My story about DC – published for students-to-be.

A little while ago, I was putting together a short text about my year in the US, my life as a student and intern in DC. Yesterday, the printed story was to be found in my mailbox. And the timing couldn't have been better.

Lately, I've been having such DC cravings, it's almost ridiculous. I found the American shelf in my local grocery store and I almost started crying from the sight of Reese's and 3musketeers bars – among other goodies. I listen to Gil Scott Heron singing "Washington, DC" and I almost think it's a great song – for real.

Tuesday night, I held a short presentation about my program and answered questions and mingled with enthusiastic students-to-be. When they asked me if I miss the city, I told them that Oh My God I do. I had to refrain myself from becoming too emotional.

So, receiving this magazine with a story that I'm actually very satisfied with, came as a perfect Friday gift. For you Swedish speaking people, the online version is to be found RIGHT HERE, on pages 24-25. And for all you non-Swedes, you can simply run through the archives of this blog. Here you have the whole picture.

DC highlights. How do I pick five?!

On today's to-do-list is drafting a little diary over five extraordinary (or ordinary) events from my time in DC. It's an assignment for a student magazine, with the aim to inspire others to study abroad (DO IT!), or something like that.

But how do you pick only five things from an absolutely awesome year in DC? What should I write about?

That Nats game that got delayed due to a thunderstorm?

How IHOP is open all day and night?

About covering the event where the Chief Justice of the US was present?

Or about covering the American Diabetes Association's fundraiser walk to stop diabetes?

Hearing Mr President Obama speak and Stevie Wonder sing for the MLK Memorial Opening?

That amazing Thanksgiving in Snickersville?

DC for the student budget.

I really wish I could have come to live in DC with more than a student budget. Really, there is so much to do in this city. There is always something going on somewhere and my list of places I would like to eat is longer than long. I would have been completely ruined, had I checked everything off my wish-to-list.

However, the student must not cry for too long, because there are actually lots of free events taking place in the area. The Millenium Stage at the Kennedy Center is one example. Every day at 6pm, you can enjoy 60 minutes of some kind of performance to the low price of nothing.

I was there this Sunday, and left the real world behind for a bit, while listening to the Bowie State University Jazz Band. Providing people with free entertainment and a moment of escapism is a great initiative. Seize the opportunity!

The easiest way to get there is from the Foggy Bottom Metro Station, where a red shuttle bus is waiting for you, taking you straight to the center – and that one's also free!

"Graduation day" was yesterday.

Congratulations to me and my fellow Swedish students! Yesterday, we were invited to a lunch on campus to receive certificates stating that we have completed one academic year of studies here in the US. The fact that we are actually there, looking toward the very end of this adventure, is so extremely bizarre I cannot even care to comment.

The event on campus served us food à la New Orleans and some live music. A bit of an odd venue, since we were the only ones under the age of 45, but it was a nice gesture. And now we have "graduated" from our special, for Americans non-comprehensive, program. Except, we still have two weeks of work left. Doh!

Uninformed. Unwelcome information.

Oh well, isn't this great. Fridays are my days on campus and normally I go to my beloved gym after class. It is, potentially, the best moment of the whole week. Actually, it is the best moment of the week. Today, since I have an important meeting scheduled for this afternoon, I decided to be an early bird and visit the gym before class.

Great in theory, turned out not so good in practice. This is what welcomed me:

Great. Just great. No workout and no best moment of the week. I simply went to campus two hours before class to have a shower (because I needed one, my hair, eew...). Good thing I've got my friend Mac. And some coffee. And the intention of at least trying to make this a good day, despite the missed out workout. After all, it's Friday.

How to master life.

"Now, with your situation it's easy."

What? Is it? Really? Oh, dear reader, you have no idea how happy I was to hear a complete stranger utter those words. So, the situation is that your devoted blogger is not really ready to leave this country, nor this area, but she has been struggling trying to find a way to be able to stay.

After a very helpful meeting with a student coordinator, new doors seem to have opened and even though the situation isn't really "easy" as Mr. B. stated, at least it isn't hopeless. What did I say, your hope is the last thing to leave your body!

After a long bus ride home from a previously unfamiliar area of Virginia, where the meeting took place, your blogger just happened to end up at Busboys for a quick lunch and some thorough research for potential future life situation. Excitement and energy. Those are two very much longed for feelings.

It's not easy, but neither is it impossible. Learning how to master life with a roller coaster mind is a trick, but I like the challenge. And I am where I am, am I not? (Currently at Busboys in Shirlington. Pure Love.)

What's your major?

Colleague: So, what are you majoring in?
Me: Well, about that... I would say I'm majoring in life.
Colleague [giggles]: Majoring in life. I like that.
Me: Pretty much.

Five minutes later.

Colleague: You know, I have been thinking about what you said. About majoring in life.
Me: Yes?
Colleague: And at least it's better to major in life than to minor in it.
Me: True story.

Journalism and Public Relations majors.
But even more so, majors in life.
Straight A Students.

Still learning: An odd secret of journalism.

Funny thing. Oh no, not funny at all, actually. But maybe a little bit like that irony life sometimes brings to us. During Friday's class – which is a mix of internship advice, journalism drills and public relations how-to-do-it – our professor told us that if or when we land our first journalism job, we are very likely to end up writing obituaries. And not only about people who actually died.

In fact, and here comes the revelation of the big secret, most obits are written when people are still alive. So I, the journalist, will have to make phone calls with the opening line "Hi, I'm writing So and So's obituary, would you care to give me a juicy quote?"

It's bizarre, isn't it? However, when you think about it, it kind of makes sense. I mean, people are probably more likely to give an accurate picture of somebody who is still alive. When people die, we tend to forget everything that was ever bad about them. Which is not, of course, a bad thing. I absolutely think we should choose to remember the good in people. But still.

And the irony of life? I guess nobody missed out that, today, we can all read Whitney Houston's obituary. Not so unexpected, perhaps, but obviously a tragedy. May she rest in peace, the woman who wants to dance with somebody. That's how I choose to remember her.

Tick, tick, tick. The life of a student is close to the end.

I'm trying to enjoy the life of a student for one or two more days now. Trying to appreciate the beauty of spending an afternoon writing at Busboys & Poets (today, in Shirlington) and take advantage of the flexible hours.

I have three assignments to tick off my list before taking off for a Christmas break:

- Group project presentation for Business and Communications class
- Revise a column (which actually is voluntarily, but for a diligent student there is never really a choice)
- Write a fact sheet and a background story for a PR class

Friday afternoon, I'll leave the classroom and God knows when I'll be back. Let me tell you that as much as I do enjoy the life of a student, I also loathe it. It's an awkward love-hate-relationship and I'm ready to move into something else now. Just three more assignments to go. Tick, tick, tick.

Night owl being confused.

Hi.

I'm trying to sort things out. And I'm trying to get the final journalism assignment done. I've got glögg and candles. Not so much brain, but I know I'll deliver a news story for tomorrow's class. At this late hour, I'm completely ignoring the anxiety over performing well. I just want to get it done.

It hurts me from the inside saying so, but you can't always be on top. Sometimes, you're just the night owl in the tree flying around being confused.

Need a workout to pull myself up and deal with finals.

It's getting close now. Really close to the end of school. I'm trying to reenergize my tired brain.

Over a cup of coffee, I'm thinking about how to organize this day. No classes, but a news story, a fact sheet and a background story to write. Want and need to go to the gym. Want to work on the pullups and need to clear my head.

Coffee finished. So, time to just take the next best bus and head off to the gym? That's probably a good idea. Hopefully, I'll leave with some inspiration and energy to deal with the finals.

It's getting close now.

So. Close. To. End.

Enough is enough!

Seriously. I. Want. Break. Now. It's so close now. So close. The few things left to do are:

- Communications exam
- Final exam in journalism class II
- Revise final story for journalism class I
- Group project presentation for communications class
- Final exam for PR class II? We don't really now that yet, but it'll probably be something.

When all that is ticket off. Im heading off to Sweden and good old Umeå. Wow. I'm looking forward to snow, family and a little bit of rest.

Hard work pays off.

Had a final exam in one of the PR classes this morning. It was to be followed by a take home exam due Thursday and even though I did find the assignment quite interesting, it was still yet another paper to write. Therefore, I was so [insert appropriate adjective here, I could only think of inappropriate ones] satisfied to receive the following e-mail right after finishing the in class exam:


"You have already received an 'A' in the class. You do not have to take the open book final."


Thank you Professor. But most of all, thank me for working hard throughout the semester. Hard work does pay off. It's always nice to be reminded of that.

Take the classroom home to 305.

Friday night. Going through old notes for final exam in PR class. Sad, but true. Not that I have a lot of energy left, but I still don't want to give up now. I'm not a quitter, that's just how it is.

Two weeks left of performing in the classroom. The two weeks of Christmas break in northern Sweden that follows will be well needed to charge my batteries to get prepared to perform out on the field. Even though I'm extremely tired at the moment, I get so excited when I think about the spring semester.

But first things first. Let's bring home this semester and make sure to come out of it alive and kicking.

Camping on campus.

Now I'm tired of this. I'm packing upp my belongings and will head towards the gym instead.

After that, group meeting before communications class. So little time and work left. I will try to enjoy the good things about being a student, instead of moaning about the feeling of never really have some time off.

Off to treadmill and weights. Today, I'm gonna push it to the max!

Wow-factor and I want to stay here [insert several exclamation points].

The Washington Post tour was fascinating. We got to sit in on a budget meeting and it felt so surreal – the way they talked about what I read in the paper every morning. It all actually exists and these are the people who decide what I'm gonna know and learn when I go online or go through the print.

"We've got so-and-so covering Cain today, Romney is being accompanied by so-and-so and we've got our team following the development in Britain." Wow.

Another wow is the fact that I was just contacted, within the short period of ten minutes, for two more internship opportunities. Of course, I have already signed my contract and I'm thrilled with my placement, but I still got some feeling of excitement.

Can't they just please, please leave me as a post-it on the wall and let me come back to them when my spring internship ends? I really want to stay here! I need good advice on how to proceed with this. I think I will consult with my father. He is wise.

A tour in the real world.

No journalism class today. Instead, we will leave the classroom and go out into the real world. One of our professors has arranged a tour at the Washington Post – after lots of nagging from especially B1 and B2.

I'm excited and I think – at least I hope – the tour can give me that extra energy I need to get through these last weeks. I can't wait to leave the classroom for good and continue my studying out in the real world.

But until then. A big cup of coffee and just hang in there!

PAT countdown.

Pack Ass Tuesdays left: 2,5

When we entered campus this morning we thought that we only had two PA Tuesdays left, but then our dear professor JC decided to keep us in her yet another week, making us land on a higher number than we started with. But hey, we are still quite close to the end.

There is not much left of this semester and certainly not many PA Tuesdays left. At least not if we compare it to how many we have, in fact, survived.

Now it's time to get all the assets together and walk down to the evening class. In a few hours we will be down on the number we started with today – only two more Pack Ass Tuesdays to go.

Halloween is so last month!

I'm supposed to work a little bit on a Halloween story I wrote two weeks ago. But how do I find the right mood when the 305 apartment is full of Christmas?

This evening, baking gingerbread cookies seemed much more logical than thinking about people in superhero costumes. Said and done – we did. The dough was tasty, the baking process was tricky, the cookies were delicious and we all laughed until we almost fell off our chairs when Iron Ass realized that her skull was burning. Yes, her gingerbread skull, of course.

And now what? Study? Write? Revise? Halloween? What's that? I only know gum in hair, Christmas decorating and OnePiece. Halloween is so last month.

The Student wants to become The Intern.

We are officially on Thanksgiving break, but really, we still have a few things to work with. As the diligent student that I am, I am sitting at my favorite spot for studying with all my books. Well, I've read the chapters I have to read for Monday and now, most of all, I want to keep on reading. But nothing school related.

I just want to explore and check out Web sites that I will be constantly visiting when I start my internship. This one. And this one. For example. I'm just so excited!

Can you believe it? Part of my job will be keeping up with news in various ways. Oh, this will so be a job to love. I can feel it. I would start it now if I could.