I Haven't Painted My Nails Since Before Thanksgiving...Thoughts on Being an Architecture Major

Today I submitted a portfolio of my work as an architecture major for my first semester at OU, and

it.

Felt.

AWESOME. 

There are times in your life when you're just floating along, going through the motions, waiting for the next big even to happen to you. However, there are other times in your life when you're been working, time crunching, typing, cutting, gluing, designing, researching, and just overall doing your best at what you can do, and that's when you really start to feel the "subtle adrenaline," the feeling from day to day that you're working toward something. 

I am so excited. 

Being at OU, finally doing something I love, has really given me a new perspective on things. Our classes are constantly focused on what's next for us as students, and even bigger than that, what's ahead of us for careers. Architecture is a hard major, and believe me, I'm not good at everything we do. The standard introduction question when you meet someone new on campus is "what's your major?" When I meet new people and respond with "Architecture," the common response is "Oh, so i'm never going to see you." That's pretty true, seeing as how I haven't even had time to paint my fingernails since early November. As arch majors, we basically live in the studio when we have projects to do, and often, just when we need a place to be. We're learning to love each other, and get to know each other really well. Those of us who will be sticking with architecture after this first semester will grow even closer. 

Now I spend my time sketching even when I don't have to. They're not fantastic, but they'll get better with practice. 

It's hard to explain how I feel about this program. I love my family and friends and jobs back home, but what I'm doing now, feels like a future. Take that for whatever sappiness it is. Some people spend a long time figuring out who they are, and what they want to do. Others of us, we just know, and we go for it. I guess at the end of the day, my dollar value is approximately negative 20,000 dollars, I'm deprived of sleep on a regular basis, and I'm usually stressed with the literally never ending homework.  But when I turn in the portfolio of my hard work (projects that are not just turned in and trashed, but documented and saved for future reference) stop to have a chat with one of my professors, and high five a random studio-mate that I saw in the South Oval, I can feel the excitement bubbling. 

This is so worth it. 

<3 HR