Laura's Thoughts

Well, I have some pictures now from when I went up north, compliments of Katie. So think of this as an addendum to the previous post. Here are a couple of my favorites:


Justin, me, Katie, Collin, and Sam in our favorite restaurant - Perkins.


Justin and Collin gettin' crazy with the Cheese Whiz.

And speaking of pictures, I'm very sad because my camera is out of commission. It's my own fault, but I'm sad nonetheless. Last weekend Kourtney turned 21, so we were out every night. I of course wanted to bring my camera to document the occasion(s). Unfortunately, I apparently don't do too well at bars with cameras. I dropped it on a rather hard floor, and it broke. There are a couple pieces, presumably key pieces, missing, and it won't even turn on. Luckily, I got pictures from dinner and I got several pics at the bars before I dropped it. I can't post any of them because they're on a memory card that I can't access without my camera. But I will get them, and I'll post some good ones. I know I got some good ones.

But to back up, classes have started. We've had about a week and a half. I definitely prefer working full-time to juggling both school and work. Can't wait to graduate. Classes will of course be tough, but I always seem to get through just fine. However, I do foresee this semester being more difficult than those in the past. I find myself choosing to go out over sleeping more often than I used to. I'll have to work on forcing myself to stay home and study. And living off campus has made for some long days. Leave for work at 7:30, work, go to class, go to meetings, go to the gym, get home around 9, study. Blah. When I was on campus, I could home in the little breaks I had throughout the day. Now it takes over half an hour to go home and drive back to campus. Plus gas is ridiculous, in case you hadn't noticed. That's another topic altogether.

So last weekend, as I said, Kourtney turned 21, and we partied... a lot. Went out in Fort Worth Thursday and Friday nights. Went to happy (three) hours with Kourtney's co-workers Friday. Dinner with friends & fam Friday night. Drove to the Guadalupe River Saturday morning, tubed the river and drank way too much, drove to Austin - I let a sober(er) person drive my car. Partied on Sixth Street Saturday night - so much fun, everyone needs to do it at some point in their college career. Passed out in Austin, got up and drove home Sunday. Back to work and class on Monday. Anyway, had tons of fun welcoming Kourtney to the world of being 21. And haven't really stopped since, as is evidenced by my lack of sleep. I'll start to regret it soon. But it's been fun! I've met lots of people, of the male variety, and I'm still alive. As my dad would say, sleep when you're dead.

Besides class and partying, this first week has been pretty busy with Mu Phi and Catholic Community starting up, too. Jessica and I have already had one CC social, and we're doing another one tomorrow night. If you want to play sand volleyball at 7 tomorrow, we'll be at the rec center. Planning meetings have taken up a lot of time, too. But I love all the people I work with, so I don't mind.

Ok, new career goal of the week: consulting. I haven't looked into much yet, but I've been thinking about it for the past couple days. I'm pretty sure I don't want to do anything XTO would have to offer. It's a great company, but I don't really want to be stuck in a position I don't enjoy. Yes, it's all work, but I don't thinkn I'd be happy at XTO long-term. I don't want to go into auditing, so I'm not really looking at the Big 4. I can't really start out right away in a managerial position. So I think consulting might be the way to go. I've talked to a couple people who've said it's a pretty good route. You get to experience all kinds of business situations and different types of industries. So then if I want to go into industry later, I'll have an idea of what I like and don't like. And it pays pretty well, which is a plus. I need to do a lot more research, but that's what I'm thinking right now. Again, ask me next week and it will probably be different. It's getting down to the wire, though, and I need to start making some real decisions. I'll keep you updated.

Oh, need to plug the new shoes I got yesterday. Love them! Got two pairs actually, and love them both. Got to wear the silver ones out last night. So hot. Anyway, very excited about the shoes. Once I get my camera fixed - or buy a new one - I'll take pics and post them.

I need to post more often so I can write about something other than just life updates. I'll work on that. Enjoy your labor day, hopefully free of labor!