Summer before St. Leo was a great way to start the year. I graduated from Academy of the Holy Names with high honors with my twin sister, Cassie. It was some of the last months we would have together before we would have to go to separate colleges. Academy was fun, but i was ready for a change.

My graduating class of '07 (I am one of the short ones in the front)

May was hectic in my family because my sister Carly had just graduated from St. Leo herself, and Cassie and I were graduating from high school. My dad had already bought us our graduation gifts - airline tickets to Cancun - and we were on our way to Mexico in June for a week. My heritage is in Mexico, and for the first time i was not only out of the country but i was introduced to Mexican culture and life. We got off the plane and already saw the beautiful airport. Our hotel room faced the beach on the gulf, and we had stairs leading out to the beach (very convenient for us girls). We attended folk dancing performances and went out to town. One of the most memorable trips was to Chichen Itza. We traveled to down to the underground waters first. I was nervous about jumping into the waters, but Carly persuaded me to jump in. it was cold, but the blue waters were so pretty and the natural waters made a trickling of water fall like gems into the water. Afterwards, we went to Chitzen Itza, and the temple was large in the middle of the field. The temple is one of the wonders of the world, and rightfully so. Though climbing the temple is now banned, we were able to observe some of its others spledors such as the make of the opening makes a bird sound when you clap right in front of it. Also, the stadium was impressive as the echos went on for seven times, keeping the number seven involved as part of a ritual. The jaguar statues are also noticeable and the sacrificial statue where they sacrificed live people to the gods. The experience was overwhelming and i wish i had more time to enjoy such a rich culture. Another day we went to Xcaret, which is like a theme park in Mexico. We floated down the underground rivers and then my two sisters and i went snorkeling. It was the first time we had ever been snorkeling, and despite swallowing a lot of ocean water, it was a great experience. That night, we attended a performance where the people danced and played the Mayan sports. Seeing the display of culture was very interesting and I enjoyed not only the music but the dancing and costumes. I had so much fun, and i wish i could have stayed a little longer.

A figure of the jaguar eating the heart of someone sacrificed.

Cassie and I enjoying the setting sun from the beach

The rest of my summer was very relaxed. I went to summer orientation, and had a lot of fun. I met a lot of new faces and enjoyed staying on campus. My grandfather came to visit, and we made homemade bread like we always do. When times are changing, it is nice to have small traditions to remind us not only where we come from but to keep families together with something in common.

As summer came to a close, I started to feel the change in the household. My mother was trying to make sure I was ready, and I could tell she didn't want her youngest girls to go. My sister who had just graduated helped me out by giving me her old stuff that she was not going to use anymore. I was gathering my belongings in my room, trying to get all the things collected and ready for college. But i was not sure i was ready. What prepares you for college? How do you go from being dependent to independent? As I saw my twin sister being dropped off at UF, I decided I was ready give college a try. And I did.

The nice thing about St. Leo: you get a whole week off for that great Thanksgiving holiday. How does one enjoy so much time off? Well...

First, you try let off steam by going to dinner and a movie with friends. I went to Hot Rod's in Lutz near Tampa, and had bat for the first time. Okay, so a lot of people probably think thats gross or too country, But I'll have you know that bat was actually pretty delicious and more tender than chicken. We then were off to the movie theatres, where I knew I would get sucked into watching Beowulf. I enjoyed learing about it in school my senior year, but I must say the movie confused me and I didn't really enjoy the distracting Grendal fight scene or the Jolie sexy mother representation. But, to each his own.

The disappointing part about school being off for a week is that its a perfect opportunity for teachers to give papers and homework, so I had the pleasure of doing that work in between vegging out and shopping (not spending of course, because every college student knows this close to Christmas someone is bound to help buy something for us anyway).

Finally on Wednesday, my family started to load the trailer. We were going camping, which we have been doing on and off for years. This year, we were going to the State Park Lake Griffin, a beautiful lake only marred by recent building of the land and hoards of mosquitos. Our Thanksgiving was rainy, but that didn't stop us from exploring the grounds. We took our two labradors out and looked around the small park area before deciding that a game of cards would be easier to do in the trailer than exploring in the rain.

The next day after the earth was purged by the rain, we went canoeing on the lake. My sister Carly and I were in one canoe, and we ran into some lilies while we tried to remember the physics of steering. After that, we saw some wildlife: two alligators sunning, a turtle, and a few birds. It was very beautiful and rewarding.

Cassie and I standing next to one of the largest oaks in Florida

Kristy and I on our canoe

Thanksgiving is always the time when my family tries to come back together. I think that is why it is my favorite holiday. Christmas tends to be slightly materialistic anywhere you go, but the Thanksgiving week is just about family and good food. I figure this is a good time for people to really see what matters in our lives, the sustenance of not only the foods we eat but the relationships we share with those we love. We get away from work and school and concentrate on what really matters. Some people experience unpleasant times with their relationships during this time, and that is also a reason to decide what is going on in relationships around us.

Well, the end is near, and I have a lot to do before the Christmas vacation.

It has been a while since I have written for these blogs. So much happened over the break, especially since it was a very long break. I celebrated the usual warm Christmas in Tampa, which I have become too accustomed to, and played Guitar Hero III on my fairly new XBox (thank you Leo!). My family usually spends the day playing around with what ever it is we got, and we all gather around and watch movies together, or shows (our family has a thing for The Office and Scrubs), then we have the big dinner.

Though Christmas was going really well, I had in the back of my head a reminder: I was leaving. You see, my friend had invited me on a 2 week trip to Montana - Helena, to be specific - and I had actually accepted. This is odd, only in that this movement was so spontaneous and I normally do not go very far without my family. She was picking me up the day after Christmas, and it was odd packing on Christmas day for this long trip. My mom had already frantically tried to make sure that I would stay warm, remembering what it was like to grow up in Ohio, and she worried I was way over my head. But sure enough, Ashley and I made our way to Billings without a problem, though a really long lay-over in Denver, and an almost cancelled flight because of the Denver snow storm.

The drive from Billings to Helena couldn't have been prettier with mountain forests dusted with the white snow, and the big blue Montana sky. When we arrived to her grandparent's house, we quickly decided that the next day we would climb Mt. Helena. We being Floridians, had no idea the ice we would find on the steep slopes of the mountain side. Needless to say, we made it halfway up with the time we had, then as we were climbing down, the ice got the best of our boots and we slid down for some of the mountain. Later on, we climbed to the top, a beautiful view of Helena and the surrounding mountains. We encountered some of thier infamous deer along the side of the mountain too.

Ice skating was another adventure that we did in Montana. It was only $3 to skate, so Ashley and I decided to hone in on our skills on the ice. I have to admit, I couldn't make my Russian heritage too proud in the figure skates, but I did do pretty well considering how long it was since I had strapped on any kind of skate, let alone ice skates.

Another one of the big events was skiing. Many people have skied before, but for someone who rarely sees snow in her life - well, its a big event. Ashley had skied before when she lived in Montana and Michigan, so she was a step ahead of me. I, on the other hand, had difficulty stopping. which is not such a good problem to have, especially on the slopes of The Great Divide, which were really steep. I did fine for a while, and i had some amazing wipe-outs, but then they decided to try and get me to go to the taller slopes. That's when i hit the tree. Well, after you hit a tree ( a small sappling, but nonetheless i hit it hard) skiing is kind of hard to get into again. Ashley stayed with me the whole way, because the only way to get off of your skis is to make it down to the bottom of the hill. I made it down in double the time of many people, but i did have fun. It is just a totally different feeling than what i have ever experienced before in my life.

The lodge at the Great Divide

Its a good thing I made it down too, because after that, it started snowing really hard. we left when the storm was a little better, and made it home to see that it had even snowed in town. Later that night, more snow softly fell, powdering the ground. I was able to make my first snow angel in my life.

Overall, the two weeks were fun! I had a white new year, which is my first ever. The only wierd thing was noticing my Florida friends texting me at 10:30 at night to have a Happy New Year, and watching the ball drop three hours after the fact, but it was a good time.

I am worried about going back to school, but my break was so fulfilling that I think I am ready. I have a lot of classes that are worth taking and I can't wait to get back into the swing of things!

Now the tests are piling and the projects are due soon, and spring break SERVE trip is just around the corner (thank goodness I am all paid for at this point!) - it has been stressful, but good at the same time.

There are lots of ways to relax and get through the week. Though I don't live off of campus, my home is pretty close, so I have the luxury of visiting home every now and then. I saw Jersey Boys on Tuesday, a musical about the Four Seasons which was a very good play. Although Tampa's performances are off Broadway, they are still always worth the watch there and are always a joy to see. This one in particular was very good for all ages, and I enjoyed getting away from my hectic work at school.

There is also the beach that helps kids relax, and this is only so far away, which is nice to escape to some weekends. Thanks to global warming and Florida's naturally warm environment, we can basically go all year round and manage to get some sun. It's another way to get away from the stress of a week.

Nature likes its own miracles every now and then, and the lunar eclipse happened on Wednesday, a beautiful sight to see! As a science major and a writer, I love these events for their own beauty and for its fascinating scientific background. Lunar eclipses will come around again, and I enjoy watching them, reminding me that there is a bigger universe than just the one I can see everyday.

There is also family - if you are close enough to take a weekend off just to visit them. It has been hard recently as my twin sister is in UF, but she finally came down this weekend, and we went to the Renaissance Festival that MOSI holds in a lot just outside of their facilities. It unfortunately rained on us, but not before we could get some cross-bow and archery games in, plus my sister Carly and her boyfriend ended up jousting, which they did without sharp objects (thank God). It is a fun event to go to, and it is just a relaxing time.

My sisters at the Ren Fest (Cassie got into a biking accident at UF, hence the bandages, but it does make it easier to tell us apart now)

Family doesn't have to be blood related though. The student chaplains the weekend before did a retreat at the lakehouse where we reflected on Lent and on the things that weigh us down in life. Being near the lake is a great way to clear your head and to just feel the warmth of the sun on your skin. In college, we all have a tendency to get caught up in the hectic life we lead, that we rarely have time to stop and think about what we really want to do. Many people find it hard to sit down and relax and think about what is happening or just to clear their minds. I always found writing gets me there, as long as no one is criticizing my poor spelling or my use of passive voice. We all need to find those outlets to take us away from the stresses of the workplace or the schoolwork, or anything else that weighs us down to the point where we can't remember why we are here.

And now midterms are coming up and so I am feeling the calm before the storm. Papers are about to be due and tests are coming up, so it is going to be stressful, but as long as I have a way to release stress, school is usually fine, and we all make it out in the end, anyway.