Certificate in Mixology adds to a college student's coolness factor

Wednesday, November 23, 2011: Alex,

Please be careful driving home today in the rain and holiday traffic. I will pray for safe travels. Hey, do you want to sit in on my public speaking class tonight, the professor said we can bring guests.

Later, mom

December 9^th, 2011: (It’s been two weeks)

Request: Update on your life. Mother

PS: Are you coming home this weekend?

I have formal tonight? So no lol

I know you have formal tonight, but I thought you would come home tomorrow.

I have studying and papers to write so I really don't even have the 45 min to drive home cuz I could get like a half a paper done in that time

Makes sense. Be careful tonight, you guys are staying at the hotel, right? I might come up during the week to pick up the fundraising things. Mom

Yeah we're stayin in the hotel yeah can u come up on like thurs and bring my pink suitcase I'm sched to move out sun the 18th

A text from me to her: During the formal:

Is the dance nice?

Its funnn

Next day:

Are you up? We’re at Uncle Tom’s party.

I just got back to campus.

In what town was it?

Oh it wasn’t too far

What kind of answer is that? Also, I sent you information about that Bartending school. Go to bed early tonight (has finals the next morning). Meet me in E. around 5:30pm (for bartending school interview), leave at 4pm, lots of traffic. Did you find out about the elections tonight?

I was still in chapter. Stop calling me all the time.

Date: Fri, 16 Dec 2011 Subject: money

Hey Sweetie,

I transferred $300 to your account which is meant for the bartending school. $130 came already out for the deposit. Don’t spend the remaining $170 on anything else, you’ll need that to pay the rest of the bill.

Mom

Okayy

PS: she requested to keep her love life private, so no Michael news...but I think they already stopped talking. Loser (he)
Alex is now home for winter break. She couldn't even find a job for the holiday season, but I'm not sure how hard she worked at applying. She is doing bartending school for two weeks instead. When she passes the final exam, she will have a certificate in mixology. At nineteen, which probably adds to the coolness factor. She will also look for a bartending job in a lounge or restaurant while she's off. Happy New Year!

Total Stress - The most normal email from a college student, says mom's friend...

Thu, Oct 27, 2011

Alex,

I would advise you not to drive anywhere tonight, we are expecting sleet, maybe snow, and freezing rain, and you know how dangerous black ice is. Can you walk to wherever you’re going? If not, be extremely careful, esp. when driving others.

What’s going on otherwise? Mom

Michael emailed me last night. He kept going on about how much better the library at our university is compared to his haha oh gosh I'm going to ruin him

This weather makes me want to go to salem wahhhhhhhhhhhh

Yeah I know, Salem is awesome. It’ll be there a long time, don’t worry.

Please make sure to call Wegman’s Human Resources Dept. and inquire about the status of your application. This shows you’re interested in the position. Do this with all the other places you applied to. Just call the main number of each business and ask for Human Resources dept.

Good luck, have a nice day, Mom

Wednesday, November 16, 2011Hi Schatz, good morning,

Please call Stop and Save to inquire about the status of your application.

its called stop and shop

right now i really cant look for a job i have SO much work right now and i'm so stressed i have a test on friday another one on tuesday 3 HUGE projects coming up all right after each other i have to make my big a paddle cuz shes graduating and its tradition in every greek org all over the world that you make them a paddle when they graduate and present it at the formal

 i need a formal dress still and elections are comin up for positions in my sorority and i need to make a speech so i can get elected for the position i want and like i have money for the paddle and a dress and whatever else but like all these expenses are comin up at once plus like christmas is comin and i need to buy presents plus birthday presents cuz everyones birthday is in january and i need a job but idk y i cant find one i have really bad insomnia lately and cant sleep at night so m dead all day i dont have time right now for anything  and i just want this effin semester to end

All right, breathe. The world is not ending, it just feels like it.

Do your schoolwork, don’t worry about a job right now, one will come up eventually. You still have money from the one I brought back from Germany, we’ll just have to take some from there. How much do you have in the account right now? I can also check when I go to the bank this morning. Keep Christmas small, don’t stress out over it, everybody knows college students are poor. I will support you financially as much as possible as long as you concentrate on schoolwork.

So relax, do your school work, try to sleep, and you’re done in less than a month.

I am praying for you, give everything over to God, He’ll take care of you.

Sending well wishes your way,

Love Mom

Then I forwarded Alex’s email to a young co-worker who survived college and gives the best advice. I just needed to vent myself, because emails like these panic me a little. My co-worker wrote back that Al’s email is the most normal thing she’s ever seen and that if someone is not broke and stressed for at least a certain length of college, they’re not doing it right. Al is learning to suck up and cope. It’s all part of what you learn at college. Yes, the book learning is important, but a lot of college life is about learning how to deal with multiple deadlines and pressures so you are getting prepared for the real world. Just be sympathetic, but let her deal with it. She needs to vent right now more than anything. Nothing in her mail sounds like the world is about to end even though it feels like it to her. Don’t fix her problems for her. They’re normal, everyone goes through this at times, she has to learn how to solve them on her own. Just watch the insomnia which is most likely stress and worry. This time of year is a miserable time in college because everything comes due at the same time and you also have the holiday stress to deal with. There will be tears and upset emails and personal drama. And then everyone moves on.

Three hours later: Alexandra wrote: Okay I'm better now, I did my math test and I knew what I was doing so I think I did good I ordered the paddle and the stuff that goes with last night and got it for an okay price better than the other website so now I just need a dress nd like I have money in the account its just when a lot of stuff comes up at once I get nervous

 

Parents at Halloween Party - Not

Hey Alex,

We are invited to a Halloween party at Julie’s house, you too, btw, but I told her you will probably be at X University. Anyway, it’s in an old farmhouse, and her parties are famous, tons of people, all ages.

I plan on going as a XU student, with a sign in the front, just simple and I will wear XUniversity sweats and red face paint.

Dad could go as the last straw, with a straw sticking out of his breast pocket, but it’s kind of lame. Do you have any ideas, silly, funny, very cheap? I thought you’d mentioned something when you were home last time. Mom

no those are lame (both of them) u guys should dress up as a couple costume like thing 1 and thing 2, frankenstein and his bride, cross dress, etc

some funny and easy but last resort ideas are smarty pants (tape smarties candies to pants), a quarter back (tape quarters to ur back)

actually u guys should just put sheets over ur heads and not embarrass me

(mom’s face having weird expression as she is reading daughter’s advice)

Never mind, old couch potato doesn’t even want to go. Hey, Uncle Tom is going as a box.

u guys r so weird either u never want to go or he doesn’t

I did a persuasive speech last year on lowering the drinking age and since it was a friday my whole class was out the night before and were all for it and i got an A =]

lol, I went to bed at 11:30 on tuesday so I wouldn't be tired on wednesday, It worked for a while but by the time I got to English (my last class) I just wanted to go to bed, don't worry I did go to English. I handed in my paper on tuesday (all 19 pages of it) so I hope I did a good job. 

Good job on your speech, I'm sure you did fine

Anyways, I have to do laundry and go to the gym, tonight I'm going to XYZ fraternity, they asked me to sell jello shots HAHA! 

see you next weekend, Alex

Friday, October 21, 2011: Oh, I’m glad I didn’t get this email last night, what do you mean you have to sell jello shots? I hope that was a joke. I prayed special last night, b/c I had a queasy feeling since it was Thursday. Are you back at your dorm now?

I’m already working on my next speech. It’s the persuasive speech, we need to find a controversial topic and pick a side. So what I have to do is get informed about both sides, make up my mind which one I support, then argue it. Should really be interesting and I can learn a lot. This is fun. I know I sound like a nerd, but I’m a cool nerd, right?! Mom

Monday, October 24, 2011: hahahaha no i wasn't joking, for breast cancer  the frat was selling pink jello shots for a dollar (they do this every year) at their open and since im friends with them they asked me and some of my sisters to walk around the party with a tray of them and sell them its great u  make a lot of new friends cuz everyone wants them and people respect the jello shot girls cuz we're the ones supplying and if u piss us off u dont get one lol

i did a persuasive speech last year on lowering the drinking age and since it was a friday my whole class was out the night before and were all for it and i got an A =]

My head is spinning…(Mom)

Ever heard of the Molly Maguires, and Campus living

October 14, 2011: today for dinner i had potato soup cuz I really wanted soup but then I remembered how we made it at paul bunyan with the scallions, bacon, cheese, croutons and salt and pepper so added that stuff from the baked potato bar and salad bar and my friend was like omg that looks soo good and she made the same thing and then walking to our table some kids were like omg what is that!? so I told them how to make it and then they got some too haha so we kids like it even if the judges at paul bunyan didn't

On Mon, Oct 17, 2011 Hey,

It was good seeing you yesterday. My poor baby is sick, awww.

I know, this week is brutal, the midterms, homecoming, cold, but after this it should get better, right?

I am glad you like your roommate and suitemates, I hope it’s a lot better for you than last year.

Last night I practiced my informative speech on Dad and Max, both were sitting on the living room couch (speech is about the Molly Maguires) and when I started shouting when I got to the part with Alexander Campbell’s handprint, Max got up and left the room. I will probably crack up during my speech in class when I get to that part, haha.

Just think how horrible the Mollies and their children had it back then.

I send well wishes and Bussis your way. All my love always, Mom

yeah it will get better once homecoming is over and on sunday at 330 is a nighmare before christmas and then tim burtons corpse bride my two favorite movies so i will be looking forward to that lol

and good luck on ur speech dont yell too loud or youll scare everyone

it was good seeing u too!  

2011/10/19 Hey, Am doing my speech about the Mollies tonight.  Are you feeling better? Mom

yeah i'm feeling a lot better and I went to bed mad early last night so i wasnt SO tired when I woke up this morning

Wow, the things we learn in college… look at this learning process. (I’m referring to the early to bed, so you’re not so tired the next morning, and figuring that out all on your own). That’s why I encourage campus living, because you learn just as much outside the classroom as inside.

Can you believe that other than the professor, nobody else had heard about the Mollies? I did a really great speech, but then I stumbled because one of my friends gave me a hand signal, and it totally threw me off. She meant well, I’m not mad, she wanted me to also address the other side of the room, b/c that was one of the critiques on my first speech, that I kept concentrating on only one side of the room, so she tried to remind me to look at the others too. Anyway, I picked up fairly quick and continued, and it was really a great speech.

Michael gave me his email address for you and cell phone number, and I gave him yours, just in case he contacts you. Just start with a small hello and see if it leads anywhere.

One of the ladies is buying my book, so I’ll bring that to class next week, and Rachel who works at the xxx library, brought one to her director for review, to see if they want to include it in their collection. So little baby steps toward success I hope.

What’s mad early, like before 1AM? Are you done with your paper? What do you have left to do for finals? Are you watching the movies here or there?

Always in my prayers, my love, Take good care of yourself,

Ttys, Mom

yeah i'm gonna watch on campus i dont think im coming home until halloween weekend

That’s fine, I’m so glad you like being on campus, you sound much better than last year. I’m busy anyway with getting the first draft of my new book ready. Hey, my Social Media trainer recommended the Mac Airbook, it’s fantastic, but expensive. Dad is researching, but no promise yet. We’ll see.

Her answer: Mac Airbook is really thin which is good but it's so thin that I feel like it would break easily.... I want to go with daddy to the applestore to look