Wedding Weekend

My aunt got married this weekend in Brewster on the Cape. It was a small wedding-- just immediate family were invited. My parents, brother, two aunts and cousin all came up from Maryland for the weekend. And they all stayed in our apartment. It was a bit of a tight squeeze, but manageable. I went down to the Cape a day early with the happy couple to help decorate the house for the reception. It was actually my first trip ever to the Cape. It may have just been Brewster, but I was surprised at how much it was not like a beach town but more like suburban New England.

The wedding was at Paine's Creek beach on Sunday morning. We were so blessed with beautiful weather. It was windy which made it a bit chilly, but for late October on the Cape it was considerably warm and beautifully sunny. I was designated as the official photographer of the wedding since it was so small they didn't want to hire one. I used my old-fashioned 35 mm Nikon. These are a few of the shots that turned out really well.


The dogs were all invited to the wedding because it was on the beach. It did mean some chaos of barking, whining, and general dogs on the beach issues, but I think they enjoyed themselves :) Below are pictures of me with my youngest cousin Zac. He is young enough to be my nephew so I'm never really sure of how to refer to him. My uncle has taken to calling me his "Caunt" combining cousin and aunt, and of course pronouncing it the true Maryland way [Can't].

The other picture is all of the Smith cousins. On the left is my brother and on the right is my cousin, Gage. The funniest part of the picture is that they are both years younger, I'm wearing heels, and yet they are towering over me! I remember when people would tell me when I was a kid that my brother would be bigger than me one day. I never believed that was ever going to be possible. But a few years ago I had to start referring to him as my "younger brother" because people would laugh when I called him my "little brother."

My aunt and uncle that I live with made the cake. Isn't it incredible?! The cake itself was butter, butter and more butter. Delicious! Then they used homemade butter cream frosting and fondant and somehow got the flower to look like a gorgeous extension. My aunt is so sweet, she saved the extra frosting for me so I've been having a spoonful here and there the past few days. I love weddings!

Halfway there!

It's almost the end of October and this is the week for midterms, academic advising, and lots of project deadlines. I cannot believe that I've been in school for two months already. It seems like I just came back last week. Time flies when you're busy!

My sixth class, Management 200: Leadership and Social Responsibility ended on Friday. It was a one credit intensive that only met three times during the semester. The purpose of the course was to come up with a solution for a huge consulting project problem. It was a lot of work in a very short period of time. It feels like such a relief to have it finished! Not having to worry about that additional class has taken me from being absolutely overwhelmed to having a completely manageable workload. I had a total of four midterms this week. Two down and only two more to go! I've been telling myself since the begininng of the semester that if I can get through this week, it will be a miracle. And good news is, I'm halfway through the week, halfway through the semester and I still here! The rest of the semster should be a piece of cake :)

But no worries, I am still finding time to have a social life admist all this school work. Last weekend some of my friends from Maryland came up to visit. We went to Salem and did all sorts of Halloween activities. One of my aunts lives in Salem so I'm generally familiar with layout when walking around. I still managed to get us lost on our way from the Salem Common to the oldest candy store in the United States and the House of Seven Gables. Lost, shmost (is that how you would spell it? I'm not sure it's kinda more of a phonetic expression than a written one)-- anyway, it just added to my friends' experience of seeing historic Salem! We did a candlelit walking tour about ghosts, drank apple cider, got our palms read and did all the other fun things you do in Salem in October.

I've never had any sort of witchcraft reading done before, so getting my palm read was a first. Obviously I'm not a real believer in all of that stuff, but it was really interesting what the witch said to me. She told me that I have great influence over people when I speak (even if I don't know what I'm talking about), I have really high intellectual capabilities, and that I will be doing a lot of travelling in my future career. All of these things could be applied to anyone, but what was interesting was that she said I would go into Marketing. I didn't tell her that I'm a Marketing major. Kind of weird... perhaps even spooky! The funniest thing she told me was that I'm "restless as Hell." I found this so amusing because it's absolutely true. I love change and new adventures whenever possible. Again, I'm not convinced about palm reading and witchcraft, but it was fun nevertheless.

Next weekend my aunt is getting married on the Cape. I have a whole bunch of family coming into town for it. Should be a little chaotic but really fun. We have a total of ten people staying in our apartment with only one bathroom and it is a morning wedding. I'm so excited to see my family and my dog (my parents are bringing him up). I will have to write about the madness that ensues next week!

Web Chat

Last week Jack and I participated in a College Week Live video chat. College Week Live is like a virtual college fair where students can go online to get information about college, chat with admission counselors, and watch streamed video of college students speaking about their school. Jack and I were those students speaking about Suffolk!

It was really fun but kind of weird. Jack did all of the technical work of setting up the webcam while I decorated the wall to make it seem spirited since I'm completely clueless when it comes to technology. The video chat was half-an-hour, a combination of us talking about our experience at Suffolk and answering student questions. It was kind of strange not only being on camera and knowing that prospective students I couldn't see were watching me, but also strange watching myself talk on the computer screen for 30 minutes. Needless to say, I don't think I'll ever become an actress.

It was really fun though! My favorite part of the whole experience was that I heard an ad on the radio the day before announcing College Week Live. The ad said, "All kinds of colleges will be there, like Suffolk University..." It was exciting because basically the radio was advertising me and Jack! Fun little moment of fame :)

Something magical

I woke up this morning to the sound of rain on my window. It was gray and cloudy. And yet I knew it was going to be a good day!

So many people get down and depressed when it is raining. There is never a comment like "Oh it's a beautiful day outside" when it rains. Although I don't always enjoy dealing with frizzy hair or wet feet, I love the rain. I particularly love Boston in the rain.

There is something so magical about Boston in the rain. A gray haze settles over the city. Often there is fog that surrounds and circulates the tops of the skyscrapers. Umbrellas, rain boots and hooded jackets can be seen everywhere. The streets are not as full. The people in the streets are either scurrying to get to anywhere that is dry or they are slowly walking and accepting their wet fate. The city, although hazy, seems illuminated as car lights turn on and the lights in buildings seems to glow more brightly. The rain drops hit the many puddles in the road with a constant fascinating rhythm.

I can't put my finger on what exactly makes it all so magical, but the rain transforms Boston into such an enchanting place. I absolutely adore being out in the rain, soaking it all in! No pun intended :)

Coffee please...

I can't believe it is already the beginning of October! I'm really excited because my Management 200 course on nonprofit organizations is going to be finished as of next Friday! My European Union class will be finished as of the end of October. It is an exciting thought that in one month I will only have four classes to worry about for two whole months. I have never had as few as four classes, I don't know what I will do with all of my spare time!

I am beginning to realize the extent to which I am crazy. It's obvious that I've been crazy for a while, a known fact since high school. But I was up until 4:45 in the morning doing homework last night! Someone please tell me what is wrong with me. To my defense, I did take a nap for an hour between 9:00 and 10:00 and I slept in until 10:00 this morning. But still, I don't procrastinate (or I minimally do) so I'm not sure why I have to put in such long nights to keep up.

Part of the problem is my schedule. I have four evening classes and one morning class and work in between. I don't get home until after 8:00 every evening, so I don't start my homework until late. My advice to any student, especially freshman, is to stay away from evening classes as much as possible. One or two is fine, but four is too much.

I love school and most all of my classes, but I'm really tired. But in one week I will be so much less crazy, I might even be considered normal. What a thought :) Coffee Please!