Where do I begin?

A year ago I changed my life.  I decided to changed my focus of study my senior...aka last year of University...from Biology to History.  Literally two days before classes started for fall semester, I dropped all of my classes! I literally had to make a choice on what I wanted to graduate with, what $30,000 a year meant to me. When I made the call to my parents to tell them of my plans I made the assumption they would be furious.  In the end they supported me in whatever I felt was right for me.

From 07 January 2009 to the current day of 07 September 2010 my life has been an absolute tornado of emotions.  I have had so many new experiences within these past few months. Not all of them have been good but then again many of them have been life changing.

Since my blog asks the simple question of "Where is Stephanie?" I will give you all a solid answer.  Currently at this moment of my first ever blog post (by the way which I like and absolute douche saying) I am in Villasanta, Italy at a local bar. I am trying to steal a local's unprotected internet service which continually likes to fade in and out on me.  When you travel from city to city almost every week in Italy for almost 4 months you get used to these situations.

Villasanta has been my home for the last week and a half.  I will be ending my summer with the best job I have ever had this week.  Plus is that I will be getting quite a nice pay check, negative is what in the world am I doing after?????  As of right now I am traveling on Saturday with my current host family to Chiari where I had my first camp this summer.  They host a Pailo similar to the one in Siena Italy this Saturday 12 September 2010.  I know at some point I have to go back to Florence, Italy because many of my warm clothes are there.  Ironically I left behind a lot of my warm clothes and ended up being placed in the mountains of Italy for 6 weeks.  Woops.

My flight back to the USA is unfortunately on Monday 20 September 2010 and to top it off its at 730 in the morning.  YIPEE.  The last thing I want when I return home is to have something to tie me down and keep me in the states.  By saying that I mean a real job, you know, the ones where you have a fancy little cubicle and your own desktop (probably a PC eww).  My idea of my future does not involve a office I drive to every morning and work the typical 8 to 5 workday.  Of course I have to be realistic and think about my debt from my very expensive piece of paper I like to call a Diploma from Miami University.

What I want is not typical.  I am not in a hurry to find a job I will do forever because that just isn't me.  Maybe before 07 January 2009 I would have been all for a job that gives me a solid salary but after seeing the beauty the world has to offer through all my traveling that is the last thing I am looking for.

Ever since I took the study abroad opportunity and left my University I made a pact with my heart to never have regrets. I know that sounds a bit stupid but I really tried to live up to my pact.  Ironically enough this little pact did not and has not always worked out for the best but at least I can say I have done some crazy things I will never forget.  Why live life by the rules main stream society sets for us?  That just makes you seem like what my friend "Jeff" would say... A faggot.

I have no clue where I will be in a month, or even next week.  The only thing I know about my future is that I am going out to dinner on Thursday 09 September 2010, and going back to the states on 20 September 2010.

My only goal is to return to Italy by at least January to continue working here in Italy.  Who knows maybe I will apply for graduate school when I go home.

As for right now this is where I am in the world.

Peace, Love, and Laughter

Stephanie