If this post is published, it means I have finished my first year of my graduate degree in opera performance!
Where does the time go? (Although–since I’m taking things 10 minutes at a time, I’m all-too-aware of just how fast it can go!)
I could write a retrospective post on all the musical or academic things I’ve learned since I arrived in Wichita and began classes, but… I think I’d like to share a few unexpected things I’ve learned.
If you already know these things, congratulations to you! I am but a Helpless Grub™.
Without further ado, I present to you:
1. Buy the fancy toilet paper.
I am a broke grad student. I try to save every penny I can in every place I can. So, obviously, when entrusted with buying toilet paper completely for myself for the first time ever, I decided to scrimp and buy some… less than top shelf brands. “Think of all the money I’ll save,” I said.
But then I was sent some fancy toilet paper—you know the kind I’m talking about, the quadruple-ply, aloe-infused, rippled kind—to try as part of a research study and..
Y’all, let me tell you, life is too short for cheap, rough toilet paper. I get my butt kicked on the daily in grad school, the least I can do is be nice to it in the powder room at home. My butt deserves clouds.
(Note to my grad school: y’all could invest in some nice toilet paper for those public restrooms, too.)
2. Make your bed, even when you don’t want to.
I never made my bed when I lived at home. Never ever. Is that embarrassing? Probably. And it’s not for my mom’s lack of trying, either—she’s a devoted bed-maker. Me? I’m just the worst.
Anyway. There are frequently days when I come home and feel like my life is in complete and total disarray. I have 9000 projects to do in the next 10 hours, I haven’t eaten since yesterday, and my dog won’t do her business in a timely manner. But you know what?
I walk into my room, turn on the light, and see a nicely made bed and I think to myself, “I’m doing alright.”
Make your bed, y’all. Just do it.
3. “Just like Mom made it” is a bold-faced lie.
You will get homesick. This is a inevitability. You will also inevitably try to make something your mom always made for you as a way to cure your homesickness.
Good news, dear reader. You will cure it, but whatever you make is always going to be just a little bit off, no matter how many times you make it or alter your recipe. I don’t know what kind of sorcery our loved ones possess to make things taste extra-delicious, but man. Whoever figures out how to bottle Mom Pixie Dust is going to be very rich indeed.
4. Guard your You Time™ fiercely.
One of the things I love most about my graduate program is how close the cohort is. I spend a lot of time with the same 20 or so people and it’s wonderful in a lot of respects. I love that we share so many growing experiences together–and I love that even when we’ve been through a challenging day/week/life/whatever, we still want to spend time outside of class/rehearsal with each other!
And then, during one of these wonderful post-rehearsal outings, I remember that I am in fact a certified, card-carrying hermit and need to go home and listen to Rosa Ponselle recordings by myself in the dark in order to continue being a functioning human.
What I mean to say is that while it’s all well and dandy to have lots of friends, it’s even dandier to not be miserable. Your friends will understand you needing a night for yourself. They’ll probably be relieved and take one for themselves, too. So take one! Without guilt!