I'm so excited and I just can't hide it

I can't wait to see you all next week!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Oh, how i will miss you!

Finally found a new girl. She definitely behaves the best out of all of you!!!....yes she's 37 and pregnant but shes mine and you cant have her!!! See you all in a couple days!
-J

I was stabbed seven times...

I suppose that's sort of dramatic. Anyway, veins that are both tiny and deep-set don't combine well with the need to draw blood. Three different nurses stabbed me seven different times until it worked at my physical, and I was not a happy camper.

I find this whole medical process somewhat ridiculous. I was charged $100 for me to blow into a tube so they could test my lungs. The nurse looked at the machine and wrote down a number. How in the world did they decide that should cost $100?

Anyway, internship's over, summer's been weird, looking forward to school and seeing you all.

I Hate Shoes

Everyone should just go barefoot.

Except in winter, when everyone should just wear big, fluffy, warm BOOTS.

I made it....barely!!!!

I made it through 21 years. Feels so cool!!! I was quite tipsy that night, still keeping it on the light side. Of course I was more than happy to get on a train for the ride back down to Florida (only took 24 hours, 45 minutes, and 37 seconds from Penn to Orlando. Figures we get stuck behind a freight train moving slower than a snail from Jacksonville to Orlando. But then on the train the guy didnt even card me. How come so many times before August 15th asking for a beer they just have some sort of psychic mind and on the train didnt even bother asking, just handed me my corona for lunch and sam adams at dinner. Weird, isnt it? Glad Nishe never had this ability.

So now that I am back in florida I stopped at Marineland to surprise everybody with a nice hello. In many ways it was great to be back but it seriously sucked when I spoke with the one member in charge of watching over all the staff members and making sure nothing goes wrong. They will not allow me to do anything, even picking up a 2 pound bucket. I do get to walk around most of the time and take lots and lots of pictures as you may see my summer album on facebook. They dont want to be liable for anything at all. Thats why I signed up for an Immersion, you read what this program is at marineland.net under reservations (beware though, you may become a little jealous)...Why me? I hated sitting there today, on Lauren (one of the other interns) last day as she did a variety of different behaviors with a bunch of different dolphins all afternoon. SOMEBODY PUT ME IN A BUBBLE!!! Gotta run! Coming back on the 29th in the afternoon sometime. what day/time are you guys (this is more towards the apt guys because I may need some help carrying stuff up)?
-J

sex, and how I miss it

Just as a follow up to to my last post, the Aligator farm was fudging rediculous. You know all those crocodile hunter shows where he wades through a swamp looking for giant killer reptiles? Well I never really consitered how the cameraman felt about all that until I was waist deep in opaque water with little eyes popping out left and right, having all those discovery channel documentaries where the gator explodes out of the water and tears down a wildabeast running through my head. I didn't do anything too badass, but I when I woke up that morning I sure as hell didn't expect to be 3 feet away from a five hundred pound dinosaur while a man whose probably commitable wrestled and pinned the walking set of teeth with consiterable difficulty. Unfortunately it was too late for me to bring any of that footage home (still believe me?) but I still felt it was an experience worth your valuable blogging time.

i hate you all

5 more nights.

Just like Rose

I'm heading out on an overnight trip to cover a UFO convention, an aligator farm, and a dune boarding segment, but then...this Sunday...I'm done too!!!! See you all real soon

I'M DONE!!!

WITH MY INTERNSHIP! yay, just really excited. we had a 3 hour research symposium/presentation of all our work from the summer. it went really well. then we had an indian food luncheon. delicious! And tonight we're going out for drinks. So yay for being done with work to all those who also are done, and yay to those who will be done soon and yay to yay's!!!!!

Amanda's making me do this...

Funniest moment at work/internship?
- i never laugh more in my life than i do here, so i dont know that i can necessarily pinpoint something like that. i think when i went to the masquerade dance in only a shower curtain it was pretty fuckin funny though.

Most rewarding moment at work/internship?
- teaching a class in mask to the students. also, some of the one on one work i did with them. seeing suggestions that i made employed, and having them improve the students' performances. pretty neat shit.

Best new person you met this summer?
- oh god, too many to count. i have made a whole bunch of friends, younger and older, whom im sure ill be friends with for a long time...

Most boring weekend?
- no weekened here is boring - too much going on.

Craziest night?
- probably getting drunk with my counselors last session in the blackbox theatre in the middle of the night.

Best/worst movie?
- best movie: clerks 2. havent seen any particularly bad movies this summer.

What you'll miss the most?
- the peeeeeeeopllllle. sooooooo awwwwwesome.

What you're most excited to get back to Conn for?
- to be back with you lot. i miss y'all like whoa. that's right, i just said y'all. whatchya gonna do about it?

i don't really know if my job counts as an internship or as anything actually important, but oh well i want to be included!


The funniest moment at work: a lot of the people I work with at work are really nice and hilarious and fun to work with, both the people my age who are just working there temporarily, and the people who have been doing it for 30 years. There is usually a point around 6:00 or 6:30 am when it is almost time to go home that everyone gets a little punchy and there isn't as much to do, so those are definitely the funniest times and make the job bearable. A specific moment was when two of the guys I work with only some of the time (I only work with them if one of them isn't there, I never work with both of them at the same time) bought me a coffee cake from the vending machine on my birthday and sang me happy birthday as everyone was clocking out.

Most rewarding moment: payday.

Best new person: that'd probably be joe, the guy i met who worked on the boat with Kim, even though I only hung out with him a few times. He was a pretty cool guy. To be honest, all of the people Kim worked with were pretty amazing. Also worth a mention is Amber, a girl my age who I worked with at the post office. She was pretty bad-ass, and has an 8-month old baby girl. She was pretty hilarious but also has been through so much stuff in her life that I couldn't even begin to deal with.

The most boring weekend: My most boring weekends were probably at the beginning of the summer, before I started work at the post office, but every night at the post office is pretty boring. I only have 8 nights left and I am SO looking forward to being done with it.

Craziest night: all of the nights that I visited Kim in Boston were crazy, but the first time was definitely the craziest, I just got ridiculously drunk and had a blast.

Best movie: I finally saw Wedding Crashers, which I loved. I also saw Behind Enemy Lines on TV and really liked that. I haven't been to the movie theatre that much, but I did see The Breakup with Zach and Stosh and my friend Bobby. Although it wasn't a great movie, I definitely have to admit that Vince Vaughn is probably my favorite.
Worst movie: I don't know about this, like I said, I haven't seen too many, but I did see Nacho Libre with Zach and that wasn't too great.

What I'll miss the most: All the bonding time with Zach, and being able to spend time with my parents, aunt, grandma, and cousins.

What I'm most excited to get back to Conn for: Classes, seeing all of you, painting my room, and generally having the best year. Oh, and not working 10-12 hour shifts 6 days a week at a soul-crippling job anymore. Yeah, that'll be good.



I had a pretty good birthday, thank you all for your wall messages and whatnot. I got a jean jacket from my parents, as well as a nice watch that I really wanted, and a pretty necklace with my birthstone (peridot). Zach hasn't given me my present yet, but I already know what it is. Also I had some delicious cake, got toasted and watched Mr. and Mrs. Smith with Zach. Unfortunately I wasn't able to get in touch with a lot of my friends or find a place to have a good ol' drunken time, so we'll have to have a make-up birthday party or something during the year, maybe another variation on the Unbirthday theme? But honestly, just not being at work was a birthday present, it was my first night off in two weeks.

Tonight is the first of my last 8 nights at work, and although I'm not looking forward to this stretch, my night off definitely recharged me. I can't wait to be done with work and finish up the last little things I need to do before coming back to Conn. I'm arriving on campus on the 22nd and spending some days with Kim, painting our rooms and bonding. I really miss that girl and I'm so excited. We will def. be all ready to receive you guys when you return! Can't wait to see you all and hope you have a great finish to your summers!

-alli

It was the best of times, it was the worst of times

Im not really sure what it is. I lived 19 years of my life as the kid with the perfect medical record. No broken bones, no surgeries, no nothing...And then, BAMM!!! It all comes crashing down. Turns out that the sickness i had is whats called a bronchicentric interstitial pneumonia. Its an inflammation basically. Not infectious, bacterial, or viral. I just would like to think this is the last of it. My thoracic surgeon told me that flying is really out of the question for about 6 months so my trip back to florida will be taken by train (about 23 hours). Once I get in of course I will need to get my car from the airport and hopefully they will be understanding andnot make me have to pay the lump sum which as of right now, 300 buckaroos. thats much, much, more than I paid for my round trip flight.

It turns out now that even though I only spent 2 months at my internship I received word last night that they will take my internship to be complete. This is a definitely not what I had expected to hear and not the way I want it to end. They are simply afraid of something going terribly wrong on the job and they would get the blame for it. The pulmonologist says no heavy lifting right now but my surgeon says I am good to get in the water. So, if im good to go back when should I go is the other question. There are many advantages and disadvantages to this. Shall I wait till after my 21st bday on tuesday so I can spend it with my friends here or go back sat/sun and spend it with the people there? I would have more time down in florida but is it worth it if they still might not let me do anything? I plan on trying to meet with these staff and see how/if I can get in doing something at Marineland. And finally, I would miss some of the interns leaving marineland but I would get to see some friends that are coming home for a few days if I wait till after my birthday. So much to figure out in such a small amount of time. My family is planning on coming to marineland 19-24 so my dad can drive back with me and they really see what its like I just hope they can get a chance to watch what I do in terms of training.

I think I may have to wait so I can give a full debrief once all this is done and finished.
J-Ball OUT!

It all started with a bbq...

We had a get together this weekend with my family and my brother's fiance Maggie's parents and sisters. It was suppose to be an opportunity for the two families to better get to know each other as well as to announce the official date of the wedding. So after ten minutes of people talking in our backyard, Maggie gathers us all together to make an announcement. We all knew the announcement but it was more of a way to let everyone know that a date, time, and place had been picked.

Maggie's words exactly - "Welcome everybody, Im glad you could all make it. So as you know we are all here for Matt and I's announcement of our wedding. We have picked a place and its gonna take place on Nov. 3. After four years, we finally are gonna make it official. But thats not the only annoucement we have. This is not just a normal barbeque. This is actually our wedding. We are going to get married today, right now, in this backyard. The officiate is on her way here and in just a few minutes we're getting married. We tricked you."

And with that, my brother comes out with a bag with a video camera and the rings. At this point everyone is just looking at each other in total disbelief and shock. I was standing next to Nicole and Rach (Rach came for the weekend and what a weekend she picked to come, haha..oh, she now can be booked as a wedding photographer just so everyone knows) and we all just looked at each other with these expressions of "this has to be a joke." My sister and I still are in shock about it, since it feels like it didnt really happen. The entire time i kept looking over to see if my mom was ok and oddly enough she was okay. She cried but she cries at all weddings (real or on tv) so of course she would cry at her son's. Within ten minutes my brother was married. It was and is so surreal. They really did trick us.

I'm extremely happy for the two of them. Matt has been with Maggie for about six or seven years so its great that they are finally married. They were getting so tired of people asking them all the time "so when's the wedding? why havent you gotten married yet?" and because of that they decided to get married without anyone knowing ahead of time. It was exactly what they wanted since they didnt want a church wedding to begin with and they are very private. So next time you have a barbeque, be prepared. You never know whats gonna happen.

My Not-So-Brief Debrief

I'm sorry it has been so long since my last post. Things have been a bit crazy at the Charpie household with my mother going through surgery, but it went well, so I'm thankful for that! My mom had lost her senses of smell and taste and she was given numerous nasal sprays that offered her no relief. Eventually the doctors decided she should have an MRI just in case and as it turned out, they found a large tumor above her nasal cavity, right below the brain. Though we were all taken aback by the discovery of the tumor, she was able to have surgery a week later and now she is recovering. The doctors say she will never get her sense of smell/taste back, but as long as she's healthy, I think we have a lot to be thankful for.

On a happier note, my internship was amazing and I'm excited to fill out Amanda's debriefing categories. Here it goes:

Funniest internship moment: One of the boys that I worked with this summer asked to go to the bathroom, so I stood outside the doorway as I always do and waited for him to finish. When I checked on him through the peep hole I noticed that he was stripping off all of his clothes and singing to himself in the mirror. I started giggling to myself and when I was composed, I opened the door to direct him to put his clothes back on. When I opened the door he was standing there completely naked with his underwear on his head singing and dancing to "My Hips Don't Lie." It was classic.

Most rewarding moment: So much of my job was rewarding that it is difficult to pinpoint one specific moment, but I think the last day of my internship was the most gratifying. The boy that I grew closest to this summer, Eric, kissed me goodbye on my last day and said "I love you," which made me start crying (something I promised myself I wouldn't do). Most children with Autism do not understand what love really is, but hearing him say those three words put my heart in a knot.

Best new person? Again, I'm going to have to go with Eric. There really aren't words to describe the love I have for this kid, but I think this picture pretty much explains it--we're just on the same, ridiculous page.

Most boring weekend? Hah. Well there was that weekend I cleaned out my bathroom drawers and washed the outdoor furniture. That was pretty lameeeee

Craziest night? I spent the weekend at my friend Dave's house at the Cape... I've got some good stories. This post is already too long, so if you're interested, I'll fill you in later.

I think I'm going to miss my job and my family the most, but I am so excited to get back to Conn to spend time with all of you again! I had the best time of my college career at the end of last semester and I am so excited to get back to school and have the best year of my life. It will be, I know it :o)

Love,

Elizabeth

DEBRIEFING TIME!!

I can't believe the summer is almost over. It flew by and now it is one of my favorite times of all.... time to debrief!!

Funniest moment at work/internship?
Most rewarding moment at work/internship?
Best new person you met this summer?
Most boring weekend?
Craziest night?
Best/worst movie?
What you'll miss the most?
What you're most excited to get back to Conn for?

I expect good debriefs from all of you! Add questions if you have them!!

My funniest moment at work was making the snooty grad student secretaries help me get this book I needed from the top top top shelf of this bookshelf and at some point we all thought we'd die from falling off the stepladder in our high heels and skirts. Or maybe the time I walked into the wrong office and got yelled at by this really mean lady.

The most rewarding moment was after a summers worth of hard work, my professor gave me a copy of his book and signed it "with gratitude and great expectations". yes, I am THAT lame!

The best new person I met was... hmmm.... lots, my boss, the guy in Washington Square Park, because that was fun and random, and my new baby cousin

The most boring weekend was complete with movies and an antique fair (though I did get to try on a $12,000 antique diamond ring)

This summer hasn't held that many crazy nights, but one was definitely with nick, rose and mollie in boston.

Best movie: transamerica Worst movie: Keeping up with the Steins/Failure to Launch/She's too young (a horrible lifetime movie)

I'll miss going into New York City all the time and seeing my cousins and family so much and all the time outside and by the pool and fun weekend trips with my prague friends, and my aunt's crazy pug.

And about Conn... I can't wait to see you all, admittedly I'm excited for fajita night and sunaes on sunday (and when it's fajita night on sunday!!), classes suuuuuureeeeeeeeee, and an amazing senior year with all of you!

Ok.... now tell me yours..........

love,
a

I Want A Dog Super Bad

One with big floppy ears, droopy liquid eyes and a tail that goes thwap on the floor.

Does anyone else have dreams where you live in a glass walled house by the sea until a tsunami-like wave comes and crashes at the shore, then overturns your boat but carries you safely back to your island? Or where you have magical powers and are fighting evil in the form of green lightening? Or where you are falling or flying or swimming and then suddenly brushing your teeth?

I tried calamari for the first time last week. Tastes like onion rings.

And no, I'm not on anything.

So i cant seem to find the last post that i saved as a draft but never published. Supposedly though all of you can read it so if you would like to comment on it id prefer it was on this page instead. Now then, added to the rest of my last post i went to the hospital 8 days ago and they continued to run blood work and urine samples trying to figure out what exactly was wrong.....And the results concluded....well....nothing. I dont have a viral infection and i dont have a bacterial infection. So then what is it. The doctor did not run the bronchoscopy on monday. A new CT scan showed a pneumo-thorax, basically a gas space on the right lung thats squeezing it making it hard to break. Now then they took me for a thoracoscopy where they stuck a tube in my right side and into that space and got out basically all the air and inflated the lung. the took samples from there and ran tests but thos all did not show enough to know exactly whats wrong so they have been sent to pulmonary pathologist in Philly and he will hopefully have a better idea of what the hell is wrong with me. The tube was taken out of my chest last night and trust me dont even know how bad that hurt.

Im just waiting for that day that i can get back to florida and finish my amazing fucking internship. Why me? I come home for what is supposed to be 4 days and is now 14. This is insane. Well, wish me luck and I sure hope to get out of here sometime next week. Airplane is questionable now because of the cabin pressure but i have no problem jumpin on a train for 23 hours just take me back!!!

3 weeks to go...

...but it feels like years.

Honestly, kiddies, I can't wait to be back at Conn. I know I've said it again and again, but I miss you all like you wouldn't believe. I have thirteen days of work left, all of which will most likely be 10-12 hour days, and all in a row. The only day off I have is the 8th, my birthday. But the long hours, the one day off instead of three, that's all my choice. I am going to make SO MUCH MONEY (yoooou have to save haha). I think that if I took more time off, the weeks would go by faster, but I know that in the end I will thank myself for toughing it out.

I am a little scared about turning 20. I don't want to say goodbye to my teen years yet, but I do think that I'm ready. My parents have both been commenting to me all summer that they think I've matured a lot, and I guess I agree with them for the most part. I am becoming a lot more motivated than I have been lately, and I work harder for the things that I want. Deep down, though, I'm still just a goofy, over-dramatic, weird-o, and I love it. You all bring that out in me, and you've also given me the confidence and ability to be myself again and truly just be content, something that I forgot how to do freshman year during my rough transition from high school.

I just want to let you all know how grateful I am for your friendship. Especially to those of you who were there for me during my freshman year and early on last year, you already had a wonderful, amazing group of friends, and you didn't have to let me in and do for me what you did. I'll never forget that.

To my boys from freshman year, Seth, Nick, Drew, and Justin, thanks for being a great support system. Every one of you was there for me in a second when I needed to talk or needed anything at all, and you helped me to feel more comfortable and happy. I don't know what my life freshman year would have been like without you, but luckily I had you all there and I made it through somehow. Drew, I miss hearing you be the ONLY one who laughs at the jokes I make that I KNOW are funny, but no one else but you seems to get. I LOVE reading your posts for that exact same reason. Seth: Thank you so much for always being there for me and willing to help me with anything that's bothering me. You were my rock freshman year. I honestly don't know what I would have done without you. Just thinking about it is scary.

To Amanda, thank you for talking to me whenever I needed it, and for not holding my sometimes bitchiness against me. I have a tendency, even now, to distance myself from others and to have trouble being close to new friends. You're one of the most unique and amazing people I know, and I was really excited when we started hanging out more at the end of last year. I look forward to living on the same floor as you (for the third time) and continuing that process. I promise we'll be watching Triplets of Belleville before you know it. I feel like there is so much I could learn from you and I really can't wait for a lot of fun times up on 4th floor KB.

To the Larrabee girls, thank you for giving me a chance to get to know you better. After not being close freshman year, and the probably not-so-friendly first impressions that you got of me, it was really great to get to know you more and build stronger friendships. I have SO much fun with all of you, and I really look forward to spending more goofy times together this year.

To my girls from first semester last year, Rach, Jess, Iwi, and Ally, I want you to know that I was absolutely scared out of my mind about going back to school at that time. I was seriously considering transfering and I was just so unhappy with myself and my life. I don't know what I would have done without you guys. I probably wouldn't still be at Conn. But each of you added something different to my life and helped me to grow each in your own way. You were exactly what I needed. Every single one of you allowed me to become comfortable in my own skin again, regain my self-confidence, and realize how great and carefree life can be. It's a crime that we didn't stay as close during second semester, and we really need to remedy that this year. Rach: start picking out names. Ally: I miss napping in your bed (and flip-flop fights!). Jess: I miss your dirty mouth, you twat! Iwi: More walks to Mammacoke and beyond? Yes, please.

To Kaitlin and Elizabeth, I couldn't be more excited that you have joined our little family. I know that you are aware of how amazing all these people are, but maybe my post has given you an even better idea of their worth. You two are HILARIOUS and have so much to offer, and I can't wait to learn more about you and create more memories.


And, of course, to Kim. I know that I don't really need to say anything else to you at this point about how much your friendship means to me. Everything that you need to know has already been said, or just doesn't need words. I miss you so much and I can't wait for the day I arrive on campus to your smiling face. Iced chai immediately (and prepare yourself for possibly a few tears).


I have a lot of goals for this year. My junior year in high school was my best, and my junior year at Conn is going to be the best yet without a doubt. But no matter how much I do or how busy I become, I want you all to know that the most important thing to me is to spend as much time as I possibly can with you guys, and to appreciate every. single. moment of it.

Thank you guys for everything. From the bottom of my heart. I'll never forget what you've done for me and the love you've shown me.

I love you all.



-Allison

So it's my last work day

Here are some lovely fotos that i've stolen from my office... as proof of how crazy and fun these people are; below are some of the highlights; today's my "goodbye" party, so hey, at least i get a party, but it's gonna be weird not coming to work anymore.

i guess that's just "where i am" right now, meeting people, making instant friends and close colleagues, and then leaving again. i have to say i'm getting kinda tired of it, but maybe the feeling is just multiplied by the fact that i really liked where i was/am (after all the good and bad experiences this summer) and just wish i could stay a little longer.

my mom told me that this is how things worked for the dental students she worked with when she was at the UCONN dental school. you learn, adapt, make friends, spend more time than you can imagine with these people, and then, learn how to move on.

it was like this when i was abroad in Sevilla in the fall, but i guess i really liked having a shared apt. and coming to work everyday, working sometimes on BS projects, but sometimes on things that really were practical and useful. I don't know, maybe i just need to get better at saying goodbye.

i hope i don't cry in front of all these people, none of the other interns did... but, i'm cool like that

maybe i'm being a little pessimistic as this summer comes to a close, just because i'm kinda mourning the loss of my summer/time in general in Spain...this is my 6th time here, my 5th in Madrid and i've been coming here solo since i was 15. i'm really going to miss my HostFamily. They're closer to me than most of my extended american family. It was so great to have them here in Madrid while i was working, if i needed a familiar face/place. I don't know, they've given me so much and i don't know if i'll ever be able to repay them for all i've learned (not only spanish but lots of other "stereotypical" stuff like independence, trust, etc.) They've always just given me the keys to their house and let me go. It's something i wasn't accoustomed to in the US with my american parents.

i don't know, i came into the office so awkward and (surprise) a little too uptight this summer and now i've got some really great friends and colleagues here. i've also got some great contacts so who know, maybe i'll be back in a year. lets hope

and now i'm off for a couple weeks of travel before i head back to the US, 1 week with Alex and 1 week with the Fam.

I hope everybody's summer is going well, and we'll be back so soon to catch up, etc.

Take care and mil besos,
emilia