After failing to zip my suitcase multiple times, I've decided to come write on my blog. In fewer than 12 hours, I will be on my way to Newark for my trip to Dunedin, New Zealand. I am currently exhibiting quite the mix of emotions, including nervousness, excitement, stress, and relief, and others, and I've come to define the combination of these feelings as "pre-departure jitters". These come before every trip or vacation that I go on, though I've had more jitters recently than normal, probably because i'm going on a much longer trip that is much farther away than anywhere I've gone before. With that said though, I am still incredibly excited about my trip, and my jitters usually go away after I've reached my destination.
Before I can reach my destination though, preparation and packing needed to be done, and it did not come easily. After packing, unpacking, and repacking last night, my suitcase weighed 45 pounds (I am allowed 50 pounds, but I want to bring things back), and thus I unpacked yet again, removed heaps of clothing and my rain boots among other things, and repacked, and weighed again, only to find out that it weighed 44 pounds. I do not know how that is possible as my rain boots themselves weigh more than a pound. Anyways... my packing is about 95% finished at this point, except the whole I-can't-zip-my-suitcase part, which I will need to figure out in the next few hours.
As for my activities in the last two weeks, I've basically been cleaning my room, unpacking, and playing a lot of Angry Birds. Though, I did go to the Mawr for a few days, where I visited some CS people, saw some robots dance the Macarena, picked veggies from the student garden and had long drawn out conversations about Spekuloos, a Belgian spread made out of gingerbread cookies and cinnamon. Did I mention that I also walked nearly five miles to buy avocados? The guacamole was worth it. Anyways, I came back to New York City, and saw Green Lantern with my friend Meena and this past Sunday went to the beach, where I got moderately sun burnt and am now entering the peeling phase. Earlier today, my room mate Catie from high school came to NYC where we ate a late lunch at a nearby Malaysian place. All in all, a great two weeks.
Now a little explanation for my title. Prior to dinner tonight, my mom and I took a walk to the playground next to my elementary school. We went on the swings and talked a little, and I then I went on the jungle gym, even though i'm pretty sure it was designed for kids under the age of 10, but it seemed like a sturdy hunk of metal. As I was climbing around, my mom got a phone call, and presumably the person on the other end asked what she was doing and she responded, "I took Jenny to the playground by her elementary school, like I used to when she was a kid. She's going to New Zealand tomorrow and I guess she is nervous and the playground is homey." Okay, so I never really thought of the playground as homey, but I suppose it is because it's where I grew up and where I spent quite a chunk of my childhood. And yes, I am nervous, but I suppose that comes with going to any new place. Anyways, the playground is still fun at age 20, and I guess it is hard leaving to go to a place where I know home isn't a neon orange Bolt bus away. But my new adventure starts tomorrow, so I should go zip my suitcase. To be continued... in New Zealand!
