I don't even know

why I haven't been updating my blog. But now I'm back, so all is well.

The first week of school has been the first sprinting leg of a ninth month marathon. A good sprint, but rather tiring nonetheless. I've realized that I am functional away from my parents, aside from a wee moment of damp-eyes when my friend played my mom's favor

ite Norah Jones song (oh jeez, here I go again). But I am functional. I can eat, exercise, shower, brush my teeth, do homework all without someone telling me. Simple as it may be, it's comforting to know that for some reason.

Yesterday was the school's annual Harbor Cruise. Honestly, I haven't spent much time on boats. I've romanticized them and told myself I'd be a great...er...boat person. I know your probably expecting a story about me vomiting off the port side for four hours, but it wasn't so! I was able to keep my sea legs under me the entire ride, except for a slight bought of nausea at the very beginning (and after I ate an entire cup of fondue chocolate, but that's another story).

And the dancing helped as well. Okay, people at my school can dance. Not just ballet dance and coreography dance. But dance. Even I danced, though not nearly as well and with that awkwardness known specifically to white females who get excited because everyone else is dancing and they want to too and end up looking like an awkward white person. But I had fun. Lots of it. It was four hours of dancing and friends and other such happy things.

My dad wrote me a very touching email yesterday. During my skype session with my parents, I related to them how much I missed them. I always do, but I guess I really did sound pitiful. So a little while later, my dad wrote me a message about the importance of routine in combating home sickness. Taking out the trash, running, going for a walk, doing dishes, doing homework and so on are all good routines to have. I'd been doing those, but on automatic. If I can see that I'm doing that to stay happy and sane (as humans go), I think I'll have much fewer Nora Jones incidences. But it's been great here. The people are great, the teachers are great, and the vegetarian selection is tres bien.

Alors, I must go and start another beautiful fall day.