It's been getting cooler here, though "cool" doesn't mean much in Florida. The weather is still appropriate for Jimmy Buffett, Bob Marley, and Zac Brown, especially considering we just got a little tropical storm. That's the best time to listen to Jimmy Buffett.
Anyways, I don't have much schoolwork to do, I just have to go ahead and *do* it. But after next week, I get to head home for Thanksgiving and Christmas, and to escape the slightly less hot weather to even hotter weather. I'm excited to see my parents and my brothers and the dogs (2 golden-doodles) and my sister's coming home from California. I'll help my mom make Thanksgiving dinner (on the agreed condition that we make a key lime pie in addition to pumpkin pie), work out with my brothers in the morning, hang out with some friends on the beach. I'm pretty excited for it, even though I'm not doing bad at all here. I've been going on runs through the hiking trails, reading a lot, drinking lots of tea, saving up some money. My roommate introduced me to cigars, so instead of going to a sketch convenience store and picking up an 18-pack of Heineken, we'll go to a sketch Syrian smoke shop and get a couple sticks. Though my parents would approve of neither, I honestly think the cigars are the way to go for me. After I smoke one, I don't want another one, and they don't fuck with my head the way that alcohol or cigarettes do.
So if procrastination and a once-a-week cigar are my only sins, I think I can live with that for now. So far this semester, I've killed off nail-biting, and, to an extent, eating shitty food. Honestly, I think the whole covid thing has made transitiioning to college easier for me. I'm in my dorm most the time, unless I'm getting a meal or running or rucking in the trails. So I get to spend a lot of time by myself working on school or reading or meditating or whatever. The only drawback for me is how easily I get distracted by reddit, but I'm working on it. I don't even mind not being able to meet with people. I literally have two friends here: my roommate, and another guy on my floor I sometimes work out with or smoke with. I got friends at home though, maybe 5 or 6 close ones, and I've got my family. So I keep in touch wiht all of those people, and I don't feel like I'm missing out.
On the menu for me today is, to read some of my political science textbook then take a quiz on it, then I'll run, probably 8.5 miles, then shower, and then read as much as physically possible of a novel for my Intro to Asia class. Not too bad. I just have to go and do it.
Good to see you around, Shiloh! Funny, I was in Florida last January. It feels so far away though. The world was in a different place. At the time, I would have never imagined all that would follow. Even in January the weather was already relatively hot compared to where I'm from. Awesome you get to see the family soon, I hope you enjoy that time! Take care.