2010

Let it snow, let it snow, let it snow!

The picture above is not Virginia Beach, though it may as well be; Hampton Roads got DUMPED on over the Christmas holidays, which is a big deal in a place that usually gets just a dusting every year. But today is warm, so the snow is melting already!

It's SO PRETTY outside right now that I'm actually sitting with my window wide open so I can see, uninhibited, the sunshine sparkle on the crisp white blanket covering all of visible creation. I like to look at snow, I like to play in snow, but I'm not a fan of driving or working outside in it. As my boss put so elequently: you should go visit snow, then leave snow; snow should not visit you.

I think I agree.

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I realize it's been a whole month since I last wrote, and with the New Year approaching (in literally 15 hours) it seemed appropriate that I jot down SOMETHING at least. So here are a few thoughts:

1) I'm not done with 2010; it went by too fast. I wish I had a two more months of it. Life is picking up speed somehow. I've heard it does that as you get older. Someone once said that it's because when you're 5, a year is 1/5th of your life and when you're 50, it's 1/50th of your life. How's that for perspective?

2) Christmas break isn't long enough at Regent. We only get two weeks :-( My brain is not ready for another semester yet, but I am ready for all my friends to get back to campus. It's creepily quiet around here. And I've had enough alone time to last my introverted self for a month!

3) One of the biggest learning experiences I've had this past semester was my lighting class. We used photography to study light, shadows, depth, color, skin tones, gray scales, etc. Not only was it a fun class, but because of it I see my whole world differently...and I love it. Everyday things seem so much more fascinating because I appreciate them more and I am starting to see them through an artist's eye. My deepest desire right now is for a nice Nikon DSLR camera of my own: a D40 or something similar.

4) This year I have learned a lot--and am still learning a lot--about patience, making do, efficiency, and to prioritize better. It's amazing how many things there are to spend money on, and I'm not talking about whims and impulse buys! I'm talking about good and/or necessary things. So many times deciphering which is the good and which is the more necessary good is just a matter of priority.

5) I'm extremely thankful that I FINALLY found a home church here in VA. It's actually in Suffolk, which is about 40-45 minutes away, but, believe me, it's worth the drive! I knew from the moment I walked through the doors that it was where God wanted me to be. Perhaps I'll write more on that later.

I'm excited for the coming year and what it holds. I've applied for another part-time job with CBN, doing camera/lighting/tech stuff. I'm still waiting to hear back from HR. I need to do some more follow-up on that this next week.

I feel like this next year is going to set the course for me for the next several years. I have to decide if I'm going to stay on campus and take classes over the summer or if I just want to work full-time. If I just work, I'll have to find somewhere else to live and make it more permanent. In that case, I'll probably stick around here for several years after graduation. (Unless God wants me to move elsewhere, of course :-)

On top of school and work, all through January I'll be Props Master for a short film that we're shooting on weekends, so I'll be pretty busy! Now I just need to work on time management...