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Senior Year Shenanigans: Lumberjack Gone Sun Devil
Life Update: Four years of college will conclude at the graduation ceremony this Friday afternoon! I’m absolutely ready to dawn the cap n’ gown and celebrate with my family. Graduation has been a long-awaited close to my chapter in this sleepy mountain town, but not an occasion that should pass without taking full advantage of this past LAST WEEKEND OF COLLEGE. The downtown scene in Flagstaff has been the source of many fun nights this year, but I hoped for something a little less hipster-hobo for this particular outting.
Soooooo I became an honorary Sun Devil as I stayed with my friends who attend ASU in Tempe, AZ! We had all been talking about craving a good fun weekend where we could DRESS UP, have a couple drinks, dance, karaoke if the opportunity arose, play some pool, make some new friends, and enjoy the warm weather.
Drinking martinis and shooting pool: I am better at one of these things than the other. (Why can’t we get points for sinking the white ball in a pocket?)
We started our night on Mill Ave. at El Hefe, where we had about 8 tattoos less than everyone else there. I felt like we needed some black fish net tights to fit in (can you imagine!?) :) We got a table though, and I split a Mamacita Margarita with another girl in our group. We were pacing ourselves because we had planned to hop from place to place! The next bar had a pool hall in the back, so we took our martinis to the tables and played a few games. I love playing games when we go out, like the Cards Against Humanity at the Wine Loft or darts at a local Flagstaff bar.
Other noteworthy stops include the Underground Bar where two piano players took requests (they were playing ‘Baby Got Back’ when we walked in) for karaoke singers, and Moonshine the country bar (my personal favorite for the atmosphere/music.)
We finally called it a night around 3am. My body just doesn’t sleep in, so I was still awake a little after 8am with one thing on my mind: COFFEE. We made a Starbucks run and sat by the pool because 90 degree weather is such a treat for me ;)
Taking so much time off from studying the week before finals is not typical for me….I’m a straight A student/perfectionist with a tendency to make extra trips to the library and late night study sessions during this time. But I put in the work all semester long and I’m feeling pretty confident going in to finals week. I would totally regret it if my last memories of college were just a blur of papers and presentations. Now I have plenty of sunshine and new friends in my memory bank to pull me through these last four days!
More motivated than ever. Happy studying, friends! :)
Birthday Weekend Continues in Oldtown
We last left off on Thursday night, when Birthday Weekend was just beginning. Senior year perks include no classes on Fridays, so after a 6 mile run and Sprout’s detour I drove myself to Oldtown Scottsdale to meet some ASU friends and my parents. Honestly, I’ve been craving the Phoenix sunshine as if it were a pint of mint chocolate chip. Sweet, sweet sunshine! We were down by the pool within 20 minutes of my arrival. 
My mom is one of my best friends so I loved getting to sit by the pool and catch up on all the gossip and girl stuff :) The hotel blocked the sun pretty early, so when it became shady we traded in bikinis for boots to head downtown.
Oldtown Scottsdale is SO CUTE. Some of the buildings look like saloons, there are strings of white lights across the streets, the trees are lit up, and the people are so pretty. Probably because they live in this gorgeous sunshine all year long! I’ve been eating extra healthy and working out extra hard for the past month, ready for some birthday treats. First, margaritas at Salty Senorita. We sat on the outdoor patio under colorful umbrellas. I got a cadillac with prickly pear, sans salt.
One of my best friends, Chelsea, lives in the area and met up with us for dinner. I’m becoming more and more jealous of her decision to transfer to ASU after our sophomore year together. I can definitely get used to flip flops and sundresses in February!
We also witnessed “hangry” Kenzie…..we left for dinner around 6:30pm, walked around looking at restaurants for a while before deciding on Hula Modern Tiki Bar in Oldtown. We put our name in around 7:20 and waited until 9pm for dinner. My hunger affected my mood for a bit…..I’m not very chatty when my stomach is growling! :) All was well once this amazing Jawaiian Jerk Chicken plate came out.
(The funny looking brown things in the front are plantains, and the squares in the back are “Jawaiian Johnny Cakes” which are cornmeal, molasses and more plantains.)
By the time we finished dinner and walked back to the hotel around 10pm, we were too full for birthday dessert. Saturday morning began with one heck of a hike up Camelback Mountain (some kind of unplanned Valentine’s-Day-hike-tradition?) but I’ll save that recap for a bit later because this girl is off to the pool.
I hope you felt some love yesterday! But if not…..V-day candy is on clearance today ;)
