Suffolk – Elizabeth Joy Hadley

And just like that, my fall semester of senior year is over! I honestly am still in shock that this May, I’ll be graduating. Unless of course, this upcoming semester is too hard for me, and I can’t do it. (I’m being sarcastic). Don’t worry, I’m graduating in May, come hell or high waters.

This semester was so great, I really feel like I grew a lot, and matured. It was hard, some day’s I hated it, but over all, I think it was more good than bad, most days anyways.

Let’s recap my semester for those who haven’t been following along as closely to the intricacies of my life, and really I don’t blame you if you haven’t.

I took 4 classes for 4 credits each.

I interned at WBZ-TV (Channel 4 for you local folks) 16 hours a week.

I commuted back and forth to school an hour and a half each way.

I traveled to Wilmington, North Carolina for the One Tree Hill convention.

I’m still waiting on my own Nathan Scott.

I taught dance every Saturday morning to 3-6 year olds.

This was last year, but you get the idea.

I sort of maintained a social life. I must admit, this is probably the area I lack the most. People invite me to do things, but I’m usually working, too tired, or it’s way too late, and how am I supposed to get home? I want to work on this more for the spring semester. I have this overhwelming feeling that I’m going to graduate and wish I spent more time having fun.

Every morning I wake up, and wish I was as cool as Jeanette.

I applied for a job at Channel 7 and an internship at Channel 5. I got both, but ended up taking the job.

I celebrated my Mom, Dad, Bruce’s Andrea’s, Andrew’s Birthday, Thanksgiving, and almost Christmas.

I started The Mindy Project and am sufficiently obsessed with the show and am convinced that if Mindy Kaling and I ever met we would be best friends.

I was trained as an Alternative Spring Break Leader as preparation for my upcoming ASB trip to Battle Creek, Michigan.

I also applied for another internship with NECN, still waiting to hear back on that one, and I finished my semester after taking 4 finals and almost pulling my hair out.

Today I rewarded myself with a nice relaxing facial at the spa. Do I need to reward myself for doing something that most of the world does, working?

No I don’t, but I will tell you, this semester was difficult, classes were hard, I had to judge so many things on top of each other. I rarely eat a normal meal, it was usually while I was studying or editing a project. But, as I sit in my living room now, I realize that I had a great time with most of it, and I grew into a new, more confident, still kind of unsure, a little scared person, and I can’t wait for next semester already, because I already miss my friends. And I’m excited to start my new job!

I hope you all have a great holiday season, and a great end to 2018! I’ll tell you, I’m already excited about 2019.

If you read my page titled “My Favorite Things,” you would see Cities is up there under my list of 10 favorite things. Nothing will ever top Bread, but Cities is up there.

I love love cities. There are a lot of reasons why, and for a long time I was totally OK with saying I loved cities, but never really declaring why. But in September 2015, I started spending more and more time in cities, and I started to realize and narrow down why it is that I have always and will forever be passionate about cities.

Image may contain: 3 people, including Elizabeth Hadley and Lisa Hadley, people standing, skyscraper and outdoor — Beautiful night in Boston!

I grew up in a small town, Easton MA to be precise. It’s your typical small town, so I won’t say anything else about it. But, my Mom always took me and my brother to Boston all the time to learn and to explore. She took us to NYC a few times as well. And while my brother was sort of indifferent, I thrived there. I never wanted to leave. I loved the energy, the vibe, the amount of people trying to succeed and follow their dreams. I knew that I wanted to go to a city when I went to college, so that is what I did.

Image may contain: sky and outdoor — Just a typical view on my walk to classes!

For a variety of reasons, I lived on campus my freshman year, but then sophomore year I started commuting. I started to become one of the many many many people who came to Boston every day for work, or school. This is when I started to fully understand the culture of this city. Since I had more free time in the city, I started to frequent coffee shops, and libraries, and cute little shops that are original and totally Boston. I would walk through the common or the Public Garden because sometimes I just couldn’t sit in the Suffolk buildings anymore.

Image may contain: Andrew Navaroli, smiling, sitting, outdoor and nature — My friend and I out for a walk in the Public Garden

And now I know why I love cities, I spent all that time exploring and trying to understand exactly what it was that made this city so special. And I know, at least I know why it is so special to me.

Because each morning, the trains start running and the people come flooding in from all directions to their jobs or whatever it is that they are doing. And each morning the coffee shops are swarmed with people from all different directions, and each afternoon the coffee shops are filled with people talking, or reading or working on their laptops. And they each have a different story, a different past, and even a different future, but they are all the same, they come here to do whatever, but they are just trying to succeed and trying their best to be the best, at whatever it is they love.

And in Boston, people aren’t as friendly as they are down south. People don’t talk to each other on the streets unless they previously know each other, they don’t get to know the person behind them in line. But there is a silent feeling of respect that is shared between each person that goes through this city. There is a shared appreciation for each other, without saying a word.

Image may contain: one or more people and outdoor — One of my favorite pictures I’ve ever taken in Boston! The pure excitement, even in the air.

But now I am at the point where when I go to my favorite Starbucks, they already know my order, and I have friends on my train. I know who will be walking in front of me on the sidewalk by the time it is, and the security guard at my work knows me by name.

No automatic alt text available. — Yes, I really did take this picture

Boston is a mixture of college students and working people, tourists and residents, homeless people and people who just come for the day. And each year, on that day when the meteorologists say that it is going to be 70 and sunny, with no breeze, you can count on everyone and their dog coming here to enjoy the well deserved warmth that we have waited so long for. It becomes cold in November and stays cold until the middle of April, but yet, the amount of people living here is rising. And until you experience what it is like to really live in Boston, to really be one of the many people trying to succeed here, and until you recognize how good the sun feels on your face after the months of freezing cold, you won’t be able to understand all that is Boston.

Tag: Suffolk

And Just Like That..

Cities