"Reality is a lovely place, but I wouldn't want to live there."

I don't understand why some people feel the need to be mean. Today I had to register for two summer classes and get some other school related things worked out. I called the registrar's office at a college  that I will refrain from disclosing the name of....actually nah, I won't, it was at SUNY Ulster. The woman I spoke to was just plain nasty to me for absolutely no reason. I was so close to asking her why she was being so difficult, maybe then she would get a sort of wake up call. Even if I am having a bad day, I am never mean to people, especially when I am at work. In a way it is good to run into people like that every once in a while, because they make you really appreciate the nice, friendly people out there. They also remind you how important it is to be patient and kind. 
         Today was a pretty gloomy day, it rained for the majority of the day. However, after my lovely conversation with the woman in the registrar's office, things improved substantially. I managed to register for one of the classes I need and I straightened out some of the other questions I had. Picking out classes for my last semester makes me wonder how the hell I got to this point? When I was in high school it seemed like forever, but college flew right by me. Experiencing this is totally unreal. I am immensely proud of myself and extremely thankful to all the people that contributed to how far I've gotten. I wish my freshman in high school self could see me now, would have saved me a lot of worrying. We all have our own mountains to climb, finishing college is just one of several monsters I've managed to master. There are certainly others I'm still working on. 
        One of my professors said something today that made my heart smile. This particular professor is one of my absolute favorites. Ironically, I was absurdly frightened of him at the start of the semester because he is one of the professors that calls on people, no matter whether their hand is up or not. This is not my cup of tea. However, I have surprised myself and I now love his class and have managed to be a rather coherent speaker. Anyway, after discussing the reading we had done for class he said something to this effect: "The reading we just discussed is an excerpt from a very popular law school textbook, the majority of environmental law programs use this book. That means that any of you could do just fine in a law program, you have the skills you need to succeed." I was extremely impressed by this statement because, to me, it seemed so premeditated. He sounded so sincere and it is as if he was saying this to us because he remembers what it is like to be juniors and seniors in college and be scared out of your mind because you have no idea what you want to do and no idea if you are prepared for what will come next. He was successful in raising my hopes, if only a little bit, that maybe someday I will go to to law school. Just a side note, he is an attorney and has practiced law in Japan and California. Seems like a pretty solid piece of encouragement. As I walked up the steps to Ames this afternoon, I couldn't help but feel as if I was where I belong.