Stuff.: Saturday. Home. Duke.

I had a pretty busy week so I went to sleep last night at 10:45. This is really early for me lately so I was pretty happy with myself. Sadly, I woke up at 7:30. I'm not very good at sleeping, it's a skill that I have never mastered and I don't think that I ever will. Yes, sleeping is a skill. I do not have the ability to lay in bed and try to sleep if I am not exhausted, it doesn't work. I just feel like I am wasting my time, why would I want to lay in bed if I could do anything else? I am unable to sleep past 8 hours unless I have just spent the last 48 hours without sleeping! So I was actually pretty surprised I even made it to 7:30 this morning.

The beauty of waking up early is that I can get a lot done. So far today, I have cleaned my room, vacuumed, ate breakfast, played around on my iPad, played some xbox, started some stuff for class, laundry, and am now writing this blog (It's 11:30)! So I feel accomplished. This is good because I plan on spending the next two days doing absolutely nothing but watching football. Right now I'm watching UCF v. Ohio St. My mom will be happy with this next comment, "Go Buckeyes!"

A week ago I went back to Georgetown to help my parents move out of our house. In reality it turned more into going through my stuff and hanging out with my friends, dog, and parents. I was pretty nervous going in to this whole experience because I didn't know how I would react to moving out of the house I grew up in. We lived there for 20 years, it was what I always called home. Even when I lived in Memphis or on campus at SU, I always referred to it as "my room," never home. Home is a big word for me, we had a thing on our wall for awhile that said "Home is where you hang your heart" and I fully agree with that. Home is where you're surrounded by people you love and love you in return, it's a place you feel safe, and a place that you feel rooted. I feel very uprooted right now. Yes, I am very lucky, I'm going to school, getting experience, and I do have a roof over my head, but I just don't feel like I have a home right now. My mom is off in Shreveport, my dad is in Georgetown until he can get out to Shreveport, and my brother is back in LA. It's just crazy. My best friends are 11 hours away. I don't like to think about it. New topic.

Duke in his new habitat

Upon all of the moving that has been taking place, Duke had to find a new place to stay. I feel like if you know me for more than about an hour you will know that I love my dog and you will have probably seen a picture or 12 of him. So, being away from him has been really tough! Luckily, I have some great friends who like dogs and graciously accepted the offer of Duke staying with them. I got Duke from the Gtown Animal Shelter over a year ago (April 4, 2011 to be exact) and he is awesome. He was a little rascal at first and he still has his moments, but Duke just wants your lovin' and wants to snuggle at any chance possible. He also loves to hunt, chase, catch, toss around, and bury squirrels (in that order). He like to go on walks, go in the car, snuggle, and sleep.

Even though moving out of the house was hard, one of the hardest parts so far has been being away from Duke. I feel like the worst owner ever, I abandoned my dog...who does that? It makes my heart hurt thinking about it. I worry about him constantly and I miss him a lot. I probably annoy my friends by asking about him all the time, but I think about him all the time. I can't help it. I just really can't wait until I can see him again and that won't be until Christmas so hopefully I can make it that long.

Other than looking cute and being an exceptionally patient hunter (seriously, he sits and stalks squirrels for hours at a time) Duke has one trick, rollover. Above is a video of me and Duke showing off his skills while we were moving.

I really miss home, Duke, my friends, my family, and Georgetown in general. The past week has been pretty rough, I cry a lot and it's not even under my control...it just happens. I'm really lucky to have a great best friend who lets me complain about anything to her even if I was sad about the same exact thing the day before. I have been trying a new thing the past few days, if I am upset about something I only get five minutes to be upset about it and then I have to move on. It usually works, but sometimes I just think about it a few hours later...but I get 5 more minutes then I have to think about something else. I'm not a bundle of sadness walking around, but I just think about the things I miss a lot.

Good news! I learned yesterday that my best friend is visiting Kansas October 12-15. I can't wait! So knowing that I will see someone who means so much in about a month is super exciting. Then I'll go to Shreveport during Thanksgiving and then Georgetown at Christmas. That is all the positive I need! Woo!

In honor of the excitement, I will end this post with a montage of Dukerson. Enjoy!