life with a Wisconsin accent: Typical New Year Post

Every year around this time I write a blog about my life over the past year and what I expect for the next (I don't think I did it last year, whatever). I have been chewing on this idea for the past week and finally decided to sit down and write it. It helps that I have access to an actual computer for the first time since Monday.

2012. Oh, where do I begin? I'm going to call 2012 my rebuilding year. 2011 started off great, got super rocky and unfortunate in the middle, and ended sadly. My life changed so drastically so quickly that I didn't know how to get back on my feet in such a short period of time, and it took me a long time to get there. So, 2012 was my rebuilding year.

And rebuild I did. I started off the new year in the Wisconsin Dells with my family. It was a rough trip, but nevertheless I remember it fondly and actually wanted to go back this year. The semester was one of my best ones to date, and I rocked a 3.85. I took an amazing counseling psychology class that forever changed how I look at and interact with people and taught me to reflect on how I was feeling about my life much more than I was previously allowing myself to do. I went to Arizona to visit my grandparents and realized that I regretted those few years when I didn't go - my grandparents are the shit. I turned 21 with my one of my best friends. I went to Vegas with the world's greatest mom and had the time of my life. I became obsessed with Vegas. I finally got to see Donya on a quick (but seriously memorable) trip to Chicago. I ran a 40 minute 8k, when I had previously never run more than a mile at a time. I made a last minute decision to travel across the country for 7 weeks and spend all the money I had. I went to Memphis to visit Donya (again), and had a rather weird but necessary experience. It's all about closure, people. I had one of the best nights of my life before I went to London (possibly because of the entirely random group of people I was with). I lived by myself, in London, for 7 weeks. 3,917 miles away from my support system. I thrived. Never before had I felt so independent, even when my dog was dying and my computer crashed (let's not talk about it). I realized that Wales is so much more than just a country with the same name as a large fish (not to mention being hand-fed french-fries by a Welshmen... Oh Wales). I SAW MORGAN FREEMAN IN PERSON. Oh, and Matthew Lewis (otherwise known as Neville Longbottom), Anne Hathaway, Joseph Gordon Levitt (rockin the vest and the skinny tie)...the list goes on. I met amazing people and had awesome realizations. I came home and started working to pay off that damn credit card. I bought an iPad. I joined an awesome lab that's doing work I truly and deeply believe in. I took 18 credits, 6 classes, and kicked ass in every one of them. I went to my last round of Badger football games as an undergrad and cried my way through Varsity. I established a great group of friends (haHA!). Boys came and boys went, and I was completely okay. I registered for my last semester as an undergrad (again, lets not talk about it). Hello 18 credit, 7 class final semester. Bring it. I had an amazing Thanksgiving and survived my second Black Friday over-nighter with great co-workers at Loft (although I seriously don't remember anything after 3:00AM). I had my only final cancelled because of a snow storm (this is why I moved back to Wisconsin) and got to go home early. I finally got that damn iPhone, goodbye shady thunderbolt. I spent Christmas with my family and got to see an awesome movie with my best friends in the same theater. I spent New Years at home with my family, finishing off the year with the same people I began it with. Most importantly, though, I rebuilt, and now know myself better than ever. I'm not a different person, I've just returned to who I was pre-college, and it feels great. Except I might be a little more obnoxious. Sorry, kids.

This year is going to be full of life-changing moments. I'm graduating college. I will be, for the first time since I was 2, a regular person who cannot identify as a student. I will [hopefully] be an independent, contributing member of the workforce. I am moving to Chicago and starting life on my own (alongside one of my best friends). I am probably buying a new car. My childhood bedroom is turning into a quasi-guest bedroom. I am going to actually be an adult, and I don't know what to expect. What I do know, though, is that without my 2012 rebuilding year everything would be so different, and I am thankful every minute of every day for where my life has taken me.

Here's to my rebuilding 2012 and my brand new, shiny 2013.