, which is our strange Unitarian equivalent of a prayer. I know that things will work out, but it never hurts to have a little help ;-)
Thanks for reading this far, and I'm sorry for the downer of a post. It just feels better to write it down, and I feel like I should share it with those who care.
5.06.2007
Honeysuckle
I've been home for a few days now, and I'm loving it. All of Germantown smells like honeysuckle. It's fantastic! Minus the unpacking (which I despise), being home is great. I was pretty darn happy that everything managed to fit in my car to move back (but only thanks to my mom coming up to get all of my clothes a couple of days early!). It's sort of weird because there really aren't many people home yet from school, so there isn't a whole lot to do. On Friday night, I went to the Redbirds game to see my dad's band play the national anthem. I absolutely love these games! They had fireworks afterward, even though we lost (reminded me of the football game Vandy lost to Rutgers and then we still had fireworks). They were really cool. Fireworks in downtown Memphis is something everybody should see, if you're willing to brave it and go into downtown Memphis, that is!
That's pretty much all that has been going on since I came home. So that everybody knows, I will be keeping this blog for when I go to England, so look here for pictures, updates, and funny kid stories. I will be in (the equivalent of) 4th grade, so I'm sure the kids will be a good time. That reminds me, I've got to get started reading Harry Potter...I don't want those kids to make fun of me for not knowing the stories!
Cambridge Countdown: 12 days!
That's pretty much all that has been going on since I came home. So that everybody knows, I will be keeping this blog for when I go to England, so look here for pictures, updates, and funny kid stories. I will be in (the equivalent of) 4th grade, so I'm sure the kids will be a good time. That reminds me, I've got to get started reading Harry Potter...I don't want those kids to make fun of me for not knowing the stories!
Cambridge Countdown: 12 days!
4.25.2007
I think I can...
Done: one final, one paper, one project
Still left: one final, one take-home final, one large paper, and one day of practicum
Oh, yeah, and then packing...
So, it's finals time (as if you didn't already know that). Generally, I am a fan of finals because it's the only time of the year when I actually have time to study for things in an effective way. No meetings (mostly...), no classes, no other distractions. Just studying. In and of itself, studying is not fun. But, when I actually have time for it and can study for an exam and still get 8 hours of sleep the night before, I think life is pretty good.
Junior year is basically over. That means one more semester as a real college student, and then one as a fake teacher, and then I'm done. I'm not sure which is scarier. Being done with college or being in the real world (it's probably the combination of the two). So, for now, I should stop contemplating all of the stuff that I have no control over (i.e. where I can get a job next year), and focus on what's coming up soon: England!
I leave in 22 days! I'm really excited, but also a little bit sad to not be able to spend the whole summer with my friends and family in G-town. I suppose I'll live, but no 4th of July fireworks on the river will certainly make me a little sad. I'll just make up for it by teaching my British kiddos the Star Spangled Banner or something ;-)
That's it for now. In case anyone is wondering, I will be back in G-town Monday night (as of now). Good luck on finals!!
Still left: one final, one take-home final, one large paper, and one day of practicum
Oh, yeah, and then packing...
So, it's finals time (as if you didn't already know that). Generally, I am a fan of finals because it's the only time of the year when I actually have time to study for things in an effective way. No meetings (mostly...), no classes, no other distractions. Just studying. In and of itself, studying is not fun. But, when I actually have time for it and can study for an exam and still get 8 hours of sleep the night before, I think life is pretty good.
Junior year is basically over. That means one more semester as a real college student, and then one as a fake teacher, and then I'm done. I'm not sure which is scarier. Being done with college or being in the real world (it's probably the combination of the two). So, for now, I should stop contemplating all of the stuff that I have no control over (i.e. where I can get a job next year), and focus on what's coming up soon: England!
I leave in 22 days! I'm really excited, but also a little bit sad to not be able to spend the whole summer with my friends and family in G-town. I suppose I'll live, but no 4th of July fireworks on the river will certainly make me a little sad. I'll just make up for it by teaching my British kiddos the Star Spangled Banner or something ;-)
That's it for now. In case anyone is wondering, I will be back in G-town Monday night (as of now). Good luck on finals!!
4.20.2007
Bye, 4th grade!
So, my teacher and my students in my practicum made me a book on my last day of practicum. Here is my favorite letter in the book:
Dear Mrs. Crops,
I'll like to thank you for teaching me math and science if I didn't know the questin (read: "question") you could have said I don't care but you didn't you help the whole class and you help me in science oh yeah grajaleysion (read: "congratulations") Mrs. Crops for your colegge (read: "college") school thing.
Sincrely,
Your best student Darius
Okay, really? How can you not love these kids?
Dear Mrs. Crops,
I'll like to thank you for teaching me math and science if I didn't know the questin (read: "question") you could have said I don't care but you didn't you help the whole class and you help me in science oh yeah grajaleysion (read: "congratulations") Mrs. Crops for your colegge (read: "college") school thing.
Sincrely,
Your best student Darius
Okay, really? How can you not love these kids?
3.25.2007
It's a beautiful ride...
"Life ain't always beautiful,
But it's a beautiful ride."
So, the last few weeks have been a whirlwind. I've been to California and New York City in the past 10 days...who would have thought?! I absolutely love March Madness, but the most devastating time is when you have to watch these guys lose. You can scream, yell, laugh, cry, jump, and fall. But that's all you can do. It comes down to what the guys on the floor do. The worst is when they do everything right and then it doesn't happen.
In particular, Vanderbilt playing Georgetown in the Sweet 16. The Commodores deserved to win. And, no, I'm not talking about the last Georgetown play of the game and the blatant no-call when Jeff Green traveled. I'm talking about the whole game. Vanderbilt played their best basketball, and they deserved to win.
Though it hurts everybody right now (I'm assuming the players hurt the most), I think back on the amazing season that Vanderbilt Men's Basketball has had and I can't help but be ecstatic. We were better than 49 of the 65 BEST teams in Division I basketball. When you think of it like that, not making it to the Elite 8 doesn't seem like the biggest deal. We made it to the Sweet 16 and that's all that matters.
But it's a beautiful ride."
So, the last few weeks have been a whirlwind. I've been to California and New York City in the past 10 days...who would have thought?! I absolutely love March Madness, but the most devastating time is when you have to watch these guys lose. You can scream, yell, laugh, cry, jump, and fall. But that's all you can do. It comes down to what the guys on the floor do. The worst is when they do everything right and then it doesn't happen.
In particular, Vanderbilt playing Georgetown in the Sweet 16. The Commodores deserved to win. And, no, I'm not talking about the last Georgetown play of the game and the blatant no-call when Jeff Green traveled. I'm talking about the whole game. Vanderbilt played their best basketball, and they deserved to win.
Though it hurts everybody right now (I'm assuming the players hurt the most), I think back on the amazing season that Vanderbilt Men's Basketball has had and I can't help but be ecstatic. We were better than 49 of the 65 BEST teams in Division I basketball. When you think of it like that, not making it to the Elite 8 doesn't seem like the biggest deal. We made it to the Sweet 16 and that's all that matters.
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