There are days when my eyes bleed after reading these student applications. The grammar mistakes, the misspellings, the poorly crafted answers… as much as I laugh, it is rather disappointing. However, there is a flip-side to this long, boring internship process: telling the (actually talented) students they’ve been offered a position with the company of their dreams.
Take this one girl, who attended one of our workshops and made a big impression on both me and my boss. She was extremely professional and intelligent, and she is passionate about cancer research. So we connected her with an opportunity at the American Cancer Society, and she got it. When I called her, she was in the middle of her high school graduation ceremony. I wouldn’t have answered the phone, but maybe she knew it was going to be good news. I hope it made her walk across the stage even sweeter. Helping successful students achieve their goals is extremely gratifying.
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I had a dream I was forced to put on a children’s talent show, but it was all a sham to cover up some other evil event. There were boa constrictors everywhere, and I was carefully trying to tiptoe around a big, black one… I woke up when its fangs sank into my leg.
I’m pretty sure I tried to tell this dream to Chelsea immediately (around 7:30 a.m.), but she refused to hear it. But actually, I’m not sure if it was this dream or a more epic dream I no longer remember. I told her I’d forget if I didn’t share it!
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This weekend I ventured out to explore the Pacific Northwest and visit my beloved Chelsea in Seattle! We had gorgeous weather; it only rained on Sunday, which was fair because I needed to experience true Seattle weather.
Before I left, my mother exclaimed, “Seattle is great! Everyone wears plaid flannel and expensive, ugly hiking boots. I saw so many VW Buses… it’s where they go to die.” She visited in 1994. I didn’t tell her then that I suspected the plaid to be a thing of the past… so I told her later, when I got back, that I saw zero plaid, but lots of lots of questionable footwear.
Things I enjoyed about Seattle:
1: From a distance, it was hard to distinguish trees from sky scrappers.
2: The interstate (er… freeway) signs sported road numbers inside George Washington’s profile (versus in Georgia where they are simply inside the state outline).
3: The beautiful lakes!
4: Having to sort my garbage into trash, recycling, and compost
Things I did not enjoy:
1: Being asked why I didn’t have a Southern accent.
Thursday, we visited Pike Place Market, the original Starbucks, ate lots of yummy free samples, and explored the city. At night, we completed an unofficial pub crawl in Kirkland.
On Friday, we drove three hours south to Portland. I have wanted to visit Portland ever since I figured out it was cool back in middle school. We ate at a delicious Thai restaurant for lunch, went into Powell’s bookstore (and got lost immediately), and explored the Pearl District using our trusty map. We worried we should have ventured downtown, but a (very cool looking) local said she wasn’t too impressed with that district overall, so we decided our time was not wasted.
But all my dreams came true when we went to Voodoo Donut. These donuts make angels sing. Every three hours, they swap out the displayed donuts for freshly made ones… leaving the not-so-old donuts in the back. Here’s the secret: you can still buy those donuts at a discount. For $5, you get a painter’s bucket worth of donuts.
It’s seriously the donut deal of the century. We sampled them ALL. Following our purchase was the stomach ache of the century.
Saturday was beautiful, and we picnicked alongside Lake Washington, which is absolutely freezing. That night we hit a rooftop bar overlooking Pike Place Market. I shamefully ate Taco Bell twice on the way home.
Sunday featured the grey, misty weather I’ve heard so much about. We visited Mac & Jack’s Brewery, then spent the rest of the day cuddling on the couch watching Campus PD on G4, which is an amazing show. We did manage to peel ourselves off the couch and hit up Shorty’s, a hot dog/pinball bar in Belltown. I had a delicious veggie dog and discovered I was still very bad at pinball.
Seattle and Portland were both great cities that I would like to visit again!
Pinball fun at Shorty’s with @chelseaforfree (Taken with instagram)
Night time adventures in Seattle (Taken with instagram)
SHE’S BEAUTIFUL. I CAN’T STAND IT. LOOK HER!! @chelseaforfree (Taken with instagram)
Hooray, Portland :) (Taken with instagram)