Hello, World (Redux)

So... I'm ashamed to say that I never actually updated after the SSA Conference last summer. I could make excuses and promises to keep updating now, but frankly, it doesn't seem like it would make much of a difference. I do think I'll actually start updating again now; my schedule's a lot less hectic these days.

But first, here's what's been going on in my life over the last half a year! (I know, it's kind of like excuses, but hey, cut me some slack...)

• The Freethinkers had an awesome fall semester, which I am proud to have been a part of. Meeting attendance and general interest have skyrocketed over the past year, and I'm sure that I've only seen the very beginning of the great things the group will do.
• I kept volunteering! I think I can safely say that volunteering with the Raft Crisis Hotline is one of the things I'm most proud of doing in my life so far. I really felt like I was making a positive difference in the community, and I hugely encourage anyone who has considered a similar kind of volunteering to go for it!
• I was sick for half of the semester. Recurring tonsillitis that coincided with a lapse in my health insurance gave me an even stronger conviction that health care should be a right, not a privilege. If I could barely drag myself to class (even with my low-cost medications through the university!), how can we as a society expect people working low-wage jobs to survive?
• I got engaged the day after Thanksgiving! I mean, it wasn't really a surprise, since we planned it all out beforehand for the most part, but it's still really exciting.
• I graduated! I'm really happy to be done (at least for now!), but I'm also sad to leave that part of my life behind.
• Speaking of leaving things behind, I'm not in Virginia anymore! I'm currently in Vancouver, B.C., living with my fiancé for a few months while I try to sort out a summer internship or a job, and also all the details for our wedding!