Saturday, December 15, 2001

On the plane back to Houston, I wrote some thoughts that I've only just now had a chance to share. I'll add more later, but this is what I have now.

Thursday, 4:57

I’ve decided that blogging has become a passion of mine. I like the idea of having a journal out there, a testament to the world that yes, I, Jennifer Noble lives. The idea that other people read my annals, interested in what I have to say and what I’ve done. I suppose that’s the greatest shock... Ian actually emailed the other day, in a kind of “peek-a-boo” way. He was asking about Disneyland and my experiences with the mouse.

I’m on my home, away from USC for a long time... well, until the 21st. And even then, I can’t visit my home, aka my dorm room. I hope things go well in Houston. My first goal? To renew my driver’s license, even though I left my house keys at USC. Hopefully my parents will let me borrow the extra set, otherwise I’m stuck at home, even though I have a valid license! I’ve missed driving so much - in a few months, I’ve become accustomed to the feeling of utter freedom when you’re behind a steering wheel. True, you’re limited by traffic, by time, by road construction, but sometimes there’s a type of transcendence. Just with the knowledge that if you wanted to, you *could* leave the world behind... or just your city. Although, honestly, ever since going away to USC, I’m not plagued with the feelings of desperation that were my constant companions in high school. Now that I have all of this independence, I feel more in charge of my life, more... grown-up. It sounds strange. How can someone be grown-up at the age of 18? I’m still such a kid. I laugh all the time, I love to dance around... in fact, the other day I wore a tiara all day. I can put it all on the line, and in this state of innocent bliss, I feel more mature.

It’s a bit strange.

One random note: I love I-tunes. The visuals are amazingly cool. After years of sonique, win-amp and windows media player, I’m no stranger to “effects,” but with this program, I’ve seen more variations in patterns than I ever saw in the other programs. I’m in Apple-bliss, though. I love my iBook. It’s my baby... I’m thinking that I’m getting an iPod for Christmas. Wow, what a present! My dad told me to bring home a “good selection of CDs,” and he reminded me on several occasions. I think we’re going to make mp3s out of them and test out this iPod. That’s my take on it, anyway.

I had a really good conversation with Ryan today. He’s a cool friend. Last time I went to Houston, he sat across from me at the airport. Then I ran into him in the French language lab, and started talking to him. Turns out he lives in the same building group as me, he went to St. John’s, our big rival high school. Then I ran into him at the airport today, as we’re going home on the same flight yet again. The world’s very small, I must say.