The Story of My Life: One sweet summer

I don't think I've mentioned this in prior posts, but I was set to get my graduate degree at WSU...in education. I thought my journalism experience with a master's in teaching would be the perfect combination to catapult me toward my goal of someday writing for children or teens.

When I realized I would be graduating in May and beginning graduate school in June, I knew I had to defer. I jumped into college just two weeks after my high school graduation...I never had more than a three-week break for summer, and I...was...spent. I needed a mental break in a big way.

Toward the end of my senior year, I formulated a plan that I would move to Austin, Texas. The stereotypical friendly Texan, sunshine and something completely different from the gloom of the Pacific Northwest just seemed so appealing to me...so I was set to do it. I was going to move across the country and just relax for a few months.

Then, competitive ol' me began realizing my friends and acquaintances were getting big kid jobs and beginning their careers, all the while I had a no-plan idea of figuring out my life in the middle of the USA. So naturally, I freaked out and began applying for jobs across the country.

The Ivy League had an opening writing recaps for its sports department. Perfect, right? Of course...except for the fact that I wanted to take a break from sports since I'd been entrenched in the life of a college athlete for four solid years. Yet, the thought of a job title and business cards seemed appealing, or so I thought. The league flew me out to Princeton, NJ, where I donned my first professional skirt suit and carried a portfolio of my work.

After the interview, I flew to California to say goodbye to my sisters, as I thought for sure I'd be living on the East Coast for the next two year. But, as I sat on my sister's front stoop, I received word that they offered the job to someone else, and I immediately began sobbing. In retrospect, I know I was more upset that they didn't want me than not getting the job. It's just my nature to want to be the best at everything, and to receive that rejection did not feel good.

On the other hand, I knew I'd be moving to Texas, as previously decided. I would work at a coffee shop and live at my aunt and uncle's empty house for six months. That was the plan...until my relatives told me they were selling their house. I could live there "for however long I wanted to...until it sold." I mean, I was all about adventure and figuring things out, but I wasn't about to "move" to Texas only to turn around a few months later and drive back.

So, I was going to be bold and really move. For good. But, not before I had one of the best summers of my life--to date.