#got uh

Miss Pauling: [sigh] I get it. They’re all these big, muscle-bound machines that kill and destroy everything in their path. Sweat, bullets, blood...it kind of...excites me too, you know? But they are working, four times your age, and not exactly romantic. Most of them hate the idea of dragging someone around on their missions, and I don’t blame them. Just find someone nice, clean, and not wanted criminals. [nervous chuckle] Hey, at least you didn’t have a crush on Mary Shelley. She animated more than one monster that day, if you know what I mean...

What did you get really, really, really excited about?

There are quite a few things I got really excited about, but I think by far the thing I got excited the most by was getting my Aggie ring. Like, superficially it is just a piece of jewelry and I don’t even WEAR jewelry. But my Aggie ring means so much more to me than that. The Aggie ring is more than just a class ring at Texas A&M. It’s part of the larger culture that transcends time and space. It is the symbol that you’re not just a fan of the school, but that you actually went and went the distance. It is something that is recognized all over the world and goes back three generations in my family.

For me personally, it’s even more than that. 2015 was the year that I went back to school after a two year break brought on by depression that, for a while, had me think that I was never going to be able to go back. That I was a failure. That I was going to be stuck as a cashier for the rest of my life. That I was going to be and remain unhappy. But I manage to pull myself out of the mire and punch depression in the face and go back to school. This ring is my physical reminder that it’s okay. Sure I didn’t finish school in the four years that is ‘normal’ for bachelors. But you know what? What the hell is ‘normal’ anyway? I made it in my own time and I finally allowed myself to be okay with that. Taking that time allowed me a chance to figure out what I wanted to do, no compromises. With this ring, I’m able to have a physical reminder that I am almost done with undergrad and that I’d like to continue on to grad school. There’s no rush. Get there, but get there in a way and time frame that’s right for you and your situation, especially your mental situation.