Hello, world!

“Isn't it weird how we make big decisions in life based on the strangest, most random things?” 

― Mhairi McFarlane, You Had Me At Hello

Even though when I think of blogs, I mostly think of stay-at-home moms posting pictures of their kiddos, I think I have a lot of smart things to say about life, so I'll give it a whirl. 

My name is Lindsey, I'm a junior at Mercer University, and as you can see, my dream is to be a high school English teacher. Making that decision was a long time coming because I initially came into college as pre-law. Now I'm an English major with minors in History and Teacher Education and I'm planning to go on and get my masters in conjunction with my teaching certification. 

Even though my university is in Georgia, I'm a Tennessee girl originally and my home has a lot to do with the way I am. My family has lived in the same county, just south of Nashville, for ten generations, so I'm related to everyone. Understandably, after graduating high school in 2011, it was time to get out! I really don't know if I plan to return home permanently after I finish school, but I would definitely like to experience some other places first. 

Coming from small-town Tennessee to Macon, Georgia was a big transition. Macon is significantly bigger than my hometown and according to some, one of the more dangerous places you can live. Luckily, I have rarely felt threatened here and the university is great. It has been really weird leaving all my family behind, though. I didn't even realize how close I was to them until I moved away. 

I am basically totally responsible for my living expenses, although there definitely have been some occasions where I've called Mom & Dad to ask to borrow money. :D My tuition and meal plan at school are covered entirely with scholarships, and I accept some government student loans to help pay for my off-campus rent and utilities. It hurts to think about putting myself into debt at such a young age, so I also work two jobs to offset those expenses. I work in marketing in a student position at Mercer Law, which basically consists of me doing this all day, only fancier. 

My second job is actually my dream job- I'm a high school debate coach! I started debating as a freshmen in high school and now I'm in my third year of debate for Mercer. The activity really changed my life in a lot of positive ways, and I can't imagine ever leaving it. Since graduating high school, I have been looking for a place to assistant coach or volunteer coach, and this opportunity just fell into my lap last semester. One of the students at the school was interested in starting a team, so her mother contacted my college coach to ask if any of us Mercer debaters would be interested. I teach a seventh period nonacademic class on Fridays on debate and we traveled to two tournaments last semester. A lot of this blog will probably be me bragging about "my kids." They are all extra-talented individuals and our team has brought home four separate titles already. 

Aside from all that good stuff, I am a cat-lover, a vegetarian, a Christian, a longterm girlfriend (hopefully soon-to-be fiancee), a reading and quotes enthusiast, a wannabe DIY person, and a leader in some random campus organizations. My life is extremely busy, but it's a crazy ride! 

The things that I would like to change about myself:

--language: I curse like a sailor 

--weight: I have been struggling to get to a goal weight for a good two years now, but it fluctuates. At this point in time, I am in a place where I don't feel good about my weight, although if you had asked me last summer, I would have said I felt great!

--temper tantrums: Ask anyone. I have a hideous temper inherited from both sides of my family. 

--think before you speak: I literally have no filter. I cannot keep my mouth shut for any reason whatsoever. 

Please leave a comment and introduce yourself! Thanks for reading!