Stomach Bugs and Frozen Toes

Coming back from break hasn't been the smoothest transition this semester. The actual traveling wasn't as bad as it normally seems, especially seeing that our day started by waking up at 5 AM, taking 2 planes, a bus, waiting outside a bus terminal for an hour in 2º weather, and taking another train to Provo, finally arriving home at 4 PM.

The worst part was the next day. I woke up earlier than my alarm on Sunday morning, a rarity in itself, and had an unmistakable pain in my stomach. I'm no stranger to stomach pain, but this felt different and more persistent. I tried to go back to sleep, hoping that the pain would leave, but it didn't. It reached a peak as we were getting ready for church in the morning. I was incapacitated all day as I lay on the couch, waiting for death to come (just kidding, but really). I watched practically an entire season of West Wing online and hoped that it would pass.

Well, it hasn't.

Thankfully, my body has a wonderful coping mechanism with dealing with pain: sleep. I was somehow able to fall asleep and sleep the rest of the night, waking up with a lesser version of the same pain. It's the first day of school. First days are usually so exciting for me! I love buying new notebooks, organizing my dividers into different classes, and meeting new teachers. This year, I feel more like laying in the entryway of the JFSB and hoping nobody will notice the girl nestled in her coat on the floor. I dislike my stomach very much for taking away one of the most positive days of the semester. Let's be honest, it'll all downhill from the first day on.

Just in case my stomach wasn't enough to bum me out, Utah has decided to take on the characteristics of Serbia with 2-inch thick ice on the roads and sidewalks, a perfect trap for my non-grippy Converse shoes. It was a balmy 1º when I woke up, but it has since digressed to a ridiculous 0º with a light dusting of snow. Sickening.

However, there's one nice thing to consider. If my semester is starting out this great, than the rest of the semester is bound to be uphill from here. Right?