ray, ray, U-V-a!

Well, friends, here we are. At the start of something new and oh so exciting! The new header says "a new season for Rhythms of Radiance", and it really is! Moved to a new city, to a new apartment, at a new school, meeting new people, starting a new chapter of my life (how many times can I say "new" in one paragraph??). It has been a whirlwind over the past few weeks, and I just can't wait to share it all with you!!

My mom and I made the first trip to Charlottesville a little over three weeks ago. It was, without a doubt, one of the more marathon style days of my life - left home a little after 5 in the morning. Arrived in Cville 10 hours later. Unloaded everything from my car and my mom's van (both packed very, very full). Went to a mattress store. Bought a bed. Found a hotel. Ate dinner. Crashed.

The next day we got to work! Unpacked, cleaned, set up my bed, cleaned some more, rearranged furniture about three times, etc. I just love my room and the way our apartment came together (maybe once my decorating is done you'll get pictures!). Another very long, very productive day.

That weekend I went on a camping trip with 39 other first year med students and 5 second year leaders (Virginia Medical Outdoor Orientation, affectionally known as VMOO). No better way to get to know a ton of new people than by a) packing us into cars with complete strangers for a two hour drive b) taking us to a campsite away from the rest of civilization c) not taking showers for three days and d) no flushing toilets. Oh yes. We went hiking. We went swimming. We played cheesy games. We made s'mores. We bonded.

Group picture on our hike [taken by our official photographer, Kevin! Check him out!]

Came back from the weekend and took one of the most glorious showers of my life (no lie). The next two weeks were filled with lots of opportunities to bond with the people in my class. Trivia nights, game nights, dinner nights, movie nights, and oh yes, a pirate night. You name it, and it probably had a night. I got to settle into Cville and find my way around. Go grocery shopping and actually cook (for the first time in a long time!). Went to orientation and made it all official - name tags, user names, passwords. Just generally discovered my Cville rhythm.

Afternoon at a vineyard spent wine tasting and watching polo. Why yes, I did participate in the stomping of the divots...

rooms on the lawn

the one, the only. the rotunda.

And then, before I knew it, it was time for the family to make another trip north to see me get my white coat! Pictures from the weekend next time. I'll leave you with these wise words I recently learned...

Wahoo-wah! Wahoo-wah!

Uni-v, Virginia!

Hoo-rah-ray! Hoo-rah-ray!

ray, ray, U-V-a!

Lauren