Hallo everyone!

The internship is over and I can't believe it. The last few days at ACP were a blur. Jenna and I were trying to get everything done before we had to leave. Not all of the supplies were in and we weren't quite finished with all of the lesson plans. But we got all of the things done that we could. I'll start with the weekend like usual, and go from there.

On Saturday, Barbara and I went to the Muppet exhibit at the International Gallery. It was uberly cute! There was a bunch of stuff on Jim Henson's early works and a ton of his drawings. And it didn't focus overly much on Sesame Street. After that we went home and watched Labyrinth, which I had never completely seen before. We spent the rest of the day lounging around. Sunday Barbara moved out and I spent the day doing laundry, cleaning up, and talking with friends at home.

Monday morning we worked on writing some cheat sheets. Then in the afternoon we went to NIST for a tour. It was really awesome because we saw some of the standards. Tuesday, we finished up the pictures and videos we needed as well as the introduction video. And I put together the first draft of the user's manual. That night I went out to eat with my friends Stef and Joel for dinner in Old Town Alexandria. It was a cute place. It just made me realize how much I'm going to miss DC even more.

Wednesday was the final breakfast with everyone from ACP. It was nice just to sit there with everyone like on the first day and eat bagels. Sitting there outside on a beautiful day with good food and friends talking. It was a great way to end a great summer.

This summer has definitely been my favorite summer experience. My last two were spent in REUs, but this one really made me learn about myself. And I think I learned a lot about others in the process. I think it also made me grow up a bit too, although I don't think I'll ever completely do that, haha. I came in thinking it was going to be hard living in a city and having to commute so far every day, but I miss it so much right now and I've only been home for three days. I know I could live in a place like DC and work in a place like ACP. If I ever decide that research or teach isn't working out that's where I'll be. I loved working at ACP. Everyone I met was wonderful and I learned something from everyone I met. I know that I'll miss it so much over the next few weeks and transitioning back into school is going to be hard. I'm so grateful that I had such brilliant teachers like Gary, Kendra, Jack, and Liz. And the Education department was the best in the building. You all were awesome! Y'all took me under you wing and made me feel like I was a part of it all. I really hope that I get to see you in November! And what can I say about the interns? We've been through a lot together. The fights, the laughs, the meals, and the Metro rides. I'll miss you all. Thanks for sharing this experience and being there when you were needed.

Until next time,
Mary