Uh oh...I'm getting panicky.

Life here has been pretty average since coming back from Thanksgiving (which was amazing!). Quite honestly though, I'm feeling overwhelmed. I've been trying to get a hold of the Irish Studies Director, Karen Chambers, to talk about all the things I need to turn in and I haven't heard back from her. I'm getting panicky. I think it's all the sudden hitting me that I'm going to be gone for six months.

I'm feeling unsure about leaving Saint Mary's. Not only because of the frenzy that often precedes finals, but also because I have to pack up all my stuff. It makes it very real. I'm getting nervous about leaving everybody I know here too. Life goes on. Things change. People change. I'm worried that when I get back it'll be like repeating freshman year. I hope not.

I'm probably just thinking about it too much.

I am really excited though. Ridiculously excited, just nervous too. I think that's normal though. I really hope I'm not the only one who feels like this. Well, actually, I know I'm not. Kim and I talk about this all the time actually. But I think we'll be alright. We just need to remember to enjoy the time we're given. Especially now that we're going to be leaving in two weeks.

My Classes

Mom--Here's a picture, just like you asked. This is one of the oldest buildings of the University of Maynooth.

So here's what's been happening, I submitted my class list to Karen Chambers (the lady in charge of the Ireland program) but I won't really know what classes I'll be in until I get there, which is kind of nerve wracking but it's all good.

The classes:

1. Anthropology: Culture and the Human Universal - Basically a class studying human nature in relation to the development of culture.

2. Intro to Fundamental Moral Theology - My second general education credit for Religious Studies.

3. Ireland since the 1800s - History course, yes!

4. Intro to Irish Historical Settlement - Another anthropology course but instead it focuses on archeology. We get to go on field trips to old monuments in Ireland. But, the bad news is that it has a limited amount of space, so I'm not guaranteed a spot.

5. Irish Literature Studies - An English course where we read mostly Irish literature.

6. Or Another Anthropology course which isn't really that important because it's an alternative if I don't get into one of these.

Either way, I'll be taking five classes. I'm so excited to see how the classes are over there. I honestly cannot wait
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This is a great shot of a northern coast of Ireland AND it's currently acting as my desktop.

Excitement

I don't know if you could tell by the fact that I became a follower of my own blog but I'm new to this whole experience. In fact, my good friend Natalie had to walk me through the whole practice and then the minute she left I screwed it all up. But, it's all good. Hopefully by the time I leave for Ireland I'll have a handle on this.

Which brings me to the whole point of my blog. IRELAND! Yes, I'm going to be living in Europe for close to six months. It is going to be awesome! I honestly cannot even describe to you how excited I am for the new adventures that lie ahead of me. I'm already starting to plan for my trip even though I won't be leaving until January 26th. That's how obnoxiously excited I am.

I wanted to create this blog before I actually left so that I could build the anticipation. Also, I thought I could walk my friends and family who won't be joining me on my European excursions through the whole experience. By "whole" I mean the panicked frenzy that I will be in in for the next couple of months. So, I hope that this will entertain those of you who cannot be with me while I travel the world and for those of you who are going to be side by side with me, I hope that it brings back some good memories.