hmm

Don't trust dentists from Eagan. When they say two, they actually mean five.

Two years...

While out at a bar last night, one of my friends mentioned this week was his two-year IBM anniversary. Two years. I'm feeling a bit nostalgic, so let's see what happened over those two years (in no order):

• Turned 21 (boy was that fun)
• Lived in three different apartments
• Traveled to Missouri
• Blew out my knee
• Ginger & Peter married
• Dusty & Jackie married
• Angela & Chad married
• Chris & Melissa married
• Quinn & Kari married
• AJ & Maria married
• Blew my ankle
• Had foot surgery
• Graduated
• Visited South Korea
• Visited Purdue
• Cursed the University of Minnesota
• Left IBM
• Came back to IBM
• Had a spring break experience
• A dog appeared in my life
  
• Lost a grandpa
• Saw my dad drunk as a skunk
• Had a case day
• Showed Edward Forty-hands who's boss
• Realized, as fed up with State as I am, that Brookings was home
• Graduated
• Applied to grad school for the second time
• Wondered, what can I do with a B.S. in Physics?
• Graduated
• Visited the SPAM Museum
• Visited Watertown
• Accidentally ran three-quarters of a half-marathon
• Brewed five batches of beer and two batches of mead

Hmm, another 2006 review?

I suppose so. So what happened last year in the "Year o'Claus?" (I'll even go in order!)

• Went on my first ski trip
• Made hard alcohol (mmm, super-strong amaretto)
• Drank bum wine
  
• Went on my first spring break trip
• Went to Watertown for the first time (I remember a lot of drinking when we got back)
• Case Day
• The brownie scavenger hunt
• I graduated! (party number one)
• Went to South Korea
• Got screwed out of an easy summer graduation
  
• Graduation party two
• Moved back across Minnesota
• Starred in two SDSU Commercials
• Saw RENT!
  
• Got a dog!
• Started a new job
  
• Graduated for real
• Visited Purdue
• Took the shitty subject GRE
• Applied to graduate schools
• Tried to organize my life (it semi-worked)
  
• Experienced a funeral and a wedding within three days of each other

What does 2007 hold?

• Graduate school?
• Government service?
• Brewing school?

As I fill out applications I'm starting to realize how scary the next few months will be. Most people can look at their lives and say, Hey, I'll be doing this a year from now. I, on the other hand, have no clue where I'll be or what I'll be doing.

I'll take strength in these words:

Life is an opportunity, benefit from it.
Life is beauty, admire it.
Life is bliss, taste it.
Life is a dream, realize it.
Life is a challenge, meet it.
Life is a duty, complete it.
Life is a game, play it.
Life is a promise, fulfill it.
Life is sorrow, overcome it.
Life is a song, sing it.
Life is a struggle, accept it.
Life is a tragedy, confront it.
Life is an adventure, dare it.
Life is luck, make it.
Life is too precious, do not destroy it.
Life is life, fight for it.

-Mother Teresa

Oh, and I have a New Year's resolution to go the entire month of January (sans-birthday) without drinking. So far so good.