#catladyproblems

I had been thinking of all these lovely, deep, thought-provoking topics I might blog about next.  Instead I decided I would share this bizarre/silly/sad experience that happened to me last Thursday.   This is long but so far, the few people I've told it to have found it incredibly entertaining.  Maybe it'll give you a nice study break.  That's why I'm typing at 10pm on a Monday night.

It all revolves around this friggin bag of food:

Last week I was aware I was low on cat food, but I thought I had enough between dry and wet food to get me to Friday morning when I would have time to go to the grocery store.  Thursday morning, at 6:30am, I ran out of all cat food.  I didn't have an extra can of wet food like I thought I did, either.  I was driving to campus (not something I usually do, but I had a 3pm meeting and that's when I would usually be getting my car), so I looked up the address of a Petco on the T and planned to get the food after my meeting but before my night class.

My meeting was done around 4.  I grabbed a T out to Harvard Ave, ran into Petco really fast, grabbed the 7 pound bag of food, 6 cans of wet food, and a 3-pack of fountain filters.  The wet food and filters easily fit in my school bag.  I decided to carry the dry food as it likely would have split a plastic bag.  Walked back to the T stop and waited about 5 minutes for a train.  Where I had to stand.  Holding my 7 pound bag of cat food.  In my purple sweater dress, leggings, and knee high boots.

It's now 4:40 and I realize if I take the T back to my car to put the food in my trunk like I had originally planned, I would not be able to get to the payroll office to pick up my paycheck that I also needed to pick up.  This dawns on me early enough to debate in my head: "Do I drop of the food and not get my paycheck today or do I walk into Student Services with a 7 pound bag of cat food in my arms like a baby?"

I chose the latter.  I wanted
my paycheck.  So I get off at St. Paul's Street, cross Commonwealth Avenue, and entered the Student Services Building, confidently carrying my bag of cat food.  Got my paycheck, then realized, I need to deposit this now.  I walked outside of SSB then debated in my head, "Do I cross Comm Ave to wait for a T or bus to take me over the BU Bridge or do I cross the BU Bridge on this side of the street carrying my 7 pound bag of cat food in my arms like a baby?"

I chose the latter.  I wanted my paycheck in my bank account.  So as confidently as I can, I cross the BU Bridge and walk down to the George Sherman Union where I walk past the student organizations that are tabeling and deposit my paycheck in the ATM.  My 7 pound bag of cat food sat on the table behind me with my school bag.  I now realize I am one building away from my locker and can take this opportunity to grab the books that are in my locker that I'll need for the weekend before going to my car.  So I walk over to STH, with my 7 pound bag of cat food in my arms, and open my locker.  I realize I don't know what books I need for the weekend - I haven't looked at my syllabi yet.  Frustrated, exhausted, and somewhat sweaty, I (literally) drop my school bag and 7 pound baby of kitty sustenance on the ground, plop down on the floor, in my purple knit dress, leggings, and knee high boots, and pull out all my syllabi.  Guess what?!  Almost all my assigned readings for the week were online!  Who knew?!  Even more frustrated, I get up and slam my locker closed, walk down the hallway toward the exit, so ready to go to my car and be rid of this 7 pound burden when I run into a friend of mine

"Is that cat food" she asks me. 
"Yes.  I ran out."
"Huh," she says.  "Are you going to the Spectrums Project thing?"

Right.  That really awesome sounding info session about melding conservatives and liberals together in the same Christian congregation.  Yes... I had planned to go to that.  After another debate within my head I decide to go to the info session and once again confidently walk downstairs with my 7 pound bag of feline sustenance and get in line with several graduate students and faculty members, several of which are my professors.  "Yes, it's a bag of cat food," I say when they look at me weird because they realized what I'm holding aren't notebooks or textbooks but a 7 friggin pound bag of cat food.  We're all standing in line because this talk includes food.  So I work with one hand to get some slices of melon and a cucumber sandwich on my plate.  Forget a drink.

I barely make it into B19 (remember, I don't have any free hands anymore; feline sustenance in one hand, human sustenance in the other), then grab a chair and plop.  I'm told by my friend quoted earlier that she'll leave early anyway because she's tired and will help me carry the cat food to my car.  I say great!  I'm planning to leave around 5:30.

5:30 comes and she doesn't move.  5:35 comes and she doesn't move.  Around 5:40, they're changing out speakers (BTW - it was a really fascinating presentation.  Though I think there are some measurement problems with their survey, I'm really impressed by their ultimate goal!) and I tap my friend on the shoulder.

"Hey," I whisper, "I'm headed out."
"Okay, see you!"

*crickets*  So I gather up my school bag, 7 pound bag of torment, and my empty plate and get out of the room as quietly as I can.  Alone.  As I'm leaving STH, I have to continue on down Comm Ave and I have to walk through a photography class that is taking what I guess are candid landscape shots of BU's campus.  They got the well-dressed cat lady in the background of their shots, I'm sure.  It'll be a good conversation piece.

Around 5:50pm I get to my car and am able to get my cat's friggin food in the trunk.  So I had a good hour and 20 minutes of arm workout and mild cardio if you count the fact that I walked from St. Paul's Street to Granby Ave with a 7 pound bag of dry cat food in my arms, carried like a baby.  All for these little fuzzballs:

Becoming a southern fried theologian

It's been a month now since I've last posted.  I think if "blog writing" doesn't make it to my Google calendar it may not happen more frequently than this.  I'll work on that.

I am fully in the swing of seminary now, though.  I am moved in, unpacked, oriented, and initially educated on what this semester has to offer.  My courses are interesting to me, despite one being at 8 am.  It also really does help that I already finished one graduate degree.  The ability to read in high volumes and find 10-12 page papers short is going to make starting this new program less stressful.  It'll be the style of thinking (moving from sociological analysis to theological analysis) that will take practice and refinement.

I am also VERY pumped for Southern Fried Theologians to get under way.  Who knew so many southern seminarians would be at BU?  I feel the two years in Texas primed me for the college football mania that will be a large part of this group (Hail State! & Hook 'Em!).  Plus there's the enjoyment of all things southern food, southern slang, and southern comfort.  And it's a little ironic that I'm so pumped about this since I now identify as being from Boston.  That hasn't changed.  I am a New Englander with Southern tendencies.  I'll kill you with kindness if you don't like it.  :)

The church search has begun as well.  It'll be interesting to figure out what winds up speaking to me more, if I continue to go to a Baptist church or try out other options, and how active I get in a church once I've found one I want to commit to.  I was lucky/spoiled in Austin to know a place and honestly didn't church shop at all.  Here is different.  And "here" is a place where church is less common and more likely to be stigmatized as judgmental and outdated.  "Here" is where I intentionally chose to go to seminary.

Mass transit is one of God's best creations.  I enjoy my bus rides into campus, whether I'm reading, catching up on Words with Friends, or relaxing my mind after a long day, I actually really like the bus rides home.  When I get to sit down, that is.  Standing for 35 minutes holding on to a bar isn't that enjoyable.

While this post isn't that descriptive about the past month, I'm happy to chat with any of yall more directly or answer more specific questions you'd like to know.  Though, I'll fill you in on this: If you have the chance to see a liger, DO IT.  Totally awesome animal!  For now, though, I need to have dinner then get back to reading.

The start of something new

I didn't post while driving my car to New England due to the lack of reliable internet.  Thus Facebook got lots of phone pics posted.  My apologies to the blogosphere for neglect.  My apologies to my Facebook friends for all the car and cat pictures.  All that to say, I am in Massachusetts, currently at my parents' while I wait for my things to arrive on the delivery truck.  But in less than 7 days, I'll be moved in and unpacking at my new lovely Watertown digs.

The last few weeks in Austin really were fantastic.  Thank you to all the awesome people that helped me check off bucket list items like Schlitterbahn, winery tours, and all the new restaurants I ate at.  On the list for my first visit back to Austin: Clay Pit & see the friggin bats!  To those I didn't get to say a personal goodbye to: I will miss you a lot and wish you well in the coming semester!  Also, no guarantees, but I hope to make my first visit back in January.  I'm starting to save for that now.

New England welcomed me back with comfortably warm sunny days.  My mom looked out the kitchen window today and said "We so desperately need rain."  I didn't even blink.  That's all anyone in Texas says about the weather.  One of the perks of having lived in Texas for 2 years but thinking I would be there for at least 5 means I don't have a New England-worthy winter wardrobe anymore.  How is this a perk, you might ask?  It's a perk because it means shopping will ensue.  Eventually.  When I have money.  Which is not likely anytime soon.  But it'll have to happen one way or another!

I miss Austin daily and until I actually move into my new apartment, I keep thinking I'm just on vacation at the parental's right now.  Not actually moved out and away from Texas.  It'll hit me in a week or so, I know.  BUT I am very excited to be back in the land of fresh clam chowder, the Red Sox (though seriously - this season is disappointing!), chipmunks and freakishly large squirrels, Dunks, and ZooMass.  Where tax free shopping is a short drive away and the drivers are Massholes.  I really did miss it.

My apartment looks like I've been robbed.

I walk in and my bookshelves are bare, just a thin dust outline where all my lovely books used to live.  My walls are also bare.  And then you see the corner pictured above.  With boxes upon boxes of books and stacks of framed pictures and clocks waiting to be packed.

I go between super pumped that I'm about to be back in Boston and super sad to leave Austin.  In the moments when I'm doing something on my bucket list I forget I'm leaving.  And then I come home and see that stack of boxes and remember I still gotta put more together.

But there have been some pretty awesome times in Austin over the past few weeks.  Gray came to visit and helped me cross off bucket list items.  I got my karaoke on at the Highball - and hopefully didn't assault my friends' ears too much.  Still gotta see the bats.  Still need to get to Mayfield Park to see the peafowl.  I really kinda enjoy that word - peafowl.  Just say it.  Giggle.  Roll your eyes.  You know it's kinda funny.  Would like to make it to Schlitterbahn, tubing, or both.  But I'm at exactly 14 days.  So sacrifices will have to be made.

And - cue the trumpets - I turned in what I hope is my last round of revisions of my thesis today to my adviser.  46 pages.  4 chapters.  11 tables.  About 2 dozen statistical models.  Over 11,000 words.  I gotta be close to mastering sociology.  I mean seriously.  But in the meantime, while I'm waiting to find out if I still have to work on this really long study, I'm enjoying some pizza, beer, and a very full DVR.

Also - if anyone wants a TV, let me know.  I'm not bringing mine to Boston with me and it needs a good home.

"Let's all go drink so we can ruin our livers and take advantage of our free healthcare!"

The ACA was upheld by the Supreme Court in a 5-4 vote with Chief Justice Roberts being the person to save the act.  I'm so psyched.  SOOOOOO psyched.  I was in my TA class this morning following the media coverage on the computer while my students took an exam.  It was all I could do to not stop them in mid-question around 9:20 and say, "History was just made.  Healthcare has truly become affordable for the vast majority of Americans!"  I was able to restrain myself though.

I've also been pondering a question I was asked yesterday: What do I consider to be the point of marriage and how do I see it connected to faith?  This came up during a conversation where I said I firmly believe you should be able to marry whoever you love, regardless of their gender and that I believed who you had sex with had very little to do with your parenting abilities.  I also said I didn't believe abstinence was the ONLY way to live.  So this was a valid question to ask - if marriage isn't necessary to legitimize sex or for procreation, why do it?  I had never had to articulate my response before so I fumbled through some statements but wasn't happy with my response.  So I slept on it and returned to my friend today with this answer:

I finally realized my understanding of marriage is deeply Baptist.  And please note here that I mean historical Baptist, not Southern Baptist (or whatever the SBC is calling itself now).  To me, marriage is a public declaration of a decision before God (if the people are religious), friends, and family, that has already been made between two people.  Similar to a profession of faith followed believers baptism, the commitment to change how one lives their life is made at the engagement and followed with a wedding.  Thus the marriage ceremony itself isn't necessary for two people to be committed to each other.  And marriages in a courthouse are just as legitimate as those in a church or on a Caribbean island.  But the point of the marriage is to "go public" - to not only commit yourself and be accountable to your spouse but to promise to all your friends and family and the friends and family of your partner that you WANT to and WILL share your life with them.

I don't believe in soul mates in the sense that there is only one person in the entire world out there.  I don't believe people should enter marriage expecting it to end in divorce.  I don't think the gender of your partner should matter in the eyes of the state, though I respect religious institutions' right to not conduct any marriage they do not support.  That said, I am proud that my mother has performed multiple same-sex marriages and I'm proud to have attended a church that conducted a same-sex wedding and openly embraced all members regardless of sexual orientation (that would be South Church UCC in Andover, MA).

Okay that's enough on marriage - as all-for-it as I am, I'm also a bit exhausted at seeing all my friends get engaged, married, or start having children.  I'd just like a boyfriend.  But moving 2000 miles across country isn't really conducive to starting a relationship, so that part of my life is on hold at the moment.  And that's okay.

The Beginning of the End in Austin

The beginning of the end in Austin has begun and I've started crossing things off the bucket list:

• Been to multiple new restaurants and venues in Austin, including a concert at Stubbs, La Zona Rosa, and The Backyard.
• RGV & South Padre Island happened last weekend where I said a prolonged goodbye to a UMass bestie.
• The Grove last night where I had an awesome dinner with awesome people under the awesome Austin evening sun.

Plans are in the works to make Schlitterbahn and brewery/winery tours happen and karaoke is booked for later in July.

Work-wise, the month of June has been productive but non-stop.  As there's only one (very busy) week left, the reality that come July 1st I have one month to pack this apartment, say goodbye to all the people I've grown to love here, and say goodbye to this city itself is becoming more and more apparent.  What's also becoming more apparent is the fact that though I will have a bit more time to watch TV and movies and exercise with my Wii in July, I need to sell my TV and that means I lose my DVR and Wii-playing capabilities for a while.  Luckily I can watch movies on my computer and many TV stations stream their shows, though often a week later.  I really need to open a Hulu Plus account.  And motivate myself to exercise despite the lack of Just Dance 3.

Things are moving very fast and many memories are being made and pictures are being taken (except when my battery empties - not even is low, the screen actually said "battery empty") and the end of Austin has begun.

Chris Hemsworth is lovely

It didn't take me over a week to write a new post because I forgot.  Rather I've been at a loss for what to write.

Letisha and I saw Snow White & the Huntsman last week.  In keeping with the original (i.e. not Disney) version of this story, I was thoroughly happy.  While it wasn't the epic I was hoping it'd be, I certainly left happy to have spent the money on the ticket.  For a pretty spot on review of the movie see my mom's friend's blog.  I'd probably agree with her on everything except that Chris Hemsworth needed redeeming from Thor.  Who cares if he acted well in that movie (which, for the record, I actually thought he did)?  Acting ability aside, he is a beautiful, beautiful creature. :)

In other news, my thesis is entirely drafted.  Turn around time from the adviser is allowing me time to get other things off my to-do list, but I won't lie: I want to be done with the thesis.  But I've got multiple jobs, small groups to lead, VBS to volunteer for, movie nights to attend, and an apartment to pack.  Or right and a city to see.

I've crossed Maudie's off my list.  On Thursday I'll cross the RGV off, as I'll head down there to visit Fallon for two nights.

Still gotta get Schlitterbahn, Six Flags, and brewery/winery tours.  And karaoke!  Let's make these happen people!

Finally, I watched a repeat episode of The Daily Show while eating dinner tonight and wound up crying from laughing so hard at this clip.  Watch it all the way through.  I promise it's worth it.

http://www.thedailyshow.com/watch/wed-june-6-2012/game-of-drones

 

Life's River Shall Rise

My faith/love/affinity for concerts has been renewed.  I went to Collective Soul last night with my fellow UMasser, Fallon Wall.  I have had an enjoyable time at concerts lately.  Snow Patrol gets the crowd going really well.  And SXSW did allow me to see Mumford & Sons who are incredible performers.  But something was different last night.  I don't know if it was that I've listened to this band since I was young, if I was less than 5 feet from the stage, or if they're just better overall performers.  But last night was one of the best nights I've had since moving to Austin.  And since I was marking 2 months until I move to MA, it seemed somewhat appropriate timing.

Also, some who have gone out with me know I get aggravated when I get pushed around or bumped out of the way because I'm short.  And if you know Fallon, you know she shares my vertically-challengedness.  So we coined a phrase last night as some pushy concert-goers (and later bar-goers) tried to push in front of us:

We matter because we are matter.

So America, you have been warned.  We may be short, but our size doesn't mean we're easier to push in front of than average-height people.  I'd like to give a shout out to the upper-40s rocker couple who let Fallon and I in front of them last night about 10 minutes before the show started.  The guy hit it on the head when he said "Please come stand in front of me.  I can still see over your heads no problem."  You're right, good sir.  And I don't find that offensive.  I can't see over or around you at all.  Thank you for realizing proximity matters less for you than it does for my dear friend and I in terms of actually being able to see the band.

(Side note, I've had the Miss USA pageant on while working on things this evening.  They're doing a lip sync to "Call Me Maybe" that included Donald Trump singing along, asking America to call him, maybe.  I appreciate when people don't take themselves too seriously.  The Trumpster redeemed himself a bit tonight.)

I also have had time to cook recently.  Made my fave lemon-herb chicken tonight.  Want to do pulled pork BBQ soon, too.  Maybe July 4?  I've got the Sauers and everything.  Hoping to try some new recipes too and am taking suggestions.  Preferably stuff on the healthier side, and if anyone has tips on cooking seafood I'd appreciate it.  I've messed things up several times and gotten gun shy of spending the money on meat that gets thrown away.

Going back to July 4 - anyone in town that weekend?  I'd honestly be down to making pulled pork and yall bringing sides if people are up for it as one of my last big get togethers.

Singed but not charred

Pentecost was this past Sunday.  I was a bit nervous about it as it was Pentecost 2011 that redirected my career and education path away from sociology and toward divinity school.  And since the choir didn't robe, I couldn't hide my iPod under my robe and tune out during the sermon.  Though I'm actually glad I didn't.  As opposed to the smack in the head I got last year, this year was a nice spark of motivation and reassurance that I'm on the right path now.  Pentecost 2011 charred me and I left FBC with parts still in flames.  Pentecost 2012 left me appropriately singed and feeling more like a phoenix out of ashes than someone only identifiable through dental records.

In other news, Kirsten and I HAVE AN APARTMENT!

Notice the suit of armor on the porch?  That's Lance.  He's our landlady's.  It's nice to have a permanent, albeit immobile, bodyguard.  So Kirsten and I are pumped.  We have a yard and were told by our landlady to feel free to have people over because apparently the neighborhood does block parties and is super friendly and social. I'm also thankfully close to a bus that takes me directly to BU and will get very good at navigating 5-way intersections and two-way streets that don't fit 2 cars next to each other again.

And my thesis is moving along relatively well.  I'm drafting chapter number 3 right now.  There will be a total of four possibly five chapters, so I've got about half of my full thesis drafted.  Other than the thesis I'm writing a TA how-to, leading a set of meetings with FBC youth on healthy relationships, sexuality, and spirituality, attempting to purge then pack, and hopefully cross things off my ATX bucket list.

Finally - the bucket list!  Here's some of what I've got planned so far.  I've got until August 1 to do this.  August 2 the movers come and I head out.  Please let me know if something just absolutely needs to be added on:

• Brick Oven
• Maudie's
• Barton Springs
• Picnic at Zilker
• karaoke
• Schlitterbahn
• Six Flags in Arlington, TX
• tubing
• Rio Grande Valley/Beaches trip with Fallon
• brewery & winery tours in the area
• see the bats!!!
• figure out a way to get to one of the upper floors of a downtown skyscraper to see Austin from above

There's more, this is just all I can remember right now.  If you'd like to tag along to any of these or if I missed something blatantly Austin, let me know.

I'm out!

Back in Massachusetts...

It's very deceptive to go to MA in May.  Even when it's rainy, the temperature is nice: no jacket necessary and you don't break a sweat after 5 minutes outside.  It's the early summer weather that makes southerners so upset come winter-like weather (to a southerner) in October.

Is it odd that I even miss the aggressive drivers?  There are dumb drivers in Austin.  There are good drivers in MA, they just all have anger management problems and makes them seem like dumb drivers.

Found a GREAT meadery in Londonderry, NH today.  Mead = fermented honey.  This place makes over 50 different types of honey wine, infused with fruits, spices, pepper, coffee, brewed in barrels that had aged cognacs or beer.  Really cool.  If you're ever there, go for a tour and tasting.  You won't be able to leave without bottles.  Yes, plural.  Check them out: Moonlight Meadery.  Check 'em out - they might ship to your state!

I'm headed into the city tomorrow and I feel as excited about going into Boston as Rachel Berry does about going to New York. :)  And speaking of Rachel, GLEEEEEEEEEEE.  If you haven't seen the season finale and you care, stop reading now.





Okay - Finn did what was probably the most mature move he's had for the entire series.  At least the sending Rachel off as a single woman move.  His desire to "redeem" his father's memory by joining the army himself seemed a bit of a rash move.  But Rachel was living in a pipe dream that she could have it all - career and guy - and the opportunity for her career was too good to pass up.  And Puck... what is Puck doing now?  Yay he graduated but what, is he going to just expand his pool cleaning business in Lima?  Maybe he'll start a mohawk hair studio.  You know, a place to get and maintain your mohawks.  Males and females welcome.  Kurt's future is unclear now too.  No NYADA, but what is he doing?  And finally, a few mixed emotions over Santana's mom (oh hello, Gloria Estafan!) giving her what seems to be a sizable check to go to New York.

I've been cured of my baby envy

For the past few months I have wanted my own baby like crazy.  Now that the semester is done, my social world has shifted to being more church-heavy than grad-heavy, and so many people in my age group have little ones.  And they're adorable.  And even being pregnant didn't look so awful - or at least it all seemed worth it.  So despite the lack of a boyfriend - let alone a husband - and an income that could support two mouths, I was soooo ready to be a mom.

Yeah, no more.

Babysat three boys tonight, ages 2, 4, and 6.  And boy do I feel like I just sat for three boys.  The two year old was a dream.  The six year old tried to help but also pushed his bedtime for an hour.  The four year old was a bit of a terror.  He was a bit like me with my sitters in that being tired made him push harder and harder to stay up.  It also made him angry and he became rude when I told him to go back to bed.  And the 4 and 6 year old share a room and the poor 6 year old truly wanted to go to sleep but couldn't because his brother was singing "Ol' McDonald" at the top of his lungs.  When the TV was on they were angels.  Sonic the Hedgehog is great.

I'll be a great mom one day.  I know that.  I have patience like no other with kids.  But right now, I'm so enjoying the ability to turn them back over to their parents after a few hours.

****

In other news, two chapters of my thesis are drafted.  The data is 98% ready to be run.  I got a full-benefits job for the summer.  I get a bit of a vacation this coming week on a trip to Boston.  And life in general really is going well.  After the stressful months of 2011, 2012 really is shaping up to be a great year.

In prepping to move, I put the cat carriers out in the apartment with the doors open to try and get Ruby and Rosalie used to them.  Ruby apparently is fine with this as I find her in there napping regularly.  Rosalie on the other hand sniffs the outside and the opening and then walks away.  She's gonna be my problem child in this upcoming move, I'm betting.

Finally - some food for thought.  What if we read passages of the Bible as if they were sarcastic.  (Hear me out before you flip out, please.)  For example, the passage of Jesus talking with the woman at the well.  It's been suggested that this is a woman going toe to toe with Jesus in a theological discussion and that she's so caught up in her conversion experience that she goes and tells the villagers and they all come to hear the Good News.  What if she actually brought the villagers to come see the crazy guy at the well?  And her social standing was already low as she was on her fifth husband and ostracized by her community (as shown by her coming to a well as high noon as opposed to with the rest of the women in the morning when it was cooler).  That much ostracism likely gave her a thick skin.  It's possible I'm applying too much 21st century thinking to Biblical times.  But seriously... the Greeks (which is what a lot of the New Testament is written in) were known for layering their writings, sarcasm, and humor.  Why do we read the Bible as if it's all as dull as the dictionary?  Why do we think people didn't have questions then?  Because people certainly have questions now; though they're often told that's a sign of weak faith.  It just doesn't seem to make for good writing to have lots of questions and justifications thrown around when you can use metaphors and sarcasm.  Just something to think about.

I'm off to watch another episode of Downton Abbey.  I hope that show's not over... I'm hooked.

"I know my call despite my faults and despite my growing fears." --Mumford & Sons

I haven't posted on here in almost two years.  Quick recap: I got a 2nd cat (Rosalie), rekindled my relationship with top 40 music, understand how 103 with no humidity can actually be better than 93 with 95% humidity, and have decided this sociology program isn't for me.  Yup, that's right, I'm leaving the program, which means I'm leaving Austin, which is ironic because I first started this blog to keep my New England friends in the loop about my life in Austin.  I'm picking blogging back up in the hopes of keeping my Austin friends in the loop with what's going on in my transition back to Mass.  And to maybe help everyone understand a bit better (including myself) why I'm making this shift.  I'll start at Boston University School of Theology in the fall for my MDiv.  I'll finish my MA in Sociology this summer.

For the record, UT Austin is a FANTASTIC place to go for grad work in sociology.  Austin itself is a fantastic city and UT has some of the most well-established mentoring programs and networking opportunities of any other sociology program I know of.

Some back story to why I'm leaving: when I was a senior at UMass, I knew I was good at sociology and I didn't know what I wanted to do professionally, so I pursued my strengths, which meant grad school.  UT offered me a phenomenal package and I have been able to study aspects of society that truly interest me.  However, where I felt the most "at home" was in my role as a teaching assistant.  Now this is ironic, because in the sociology grad world, TAing is the lowest of the low in the funding option hierarchy.  There are frequently times, though, where I preferred TAing than RAing (I've done both).  So why, you may wonder, am I going for an MDiv and not a masters in education?

Because in the past 2 years I've also realized faith matters to me way more than I thought.  And that, in my opinion, it serves a valuable, even necessary, function in society.  But many teens and young adults that are raised in a faith tradition are typically sheltered within their faith bubble until they go to college.  In college, if their tradition wasn't made relevant in younger years, they see no reason to continue it, nor is there enough of a desire to look into other faiths for this age group typically "church shop".  And finally, from the interviews from my undergrad thesis, a lot of the apathy and aggravation with organized religion comes from the lack of dialogue around issues of sexuality.

All that said, what I hope to do is take 6 years of sociological training in religion, marriage, family, and sexuality and combine 3 years of prep for ministry to teens and young adults about healthy relationships, sex, and sexuality in a way that will probably freak many people out: I want discuss sex and God, work through these issues with them, acknowledging the messiness of human lives and trying to create a safe space for them to question, wrestle, and find clarity.  I won't tell anyone how to live because I don't have all the answers and because I've certainly made mistakes myself, some of which certain faith traditions would say automatically damn me.  For the record, I don't anticipate divinity school to give me the answers.  I somewhat anticipate divinity school to actually give me more questions.

This post minimally scratches the surface of all that's motivating me to change degrees.  (I will be honest and say the idea of being back in Boston was a strong draw as well.)  I'll continue to post through the process (more frequently than when I first started this blog, I promise) because writing everything out helps me articulate my motivations as well.  But this is the start something that at first felt completely off, but not feels completely right.  :)