So. As you may know, I’ve been in New York for the summer. I’ve had an internship at Columbia (working for one of the departments). I’ve done a ton of cool stuff - seen 4 shows on Broadway, been to a few museums, scored an awesome couture dress, torn it up at a few yarn stores and done some good knitting (although definitely not as much as I thought I’d need - I brought a whole suitcase of yarn - that was unneccesary - although it did give me a head start on getting stuff on Ravelry) and I’ve made some fantastic friends like Rachel, my roomate, pictured below.

First, thoughts on the internship: I’ve learned a lot from this internship. The first is that in future job searches, I should ask a lot of questions along the way. In all honesty, I didn’t know what kinds of questions I should have asked until I went through this process - but now, I have a big list of question for use in the future. I’ve also learned that in future job searches, what I’m actually doing on a day to day basis is much less important than the kind of supervisor I have. A supervisor, in my opinion, can make or break an internship. (I’m ecstatically excited to get back to IU - because I already have a great relationship with my Fall supervisor - heck, I’m knitting her a baby blanket…). How the organization is structured is also important and something that I’ll keep in mind in the future.

Thoughts on being a supervisor: I’ve only been able to do a little bit of supervising this summer (that’s me and one of my 1:1 “people” above- one of the girls I got to supervise more closely) - but its been just enough to learn that this is totally 100% what I want to do. I am a student affairs professional (or I want to be one in the future). I like being a mentor and I like helping people achieve their goals. Student affairs is a fun profession and it’s one in which I do well.

And at the end of this whole thing (well, technically I have like 16 more days left, but who’s counting - plus I have to pack and stuff so I might not blog for a bit)? I am at very least a country girl - but probably a midwestern girl. True I’m absurdly liberal - but there’s something about smelling garbage day in and day out that makes you crave those few days a year when the farmers spread out the fertilizer and the whole county smells like cow shit.

Sometimes, when I think about it a lot, I almost start crying because I miss the Indiana nights. I miss the sound of the crickets, the cicadas, the birds and the frogs. I MISS THE SOUND OF RAIN!!! When it rains here, I only hear it as the cars drive through it on the streets! It doesn’t even hit my window!

And while we’re on the topic of water, I want to be able to touch wet things and know that it’s from the morning’s dew or a rain storm - and that it’s safe to touch! I want to stop having to carry around this pocket size bottle of antibacterial gel.

I miss being able to lay in the grass and being the ONLY one doing so - and yet not get any stray glances because of it. I miss people asking me if I want a pop (not a soda) and I want a can of this pop for less than a dollar! I want to walk around with my fake chinatown Prada bag and instead of fitting in, I want to feel as pretentious and superficial as I ought to feel.

I’m such a country girl. Pardon me while I go knit, in my rocking chair, while I listen to some Kenny Chesney. And then I’m going to make my mom’s potato salad recipe. And go outside and look for some stars in the sky. I don’t expect to have any luck.