Moving in

Day 7

My roommates are back (except for Jenny, who is still in New York!) I spent the day carrying heavy objects and catching up with roomies. We were all in different countries from China to Uraguay to Cambridge, MA (which is ofcourse a country in itself)

I also went to MIT, and was happy to discover it only takes 15 min. total from my dorm to Matthew's. Matthew came to Harvard for a bit and checked out our yard sale, but then he went shopping with Mark and Miriam and I spent the day hauling heavy boxes up the stairs.

I think it will be a great year!

Picture of the day? I got a single!! I decided to put my bed in the closet. Now, don't start thinking I am being tortured or anything. It is actually quite convenient, giving me a quiet place to study with light control, and it opens up a lot more space in the room. Plus, now I can say I live in a closet and mean it!

We are here!

Day 6

A brother shares childhood memories and grown-up dreams.

~Author Unknown

Well, I'm here. I'm sitting all alone in my dorm room! I really like it. It is bigger than freshman year, and it has two beautiful window-seats! All my life, I have wanted window seats, so it is pretty exciting. I know that two of my roommates, Jenny and Rose are already here because they had already signed the sign-in sheet, but I haven't seen them yet. I'm very excited to be back, but I hope my roomies come back soon. It is a bit lonely all by myself :(

We drove all the way from New Jersey, and it only took 5 hours, and it would have taken 4.5 had it not been for a little adventure. They have lots of tolls here and Matthew was talking to me about what would happen if you didn't pay, but meanwhile he got so distracted he got in the wrong lane! This lane was only for people with a special pass, and we didn't have one, so we had no choice but to go through the booth without paying. Ironic, no? We were worried about the camera that takes a picture of your license plate and bills you, wondered how much the fine would be, and what Mom would say when she got it... Luckily, we explained what happened at the next gate and the guy was nice enough to let us off the hook. Phewf.

Matthew seemed a bit overwhelmed by this ideas of living in a completely new place, but we worked together to rearrange furniture to maximize space, and later we went grocery shopping and to a get-to-know you event on his floor.

Wow, there are not very many girls at MIT engineering grad school! It is probably 75% male! Everyone was happy to talk to me, and seemed a bit disappointed that I didn't got there. They need more girls in engineering :)

I am so happy to have my brother here! I heart you matthew!

Here's the picture! There's no extra bed, so I told Matthew I'd just live on his bookshelf!

New Jersey Bike Ride

Day 5

Nothing compares to the simple pleasure of a bike ride. ~John F. Kennedy

Went bike riding today and heard great stories from the grandparents. I am really excited to get the opportunity to spend more time with them this year.

So, my camera is full of sand, so I am left with the bad camera for now- here's the best I can do for a picture... Oh well, I didn't guarantee the picture of the day would be a good one. I had to turn it sepia because the color version was so blown out.

Omi and Opa

Day 4

Grandmas never run out of hugs or cookies carrots

~Author Unknown

The storage container was packed, last goodbyes said, and six hours on the airplane later, I am in New Jersey with my grandparents who we call Omi and Opa (Grandma and Grandpa in German). It is really nice to see them!

My grandmother Omi is amazing. Tomorrow am going to go walking with her and to the gym with her (yes, this IS my grandmother. She is so fit! Just being in the house makes me went to exercise and eat vegetables. The entire downstairs is one giant exercise room, and I have already had my diet thoroughly analyzed. When I am 80, I would love to be as fit as she is!

My grandfather Opa is amazing too! He helped to invent the LED and worked at Bell Labs designing integrated circuits and other innovative pieces of technology. To hear him and my brother Matthew talk electronics is something else. My brother, Opa, and my Dad are so much alike it is scary sometimes!

The picture of the day was taken just before we left, a final family portrait before we took off. We won't get another chance to take one until at least Christmas, and my brother and I might not even come home until January :(

I love you family!

Goodbyes

Day 3 "I see my path, but I don't know where it leads. Not knowing where I'm going is what inspires me to travel it." -Rosalia de Castro

"I love you Mom," I told her as her eyes filled up with tears. I have never been able to keep my composure when my mom cries, and soon my eyes were wet too.

Today was a day of packing and final goodbyes. My best friend Hilary also left today to go work in in California for a while, and we took a last picture together on the swing-set in the yard. Every time she came over for years, when we didn't know what to do we would swing, so that is our special place. Looking at it today I realize how old it is getting with moss on the hand over hand and the colors faded. I couldn't help but be a little sad remembering all this, but I'm excited for every minute because life is all about following the unknown.

Fleeting Summer Days

Day 2

"No spring nor summer beauty hath such grace
as I have seen in one autumnal face"

-Autumn quote by John Donne

Tomorrow is my last day here in Seattle, and I noticed today that the leaves are beginning to drift slowly to cover the browning flowers and blooming grasses of summer. The house itself looks as if an autumn whirlwind has torn the clothes and books, school supplies off their shelves and spread them in glorious colors throughout the house, covering tables and floors in the fall packing frenzy. My brother and I are slowly racking them into piles to sort and bring with us as we too migrate away for the coming year...

The picture of the day is a picture my fake sister Kiana McCrackin took when I went to visit her at her college in Santa Barbara this last week. She is a truly talented artist and photographer. (http://mccrackinphotography.wordpress.com/)

Foreign Land

Day 1

The whole object of travel is not to set foot on foreign land; it is at last to set foot on one's own country as a foreign land.

~G.K. Chesterton

It has been an incredible summer. I spent two months in Kenya with people who changed my outlook on life and made me realize just how big and small the world really is. I thought I'd start the blog off with a favorite picture from my summer adventures to look back on a year from this summer one of my favorites ever.