End of the Line

So this is it. I have two days after this one, and then my first session with NASA will be a wrap. Unfortunately for me, I still have some hours to make up. I took some time off this semester for travel (D.C. three times, Daytona Beach, Galveston, and now Dallas/Fort Worth), not to mention a couple sick days, so I had substantial time to make up. I was stupid and procrastinated too much, so it's my own fault that I'm in this mess now. I don't get any leave whatsoever and I've already been paid for 40 hours worth of work per week, so it's not like I can just call it good (even though I'd like to do just that). I figured out this morning that I had to work 35 hours out of the next 60 in order to break even. What a nightmare...I'm already exhausted. I know I'll make it, but it won't be a nice experience.

In any case, I thought I'd write out my thoughts on what I've learned this semester about NASA, internships, and life in general.

I've learned that...

• nerds own NASA.
• if you wash your car in Virginia in the spring, it will rain and get pollen on it the next day.
• nerds never get less nerdy as they get older...they just show it in different ways.
• a 12-gallon gas tank goes empty incredibly fast.
• it's not a good idea to throw a football when you have a torn ACL.
• health insurance is a very good thing.
• it's not a good idea to do anything active at all when you have a torn ACL.
• just when life seems incredibly dark, God lights it up again.
• when God seems far away, He's not the one that's moved.
• working for the federal government is an exercise in patience.
• self-employment tax is highway robbery.
• inefficiency is the way of life in a bureaucracy.
• high school drama doesn't always stay in high school.
• telling someone you really are a rocket scientist takes a few repetitions before they will believe you.
• F-22s can be incredibly loud.
• inside connections are worth their weight in gold.
• Harmon/Kardon should stay away from making GPS receivers.
• dancing is more fun than you might think it is.
• keeping a strong walk with God can be very difficult without accountability and fellowship.
• just because you look like you have a lot of money doesn't mean you have to spend like it.
• frustration sets in quickly when you know the alarm combination but the keypad is unresponsive.
• God's plan doesn't always look like you think it will.
• when the alarm keypad is unresponsive, the alarm will soon go off, and there is nothing you can do about it.
• tangelos are the gleanings from Heaven's orchards.
• the turn-around time from the alarm going off to the call from the monitoring service is less than 60 seconds.
• if you really want to watch a basketball game, the TV will be in use already at the time of the game.
• it's not a good thing to get disconnected from the monitoring service before you can give the phone password.
• career is not as important as friends and family.
• no matter how far you run, God will never let you go.

It's been a very challenging yet fulfilling semester. I will greatly enjoy my time off and I pray that God can use it and my next experience with NASA to continue to grow me into who He wants me to be! =)