Diana's Diary

2001-05-22 - 12:57 a.m.

All that glitters is not gold.

Sometimes, it's Silver.

Seriously, I'm so proud of her. It's weird to think about how much college changes people. This afternoon, she declared her expected degree term (Spring 2003), and we got to talking. She's come a long way from the little freshman she was back in Fall '98.

I remember one of the first times I met her; she came into my room because she wanted to know how to use the phone system to check her status on the waiting lists for a couple of classes. As the only second-year on the floor, I was sort of the de facto tour guide and guru for a lot of the freshmen on the floor during those first couple of weeks. Anyway, I remember her explaining to me how she planned to graduate in three years as a pre-med, go on to medical school, blah blah blah.

Back then, I could barely understand Silver because her accent is so heavy. I don't usually have a problem understanding her now, but I think it's more because I've become accustomed to the way that she speaks than it is that her accent has changed. It's not that she speaks bad English--she doesn't--she just speaks English with a really thick accent. A couple of weeks ago, she said something, some word (I forget what), and I thought she was saying something completely different. It took me a couple of minutes to figure out the miscommunication, and it sort of struck me that it had been a really long time since I'd had that experience, not understanding her. Anyway, I'm getting off the point, because my abilty to understand her accent isn't why I'm proud of her.

Her freshman year, Silver was pretty quiet, very focused on studying, kind of psychotic about her grades, and generally gave off the vibe that she was not happy to be here. She complained a lot, about classes, about the dorms, about the cafeterias...basically, she was a complete pessimist. When she asked if she could join Paris and I in an apartment, I had a lot of misgivings, because I didn't exactly think that Sil was the most pleasant person on the planet. Whoo! Thank God for Silver, though, because if Paris and I had shared an apartment by ourselves for these last two years...it would not have been pretty. You know how much bitching about Paris I do now? Imagine if I was sharing a bedroom with her! Yikes.

Last year, Sil's sophomore year, she decided to scrap the three-year plan. It loosened her up so much, and she actually started to have fun. Going out to movies, having our little dinner parties, whatever. Then she decided that she didn't want to be a doctor after all. Whew! No offense to all of the people out there who are pre-med, but I don't really think most of them are suited for the job. The only pre-med I know whom I would allow anywhere near me if I was sick is Orange's roommate Trump. Not that I'm saying Silver isn't smart enough to be a doctor--she is--but I don't think it would fit her temperment. She decided that she'd rather do pharmacy instead, and that relaxed her even more. Thankfully, she doesn't have the really pushy kind of parents who tell her she must be a doctor. I think they were relieved when she changed her mind, too.

Then, this year...well, now she's decided to graduate in June 2003. That puts her on the five-year plan. She wants to take some Asian history and mythology classes, and some speech classes, so she decided to tack on an extra year. From the uber-focused three year plan to five years...for some people, this would be slacking off, but for Sil, it's learning not only to be more realistic, but to realize that there are more important things in life than material success. She'd actually like to enjoy her education. She seems really excited about some of the classes she's going to be taking, and I think that's wonderful.

She's mellowed. And I guess the main reason I think that's so cool is that when I look back on how I was four years ago, I realize that I've mellowed, too. This whole graduation thing has had me doing a lot of reminiscing, and I've discovered that I like myself a lot more than I did back then. And that's a good thing. Now I see Silver going through sort of the same process. I can't help it; sometimes I feel big-sisterly towards her. I guess it's a roommate thing.

-Di, signing off.

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2003-12-16 - Ow! My Nose!
2003-12-15 - 'Tis the Season...For Moving
2003-11-17 - Rush, Rush
2003-11-03 - Apartment Hunting Sucks
2003-10-22 - Apparently, "nauseated" is a good look for me.

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