What I've Learned

Having been in DC for just over a month now, and graduate school for three weeks, I think it appropriate timing for a benchmark on what I've learned since beginning this chapter:

-Eating at home 98% of the time is cheaper, mostly easier, and not nearly as boring as I thought!
-There's a Maryland/Virginia/DC snobbery, though you can be in all three places in less than fifteen minutes over a short, couple miles spread. We're still figuring this one out.
-Most "credible" news sources have holes in most of their business articles. Enough for me to write two papers per week on them. Wow.
-The more work you're given, the more bang for your buck you're getting. If for no other reason, you're forced to make an executive decision on what's important enough to rank on your priorities list.
-Accounting is only boring if you don't understand it. So says my professor, anyway.
-My dad is single-handedly one of the most impressive businessmen I've ever known. And somehow he's still an outstanding parent to boot. I need to learn to juggle as much.
-The guy who answers all the teacher's questions is an ass. Especially when he doesn't know the answer-- talks a lot without saying anything.
-My great-grandmother really knew what she was talking about when she said (translated from Cajun French) that, "You can't learn anything with your mouth open."
-It doesn't matter how much you have to do around the house... depending on your workload.
-The first few weeks of b-school required as much reading as law school. I imagine more calculations, less reading in the future.
-People here don't care if you've worked/studied on two other continents. They've done it for longer and in somewhere more remote with the Peace Corps, so don't use any experience abroad as "one unique thing" during an icebreaker. Stick with being from where Tabasco sauce is made!
-Craigslist is usually more work than your time is worth.
-Most of your classmates are competitive and pretty smart, thus knowing yourself is key as much as having a big picture perspective is a strength.
-Commuting during rush hour is a beast.

This draws me back to the most recent day when I felt completely relaxed and responsibility-free: May 29 in Hawaii. The movers had packed up our entire house, put it in boxes and crates, and off it went for a Pacific-crossing ship. We moved into a Waikiki hotel and I literally had no concerns- and there was even someone to make my bed! I bought a chick magazine for mindless reading and was browsing the article on successful femmes describing themselves in 100 words or less. It got me thinking: how would I describe myself in 100 words, or how would I want to be described? Well, I got busy again and never finished the assignment. But here we are, new beginnings all at once, and I think it wise to create a definite mark, worthy of referral in the future.

How would you describe yourself in 100 words or less? What would you want others to say? Give it a couple minutes of thought. What kind of benchmarks would you say you've passed in the last chapter of your life?