Play: PA

Welp.

I am done with my first year of college. (?!?!?!?!?!)

I'm not sure how I feel about this. First of all, it's shocking. I cannot believe that last year at this time I was still in high school. For real, it is unbelievable. I know some years have seemed to pass by quickly before, but this is probably the fastest yet. Just yesterday I was moving out, but it seems like only a few weeks ago I was moving in. And yet, at the same time, it seems as though I've known these new Roberts friends forever...

There truly is no place like home. It is the most comfortable place in the world. But this time, when I came home yesterday, and everyone in the family started unloading the van and lugging everything into my room, I stared at the cardboard and tupperware boxes that contained my entire life for the past year and felt... weird. I can't really comprehend it all... but... I now have two lives.

One of my friends (who also happens to be my boss) and I were talking about this on Friday, as I sat at work, done with finals, done with Garlock, done with my freshman year. It's like we put our lives on a tape, we decided. Seriously. I have a life on tape in PA, which I had to "pause" and start the tape in NY. Now, it's the end of the semester, and I've put my NY life on "pause" and hit "play" on the old PA tape. For the rest of this summer, I'll be seeing all my old friends from high school, working at the same job I had all last year, going on vaca's with the family I haven't seen in a while... It's just like it was before. And it's great! Really, it'll be awesome, and I'm super excited about summer.

It's just that, I have this whole part of my life now in NY, and I won't be even touchin' it for the next three months. Just putting it up there on the shelf, tucking it away in storage along with the mini-fridge and spiral-bounds. Now I do realize it's like this for any college student, no matter where you go, how far away, whoever you meet. It's just another part of college life I never thought about before. And I'm sure I'll keep in touch with the people I've met there. But I won't be hanging out with them. (Which, by the way, may be way okay, since I did just live with them for a year. Everyone needs a break from each other after a while.)

Anyway, just thought I'd rant about my new split-screen life. I have 3.5 months to "play" my PA life. Might as well live it up! Over and out.