Adieu, pre-programed monday through friday alarm!

the cumulative description of the last six months is not eluding me, i'm just havng a great time trying to condense all of these emotions for you. I find it close to impossible to describe what this last week has been like for me, but I assume at this point if you’ve kept up with the blogs, you understand how emotional and out-of-control this has been for me.

bench clean out day :(

This tool box weighed like, a brillion pounds when i got done packing it.

When I started this program I set out to accomplish something for myself. I wanted to raise my personal bar of expectation and push myself to limits I only hear about people reaching. The goals I had for what I wanted to accomplish were not only met here, but surpassed. I found something here in me these last 6 months that I knew existed, but had lost touch with and I suppose it was only a matter of time before the love affair I had with metal was reignited.

I spent the last 6 months with one of the funniest, greatest group of classmates I could have asked for. The team dynamic in that room was outstanding. In and out of the classroom I met and became friends with people from Canada, Ohio, Texas, New York, New Jersey, Arkansas, Florida, California, Alabama, North Carolina, India, London, North Korea, China and Japan. My oldest classmate was 53 in for a life change, the youngest and one of my favorites, 16, and beyond gifted at such a young age. I had the pleasure of working side by side with so many talented and gifted people it makes my head spin sometimes. I learned something from everyone. Even irrelevant things like who Lil Wayne is or why people from the south start conversations with “bless her heart, but…”

Many people came here because their family is in the trade. Some came because they had to. Some came because they want to. But the ones that stand out in my mind are the ones that were as in love with what they do as I am. In the end we were all here to be better at what we did, learn, absorb and hopefully move forward in the trade as successfully as possible.

I worked a lot. I carried two part time jobs and went to school full time. I worked with one day off a week, knowing that it wasn’t forever, it was just for now. I lost weight (thanks tuna and ramen diet!), lost my mind a few times too, but I never lost my determination or my desire to be here. I would have never done this alone, so thank you all who emailed, called, commented, mailed me stuff and wished me well. Knowing there were people out there interested in what I was doing kept me going on these blogs too.

some of the amazing ladies and i at graduation!!! About the last week.

I posted some stuff. Blips if you will. But I passed everything just fine!! My family arrived on Thursday muuuuch earlier then I expected and we spent some time hanging out and catching up (via bottles of win of course). Friday was graduation. My mom and step dad were there, as were everyone else’s families. I got to meet a lot of my classmates family members which was neat. I always like trying to figure out who looks like who more when I meet peoples parents. The ceremony itself was two hours long. We had one GJ class (mine), one Graduate Gemologist (GG) class and one Applied Jewelry Arts class (AJA). Total was about 40-50 students. And the reason it took two hours is because they called us up one by one! Really. So everyone was presented with their diploma and shook all kinds of hands, and then had to SAY something at the podium.

I will say right now that I :

1) had no idea we were going to have to say something

2) am really bad at public speaking. So I couldn’t tell you what the hell I said because I saw a microphone and some words came out. It was like “i, uhhh, would like tehheplehhh aaguhhhbluhhh habababalahhhh thank you”. but my mom reassured me that it was eloquent and to the point. (which makes me suspicious since mothers are supposed to protect their young…)

After graduation we did a family dinner at a local brewery where I ordered some shrimp something or other and my beer sampler. Delicious. Yay me! And I was proud of my mom for expanding her palate a bit and skipping the hamburger in favor of a butterflied chicken breast cooked in a lemon garlic beer (brewery. Hello) saucy something or other with artichokes and capers! Yeah mom! Although I did eat most of the artichokes.

Saturday I drove the ‘rents around San Diego after breakfast which took up most of the day. We went through a bunch of small towns and then up over the bridge to Coronado and then back. Saturday night we all went out to dinner. And by we all I mean me, roomie, friend, mom and step dad. Then we came home and played apples to apples. Best game ever. aside from cranium. and pictionary, which i rock by the way.

Sunday afternoon my mom and step dad left in the early afternoon. After they left I went to one of the Indian reservations with a couple friends and went tubing down rivers and drank beer. And I think we ate somewhere in there. But mostly it was beer and river. I managed to smack my foot on some rocks, and gather about 20 bruises, but it was a blast! And it was peaceful. 24 plus hours with no cell phone, no music, no gadgets. Just the river, some beer and some friends. Perfect!!

I’m already finding that free time is over rated and I’m currently looking forward to going to work, which hasn’t happened in months, if ever. I’m already bored. But The good news is it will propel me into resume writing action quicker then I imagined it would. I just bought a brand new notebook (which always comes equipped with optimism for what you might fill it with) specifically for the task.

On to bigger things my friends! I will still be writing here, posting updates and whatnot, so check back when you can. I may not just publish on Sundays, but in a rather sporadic pattern and at will.

Thank you all again. And until next time my friends, Be well.