WOW! How things change in just one year! It's amazing. Weeell, I'm graduated from high school now, and so am now going to college as a freshman! There were quite large road bumps, but things are great right now. Nothing to really complain about.

It's sooo nice now that I'm like able to control myself these days and just get my work done so I have free time for other things. Die procrastination! Not only that, but I don't have to keep working until unholy hours of the night just to get my stuff done anymore. Sometimes in high school I'd literally have to start working as soon as I got home from school (after swim team practice ended a few hours after school did), and then have to stay up late to get it done even though I gave all of my focus to the work. (Yeah... I was in a tough high school program. x3) Maybe that experience helped me to learn how much focusing helps. It's such a relief not having to be sleep-deprived, have time for myself free from worries about my class work... really helps to keep the stress down.

So at first I was going to a completely different college. I thought I was ready for it. I think it was too large of a change all at once, not to mention what happened a few weeks before I left.... It was too far from home, too different as far as weather, the people were very different, and I became overwhelmed by all of this, and in addition, the sheer workload they gave us. I completely crashed and burned. I decided I had to go home; I went on a leave of absence. This means that I had chosen to leave the college temporarily because of problems, and I still would have the option to return after time off. So at home I gathered the pieces over a lot of time; I seriously had a lot to think about. I wasn't even sure I had been studying the right thing, so now I'm questioning what I want to learn about! xD I was just very confused and distracted. Maybe even a little depressed.

And you know what? They say you learn most from failure. And failed and learned I have. I did learn a lot of things from screwing up so badly there, and I'm better and wiser for it. I don't regret taking the risks in hopes of good coming out of it, and losing. Good came anyway.

Things have improved very much! I'm still in touch with a lot of my high school friends, which is awesome. We see each other around every once in a while. I like my classes a lot; I'm sorta experimenting right now and seeing what I like. I'm now an undecided major, and am considering a biology-like major (my old choice), art, and architecture (which I don't know much about, but seems interesting). I was also surprised by the community college I'm at now; it's actually a pretty good school. Though they don't give too much work, a person can learn a lot here if they put the effort in. I like it! I've also gotten to talk to a certain good friend of mine about a couple issues and we smoothed things out, which makes things even better. Ehehe.... =] I feel much happier. My plan now is that I probably won't return to the far-off college. Though it is a VERY strong school, I don't think it's the right one for me. I will probably, instead, go to college in-state, so I won't be too far away and make myself homesick and stressed out again. I can learn and improve things in my life just as well close to home.

There's a couple exciting things happening right now. I don't know what's going to happen, but hey, what's life without some mystery and suspense?

I was thinking, and it led me to recently put up this status on my facebook page:
"Brooke [me lol] wonders if life really must methodically rip every shred of my past shyness from me, piece by piece. *mourn* Ah well. It’s more fun this way. Cheers. =]."