Yay for sunshine!
The temperature rose into the 70's today and it has been glorious. We even got to have Media Criticism class outside on the lawn this afternoon (Whitworth professors are pretty cool). I'm eating a popsicle as I type and wearing flip-flops and a T-shirt, but I haven't dug out the shorts quite yet. I'm always self-conscious about my bright white legs at the beginning of the season and it usually takes a month or so before I finally remember that I'll never be tan and learn to embrace my pastiness.
OK, I'm off to get ready for dinner with some friends. It's Friday!!! I hope you're getting the opportunity to enjoy some sun rays wherever you are!

Summer plans update:

I just got off the phone with the editor at the newspaper in Walla Walla. I'll officially start my internship on Monday, June 12 and will finish mid-September. Now I just need to find a place to live for those three months.

Is college making me stupid?

Lately I haven't been feeling too intelligent. Academically, my brain is working fine, but it seems to be slacking off in a few other areas of life. Here's an example: After going a couple weeks without conditioner, I decided it was time to buy some. I'm not faithful to any particular brand, so I always spend at least 5 minutes perusing the labels and price tags before making my selection. Anyhow, I finally settled on a nice, creamy-looking substance. As I showered the next morning, I realized that I had accidentally purchased shampoo. So, I went another couple weeks without conditioner and yesterday decided that I really needed to buy some. Once again, I scanned the aisles and finally made my selection. I squeezed a dollop onto my hand this morning and noticed that my new conditioner looked an awful lot like shampoo. I checked the label. Sure enough - more shampoo.

Jody (my former roommate) and I were just talking a few months ago about how we've become "ditzier" since starting college. In high school, I always thought I was pretty "with it," but that seems to be changing. Has anyone else experienced this weird phenomenon? Is there anything I can do to keep from becoming a total flake? It can be entertaining at times, but it's starting to get old.

P.S. I finally got a bottle of conditioner today - at least it better be conditioner. I checked the label at least five times before I made my purchase this time.

News Brief:

It's pretty much official: I'll be working full-time at the Walla Walla Union-Bulletin this summer. It's a 12-week internship and will start sometime in June. (So that means I'll have 2-3 weeks back in Oregon before I have to leave!)

Is there life after college?

"What are your plans after graduation?" I've been hearing versions of that question pretty much every day. It's a perfectly logical question and I don't blame people for asking, but I have to admit - I dread it. I guess it's something that I really haven't wanted to think about. Sure, I'm looking forward to graduating (in less than a month!), but it's pretty hard to imagine life without school. Afterall, school has been a constant part of my life for about 16 years. Leaving Whitworth will be bittersweet. I'm looking forward to being done with tests and homework, but the other aspects of college life will be sorely missed: wonderful friends, personable, accessible faculty, a plethora of activities and learning opportunities. Whitworth is a great place. However, I need to come to grips with the fact that this chapter in my life is about to close. I don't have any long-term plans for the future, but I'm coming close to finalizing my summer plans. I haven't made any commitments yet, but today I was offered a job as a full-time summer intern at a newspaper in Walla Walla, WA, so that's looking like a pretty likely option. I told them I would make my final decision on Friday. It's hard to imagine not coming home for the summer, but I guess it's all a part of this "moving on" stage of life. And who knows? I might end up back in Oregon this fall. I'm excited to see what happens.

Here's a post that I started last month and never finished. I don't really feel like finishing it, so I'll just post what I had because it gives a little background on my current living situation . . .

So, I have an hour to kill between class and a newspaper meeting. Of course I have plenty of homework that's calling my name, but none that is urgent (that is, due in 15 minutes), so I decided to say "hi" to all of you instead. The past week has been rather crazy. I spent 6 enjoyable days in Oregon before returning to Spokane on Thursday, cutting my Spring Break a tad short. Over the weekend, I moved to a friend's apartment down the street. Anna and Jody (my former roommates) have both moved out of state, which would have left me renting our nice 2 bedroom, 2 bath apartment all by my lonesome self. So, I moved in with my friend Sarah. I know Sarah from church and she's a really fun girl - it's been great getting to know her better. We keep way opposite schedules (she goes to bed around 9:30 on weekdays because she has to be at work at 5:45 a.m.!), which makes sharing a room interesting, but so far, so good. She's a really fun roommate and I'm enjoying getting to know her better.

It's me! I'm back!
So, I now have Internet in my new apartment, which could improve posting frequency on this blog. I wasn't planning to have Internet installed here since I'll only be around for about a month, but the Comcast guys came knocking at my door offering free installation and a pretty sweet contract-free offer, so I couldn't resist. Always having to go to school or the coffee shop down the street to check my e-mail was getting kind of old. We were supposed to get limited cable TV along with the Internet deal as well, but my roommate's TV is so ancient that the Comcast guys couldn't figure out how to install it! Oh well. Who has time for TV anyways? Anyhow, I've got some "life of Bethany" news that I'd love to update y'all on, but that will have to wait - maybe later tonight.

I guess it's true. I'm an April Fool.

So I was pretty proud of myself because I made it all the way through last Sat. without falling for any April Fool's Day tricks. As it turns out, I congratulated myself a bit too soon. The following e-mail composed by yours truly serves as proof. (If you need context, it was written in response to a rather abrupt e-mail sent by the wonderful Rachel Swayze announcing her upcoming move to Argentina, where she planned to live with a missionary family for a minimum commitment of 2 and a half years. My reporter instincts told me something was fishy - but I wasn't quite smart enough to figure out what was wrong.) Disclaimer: you probably won't find the following e-mail amusing unless you happen to know both Rachel and myself.

Dear Rachel, Congratulations on what sounds like an exciting (and adventurous!) opportunity! I have to admit, I was a little taken aback the e-mail. I wasn't shocked by the overall news as much as by the language: "time for action," "quitting this country." Was I wrong in getting the impression that you've been frustrated with your life as it has been since coming back from Mexico? I know that's not what you said in the e-mail and maybe no one else got that impression - but that was how I interpreted things - although it really doesn't seem like you. I really haven't had a chance to talk to you one on one about how life has been, so I guess I have no idea how you've really been doing lately. What I'm trying to ask is, are you going to Argentina to get away from current frustrations or because you feel God is calling you there to serve? Please, please understand. I am not at all criticizing your motives for going to Argentina - I'm just trying to understand you. I think what through me off is that the e-mail was not written in usual "Rachel" style. And ... oh my gosh, it was written on April! 1! I just now - almost a week later, as I'm in the middle of typing this e-mail to you - realized that!! I am sitting in the computer lab at school laughing to myself right now! Good one, Rachel. You really had me going there! I was honestly concerned - not that I wouldn't support you going out on the mission field again, but something with that e-mail just didn't seem right! I thought about erasing what I wrote before, but I decided to leave it for you - so that you can perhaps get a little pleasure out of how good you got me! I'm taking interpersonal communications right now and we've talked a lot about how people misinterpret others or make assumptions - so I was trying really hard to connect with you while using caution with the uncertainties! And I thought I had made it through April Fool's Day without once falling for a trick! Oh, I love you Rachel! That really made my day (even though I'm a week late!). love and hugs, Bethany