My Norwegian sweater, snow & senioritis

I'm wearing this red and black, gold-clasped wool sweater boldly in honor of last night's snowfall.  I haven't seen snow since January, since I escaped to Spain shortly after the new year. I'm ready to enjoy this white stuff yet again, though. My snow run yesterday was incredible: my only complaint being the pelting of hard flakes in my eyes. And at eight this morning, I tromped about the Arb, exploring the white paths, occasionally slipping on the layer of leaves hidden below. Happily sporting a great thrift store find--enormous, hand-knit wool socks--my feet stayed toasty warm.

A mere week of school stands between me and Thanksgiving break! I'm lengthening my vacation by missing two days of class. Hooray! My niece and due-any-day-now nephew will be entirely worth it. With a brand new baby, a darling toddler, my sisters, my mother and my brother-in-law, and a delicious turkey, I'm expecting a delightful Thanksgiving.

While the snow was falling late in the afternoon yesterday, some friends and I were gathered in the library, warming up and drying off, admiring the huge snowflakes swirling and floating through the air. Snow is so romantic! Thus sparking a long discussion of proposals, engagements and the growing number of rings (still well before spring) seen on campus.

With Der Besuch der Alte Dame (the book I'm reading for German) in my hand, I could almost pretend to be studying though in actuality conversing with friends and dreaming of 'the real world' and all the snowy, romantic moments to be had. But I was not studying, and my longing for some 'real world'-- whatever that may be--is just as false. Today is real, even though I find myself shuffling from class to class among myriad 20-somethings and even though I don't make my own food and rarely have to wash my own dishes and I don't even get to sweep (the latter two being quite enjoyable activities in my opinion...seriously). College life is chock-full of opportunities to love people, to mature, to learn more about yourself, the world and its Creator, and to procrastinate...or not.

My brightly colored German book is staring up at me, demanding to be read. Okay, enough procrastination for now. Just as long as senioritis entails motivation to study hard my final year as well as the occasional abandonment of boring activities for fun times with friends, I'll live with this disease until May 2012.