Apr. 29, 2004

It's now Week Two of after-season life, and I feel really weird not knowing what fun plans Natalie has for the night, how many cute guys Britt saw around campus, or who has a midterm tomorrow. I miss seeing all of my teammates for 4 hours a day. And yes, I miss doing agility, climbing the rope, and running three-by-three floor routines as well!

So far, I've filled my extra 20 hours a week catching up on schoolwork, but now that I'm back up to speed, I'm hoping to take up some new hobbies. I want to start playing soccer again, maybe going rock climbing (indoor at least), and taking some more yoga classes. I guess I'm discovering that there is life after gymnastics, but I know that I'm going to miss it so much. Hopefully I will get my gymnastics fill by helping out in the gym next year while I stay at Stanford to co-term (get my Master's Degree in a fifth year). Lise and I volunteered to be the team's porters on trips next year (carrying the board and even the continuously-growing team bag) if we get to travel with the team, but Kristen hasn't gotten back to us on that!

Looking forward to this summer and next year, I think all of the seniors are staying in the area for the summer, and we'll all be back at Stanford for some sort of fifth year. We just can't get away from this place! Lise, Kendall, Caroline, and I are currently looking for housing for the next year. We are looking for a spacious, charming house close to campus, with lots of parking and 5 bedrooms. And, of course, it needs to be economical enough to fit a college student's budget. Is it any surprise that our search is turning out to be a little more difficult than we anticipated?

Well, this has been an amazing season, and for all of the seniors, I think, an amazing end to our careers. I'm looking forward to seeing what turns our lives take over the summer and the next year, and to seeing how the team changes next year with such a huge turnover (5 seniors out, 6 amazing new freshmen in!). I'm so excited that all five of us will be around to watch the team and the program grow next year.

GO CARD!
Shelly