Group Video Blog is Up!

In addition to reading my blog, you can also check out my May seminar group's video blog HERE.

We're taking a video camera from Concordia with us and everyday one of us will be responsible for creating a video (minimum of 5 minutes long), so all of you back home can see what we're up to. So, be sure to check it often! We're assigned to a day in alphabetical order, and I think I'll have one of the days when we are in Cairns, Australia. :)

In other news, I finished all of my final papers and projects for the semester and I am now a senior! Having no homework to do has allowed me time to completely focus on my trip, which is good because packing 1 suitcase for 25 days in 6 countries is hard!

Things to Do, Things to Get

The school year is winding down: only about 10 days until I am done with the spring semester and only 5 days until I am sitting in the Minneapolis airport, waiting to board the first flight of my May seminar. Then, 30 days after that, it's back on a plane to go to my internship in Washington, DC! It's crazy. On top of the stress of final papers and projects, I've been trying to prepare for both the May seminar trip and three months in DC.

So far, I’ve gotten my vaccinations (Hepatitis A, Typhoid, Polio, Tetanus booster), India visa, and financial aid taken care of for the May seminar trip. I also got a new suitcase (courtesy of my mom--it's lightweight, rugged, and has wheels :)  ),water bottle, laundry detergent packets, travel size EVERYTHING.

For DC, I have to dress up everyday at the senator's office, so I’ve been scouring the online sales to get more pant and skirt suits, dressy tops, and high heels…but not too high, so I can walk to and from the Metro and around the Capitol all day.;) I booked my flights to and from DC over Easter break and I also put a deposit down on my apartment, where rent is $1,000 a month! However, it’s in a great location, it’s safe, and comes with everything I’ll need to live there for the summer except sheets and towels, which I’ll just buy when I get there. I’m living with another girl from Concordia, Whitney, who has been on a friend of mine for three years and she’s spent a semester in DC before so she knows the ropes. I’m glad she’ll be there, but I’m also excited to meet the other interns living in our apartment complex and the interns in the office.

Oh, and one more thing—besides prepping for these two adventures, I also have to pack up all of the contents of my current apartment (aka, my life) and bring everything home before I leave for my trip. And then bring it all back again after I get home from DC. That’s a lot of packing and moving for one summer! But it’s one summer I can’t wait to begin. The countdown is on.

My friend Amber and I at the 2010 ND Democratic Convention, where I met Senator Conrad, as well as some of his staffers I will be working for in Washington, DC, this summer.