Today is the last day of the semester, and as of 1am, all my grading and exams and work (except the flood of emails from students arguing grades) is complete. To think, I finished my first semester of grad school in one piece! But in reality, it is mind blowing to realize I am at a point in my life I’ve wanted for so long. High school-me and undergrad-me couldn’t wait to be in this mark on the timeline of my life, and despite the stress and worry it, and honestly everything else, brings me, it really is as freeing and wonderful as I imagined. For a while I’ve wondered “what if I can’t do it?” and “where do I go next?” in regards to jobs, school, and life. Although the pay is low, the hours are long, and each day gives me something new to have imposter syndrome about, I can focus on one thing for now and see where it takes me. It is almost as if I finally feel as though I am not in a transition period of my life. Things feel real again, I am finding ways to feasibly have adventures, and I am working on myself in ways that I really should’ve done before, all of it bit by bit.

For quite some time now, running a 5k has been on my bucket list. The first time I actually planned to do it was right before the pandemic hit– I had been training a bit early 2020 and was looking into races in the soon coming spring. When we did get quarantined, I assumed things would be back to normal by summer, so kept practicing on the treadmill in my basement. That summer I got COVID and it messed up my body a bit, so I gave running a rest, and picked it up again the next spring. Summer came again and I was off to Honduras, so I embraced the delicious foods and lack of safe running trails until I got back. I signed up in February and did a little bit of C25K (Couch to 5k, a free and legit plan to get you in shape for completing a full race) again, slowly bringing myself from someone who runs an occasional mile at the gym to making it a bit more of a routine. As luck would have it I got sick multiple times in those months, so my training was not the best, but I still went at it when I could.

Usually one would assume a spring break is the time for heading somewhere warm, getting a taste of the salt, sand, and sun before heading back to the last and arguably hardest part of our semester. For me, that thought was completely disregarded, because I went ICE CLIMBING this weekend?!? Oh, am I not giving you the expected pretty little build up description or something? Nope. I feel a sport as funky as this, plus the fact that your one and only resident nerd went and crushed it, deserves a little S.S.P. (shameless self-promotion).