Happy 2010!

It's a brand new year, a brand new decade.

And with this new year, I've decided to take on a challenge. I joined the 365 bandwagon and am going to [attempt to] take a self-portrait every day for a year. A friend of mine has been doing this project for the past year and looking at his pictures really inspires me. I really admire all the hard work he puts into each and every one of his photos. I really want to grow and improve as a photographer. I mean, why would I get such a fancy schmancy camera if I'm not going to use it on a daily basis, right? I'm excited to see where this is going to take me. I'm determined to finish what I have started.

It will all be posted on my Flickr account so go check it out over there.

Here's my photo for today:

2009, what a journey it has been.

Only a few more hours left before it is a brand new year. When I was younger, I used to think that staying up for New Year's Eve meant something really special , as in when the clock struck midnight, I would actually physically feel different. But I never felt anything different afterward. I still secretly wish that I can feel drastically different at midnight. But in reality, tomorrow is just another day. It's just that instead of writing 2009 down for the date, I write 2010 instead. It sounds cynical, but it's true. It's just another day.

With that said, 2009 has definitely been an interesting year and I'm thankful for all that has happened. It's been a good year, and I'm hoping that 2010 holds more great things. To me, 2010 will be a turning point in my life. I'm going to be graduating in May and then I'll be out in the "real world." I don't know if I'm ready for the real world. Or if the real world is ready for me. It's scary to think that I am growing up, that we're all growing up. I walk around the city and see all these high school kids and college freshmen strutting around, thinking they're the shizz and I think, "Man. I used to be like that too, thinking I was so cool and whatnot" and then walk around like I'm so much cooler than them. And you know what, a few years down the road, I'll look back, think the same thing about the 21 year olds I see and think that I'm way more cooler than them because I'm 25 now. Or whatever. Hah, did that make sense? :)

Happy New Year!

2009, it's been fun. 2010, bring it.

Back in New York

I've been back home for two full days now and I am coming upon my third. It's strange; it almost feels as if I never left the country. My whole experience in Beijing is like a distant dream minus the fact that I have like 20+ gigs of pictures on my computer and all the souvenirs I brought back with me that proves it was actually real. Being home is nice. All the familiar sights and sounds put me at ease. It's quite cold here in New York and I'm getting used to the lack of warmth in my house (the heat is on, but it doesn't spread throughout the entire house).

I miss Beijing though. I miss my friends and I miss the cheap food. All the Chinese friends I've made there keep telling me to go back as soon as I can, hah. That makes my heart smile; I've left enough of an impression that they want me to go back ^_^

Now that I'm back home, I have a lot of things to do. Mainly, apply to jobs and eat good food. I lost weight during my time in China and while I plan on continuing the weight loss, I still want to eat good food. I just need to be more aware of how much I eat and what I eat. As for the job applying, I need to do as much of that as I can because I need to be prepared for post-grad life. None of that sitting at home and doing nothing. None of it.

I still need to unpack all my stuff. I really suck at unpacking. Especially if I have to leave again in a month to go back to Rochester. It's my last semester! I still can't believe it. GAHHH. When did I start growing up?!

Last night in China

It's my last night in China, sitting among my luggage all packed and ready to go. I am not out with the rest of my fellow IES-ers partying it up before leaving tomorrow. No, I'm perfectly content where I am right now, in my room, in my PJs, sitting in an empty room, listening to Owl City and talking to the awesome friends I've made on Adium :)

I can't believe this journey is over. Where has the time gone? It feels like just yesterday when the bus pulled up to the gate of West Campus and I climbed out all wide-eyed and in awe of the fact that I was in China. And now, I've officially graduated from IES, my things are packed, my walls are blank, my shelves covered in dust and I am off to the airport tomorrow afternoon.

This has definitely been an amazing experience, with good and bad memories. But each of them was needed to contribute to this China adventure. I'm going to miss it here. I'm going to miss the wonderful friends I've made, the people I've met, the customs I've gotten used to, the places I like to go, the prices at which I like to buy things at (hahah), all of it. Beijing really has made its own niche in my heart and I can't wait to come back here some day.

On another note, I'm really surprised at how I managed to fit everything in my suitcases. Go me! I have a carry-on full of random things to give people. It's quite heavy. As well as my two suitcases. GAH. So many things. I hope everything goes smoothly tomorrow.

16 more hours until I leave.

Coffee and papers

Coffee and papers seem to go hand in hand.

At least they seem to go together perfectly for me. Whenever I'm working on a paper, there's always a coffee sitting next to my laptop.

I am currently sitting in Starbucks at the Golden Resources Mall (largest mall in the world), attempting to work on my final history paper. I'm listening to Owl City. I think they're a new band? I've been hearing a lot about them from my friends so I downloaded their album last night and have been listening to it since. I know I should be working on my paper right now, but in my defense, I'm downloading this article that I need for my paper, so I'm just waiting for it to finish downloading.

I have 5 days left in Beijing! I've already started packing and am pretty much done with one of my suitcases.

Last night I did my laundry and hung up my clothes on the line to dry when my curtains, along with the pole fell down. The thing just came out of the wall. It's because you're technically not supposed to hang your clothesline on the curtains because if there is too much weight on it, the whole thing will come down. I've been drying my laundry on it all semester, and of course, with my luck, the whole thing came down last night. My roommate and I called the building people to get it fixed, but they can't fix it until tomorrow... so right now we have no curtains to cover our huge window! It sucks because our room faces east so this morning, the sunshine poured into our room which made it hard to sleep in.

And I keep finding chunks of wall and dust everywhere. I wiped my laptop a bunch of times already, but I still feel like it's dusty and dirty.

I still can't wrap my mind around the fact that I am leaving in 5 days. When I first got here in August, I kept thinking that I had so much time here and now all that time is gone. Four months passed by so fast. And my month long break is going to pass by quickly too. Next thing I know, it'll be time to return to Rochester for my LAST semester of college. Seriously, where HAS the time gone?

I'm going to turn 22 in three months, and I'm graduating in five months. WHAAAT. Ridiculous.