it really amazes me that this year is over. so much has happened in the past year, but in retrospect it sometimes doesn't feel like a year has passed. at the same time i'm not sure my judgement of a year is the same anymore. i've always determined a year based on school. fall semester through spring semester is my "year". but it was different this time around.

spring semester of my 2nd year was definitely interesting. new roommate, new friends, new boys. i think i learned a lot. and i'm definitely over the phase that i was in. but more importantly, the end of the semester brought the beginning of a new chapter.

moving out on my own completely. living in long beach for the entire summer taught me so much about growing up. yeah i worked like no other. and the jobs i had weren't that great AT ALL, but i learned. and that's what's most important. i was able to realize i can make it on my own. and i am able to support myself. and to be honest i'm proud of myself that i have been able to get this far. most importantly i'm so glad that i'm able to prove to my parents that i have been able to grow up and be on my own. besides financially stabalizing myself, adjusting to being on my own was incredibly difficult for awhlie. and i know i've said it before, but thank you again for being there for me when no one else was.

as summer came to an end once again a new chapter was beginning. this time with 3 others along the way. having lived in the apartment basically alone for 3 months and then having you guys move in completely scared me. i didn't know what to expect or how i would handle things. but you guys are all awesome and i know that i would never be playing the games or watching the shows i do without you haha. but seriously you're all great people and in my own way i think i've learned a lot from each of you.

the friends i have now are amazing. i love how we manage to make time and make "things" our own. whether it's meeting up for lunch (or downloading songs...) grabbing dinner late after work or just talking as we almost crash while driving, i love how we still manage to try and stay close. i love how we've found friendship between family. as we grow older we're able to relate more and now we have conversations and don't just laugh at those sleeping around us. the ones i see like once a month when i should see more lets time go by like it hasn't. you guys are awesome and it's always good to catch up when we still act as stupid as we did 4 years ago. walking eachother to class and never remembering eachothers schedule though we have them is just how we do. distance does a little but not much, and please forget to remember me. finding time to meet up in your busy schedule always brings a smile to my face. our presents to eachother haven't gotten much use, but this must change. plus this year brought us so many new friends. and memories. seeing you after SO long still hasn't changed our friendship. we've always said we'll be friends forever and it proves how we've grown and changed but together it's like nothing happened. and i love it.

so now as we enter 2006, i can only hope for the best with everything. i'm getting closer and closer to becoming a teacher and it's awesome. working with kids is so much fun and i love that i get paid to play with the little ones. school keeps getting closer to ending and the "real world" keeps getting closer. until then though i'm going to have fun. and continue to grow with everything that i do! have a safe new year and the memories will keep growing!