Top Five Things I Learned in 2013

Tomorrow night will begin the year 2014. I truly can't believe it! 2013 has been a year of drastic changes for me as I finish my last year of college, had my first internship, and began cooking for myself. This has truly been a year of self discovery. Before I can create goals for 2014, I'm making a list of the top five things I learned in 2013:

1) I'm a bit of a neat freak... and by a bit I mean I'm very particular about cleanliness.... Fine! I'm a neat freak plain and simple. I've always known that I like keeping things tidy, but this year, living in an apartment with two other girls, I've learned that I'm a lot more picky than I thought. I want the dishes cleaned right away. I like dirty dishes put in a certain place. I also found my new love, Mr. Swifer. I think the addition of him into my life made me realize just how much I like to keep things clean. It's also not a bad thing, I just need to learn that other people have different levels of cleanliness and we should be meeting in the middle.

2) Grocery shopping is not always fun. Most adults would roll their eyes at this comment. Of course grocery shopping isn't very fun! When you have to do it to survive, it becomes a chore. To combat this, I let myself get one treat every time I go whether its a box of cookies or a small wedge of expensive cheese. Sometimes the little things can change your whole outlook on a chore!

3) I really don't like Pennsylvania as a place to live or as a vacation. I've lived there on and off for four years now. I will admit it is mostly in the middle of nowhere. Many of my Pennsylvania friends are lovely, but I haven't found anything in PA that connects me to the place. The people are ok. The scenery isn't bad. At least now I know that is one place I can cross off my list of potential places to live.

4) Pinterest is awesome! As a college student who is still just beginning to learn how to live on her own, pinterest is a lifesaver.  You can literally learn everything from leadership skills to how to cook a roast. It's both fun and useful, although it can also be a bit more of a time-suck than I need in my life. Oops....

5) I'm ready to graduate college. I've met a lot of other college students who are scared to graduate. The media always seems to be telling college students that college is the best time of their lives. Many adults have told me that I will miss all the "free time" and "breaks" I had. I really need to find the definition of free time and break. I have loved college a lot. I have made a lot of friends here and learned a lot. I'm glad I went, but I'm ready for it to end. My college career has been built on business. There hasn't been much free time and when I come home I work. I'm looking forward to a stable job and having weekends off. There are many things beyond college that I want to do. College isn't the final chapter. It's still part of the first third of a book. There is so much left for me to do and all of it goes beyond the gated community of college. Full-time jobs, traveling, and having my own house I can live in for more than a year are exciting to me. College is part of the growing process and eventually you learn everything college can teach you. I feel that I have hit that point.

I hope you all have a great New Years Eve whether its going out partying with your friends or having some nice wine and old Chinese food in front of your TV!