Update

So, I turned in my keys at my internship site yesterday, after a couple long days of dotting I's and crossing T's in all my charts. Leaving that place came with too many goodbyes that I wasn't ready to say. Today I throw in some laundry, pack up, run some errands, and hop on a plane for a few weeks of much-anticipated vacation. Tonight to Boston, a few days with Natalie, then Goat flies in and we drive up to New Hampshire for a week at Squam Lake with his family. Then, hop a plane straight to Seattle and head to eastern Washington for a week at a lake with my family and a few extra days in Seattle (partially enjoying Seattle, partially avoiding July in Pasadena). The current plan is that I'll be in the Yosemite backcountry for a good chunk of August, guiding for Sierra Treks, and then when September rolls around, I'll find a job and a new place to live - not sure exactly where yet but for now the requirements are that it reduces the 30-mile commute to Goat. So, September is the new horizon I can see to, but beyond which I cannot see. And for now I'm OK with that. (I fully expect the angst to ratchet up in the fall, but in the meantime I'm planning on enjoying some vacation).

Here are some photos from graduation...

Security Guard

So we have this security guard at work... at least, I think that is his job title, and he does wear a uniform that makes him look like one. And while I can't say I've ever felt unsafe at work, at least not during the daytime, it is on the outskirts of a sketchy area and right next door to an adult clinic that serves the chronically/severely mentally ill. So I would at least like the security guard to sort of look like he's ready to deal with an incident, should one arise. To start with, he's about 5'6" and maybe weighs a buck ten. But aside from that, theoretically, I don't think he should be sitting on the bench outside all afternoon with his shoes and socks off, picking between his toes. I mean, I just think it would take a while to get them back on if he needed to chase someone or something.

Done... "ish"

Well, I have survived, and graduated, and celebrated, and all that jazz! I'll post pics this weekend. Graduation itself was on the long, boring side (it took an hour and 45 minutes to read all the names during the ceremony) but we survived. I only cried a couple of times (so far), not from being sad, just from the emotional upheaval of going that hard/fast/strong for so long and then being done. Actually, I'm kind of weaning myself a bit... I finish off with my clients and mountains of charts in the next two weeks, but at least there's no class or papers to deal with, so when I leave the office, my time is my own. Strangely, yesterday I was at work for 11 hours but when I was driving home, I felt like I was getting off early (don't feel sad for me or anything, I was only working for about 6-7 of those hours, the rest was wandering around the office in between appointments trying to figure out what needed to be done and hanging out with the other interns). The funny thing is, after having my parents staying here for a week, and all the busyness of graduation and guests and being with people every waking moment for the past 3 weeks, all I could think about during the day was going home, by myself, and staring at the ceiling for a few hours. Then, of course, driving home, I got this weird, unsettled, lonely feeling at knowing I was going to be all by myself with nothing to do for a few hours.

Don't worry, I got over it. But it was strange while it lasted.

Of the keeping in of the proverbial loop

Just to keep you posted...

Classes are done. Three papers to go. One apartment to clean. Two parents to collect from the airport. Four grad events to go to. One party to throw. And.... (drumroll please...)

Three hundred hours. 305, to be precise, as of today. I got my hours done last Tuesday so I will, officially, legally, without-even-having-to-fudge be done and graduated as of Saturday (assuming those three papers get done), even if all the rest of my clients for the month of June get lost, or forget, or have family emergencies.