Wow, things have been so unbelievably busy that I can't even begin to verbalize it all. "Now breathe" has become my mantra, and I try to remember to do so instead of holding my breath. Still, I am assured, that most everything will work itself out. And the things that don't, weren't worth the added conditioning and tension. So fall off the boat, dead weight, you're behind me now.

Since I can't form and delicately place the right words to convey all that has happened in the past few days, I will, once again, let pictures do the talking for me.

( Surprise date #2: Sweetwater Brewery for a tour and six half pints of the freshest beers on tap. Kinda like the Coca-Cola museum, but instead of leaving with a caffeine high, we left feeling very buzzed. )

( Surprise date #3: Steven's Farm Fun field trip. )

What's not pictured: A double date with two new friends, dinner at Doc Chey's (again) with said friends, and a birthday/going away party where I reunited with my dance partners in crime.

I canceled Friendsgiving after realizing that the only true friends I have are my newly discovered ones, my family and boyfriend (maybe I'm leaving out some important figures due to bitterness). And I couldn't bare the thought of having a house full of plastic smiley faces and people there in celebration of good food and good friends, when that would be the furthest thing from what is real. I feel like my body cannot handle the amount of stress I am currently under, and I will tap out from all of its crumbling weight. On the other hand, I am reminded of how incredibly strong the human spirit is, and just when we think we literally can't take anymore, we're given a burst of extra energy that allows us to pull through. I need to recite to myself, like clockwork, that though I may be hard-pressed at times, stressed beyond what I think my limit is, and questioning everything like there is an ulterior motive, I will not be destroyed. I may be shaken, but never broken. These things I know, always and forever. Amen.