1/3 of the way through

I have been really bad about updating this blog lately, and I think it's due to the fact that things are starting to get very routine here. I haven't written any posts inspired by surprising or quirky Southern things, mainly because I really haven't been surprised by anything lately. I guess I've been here long enough that I've gotten used to the culture and how things go. It reminds me of the point in Scotland when I realized that seeing kilts no longer phased me, and driving on the left side of the road didn't feel weird anymore. Only here it's that sweet tea has become a perfectly normal beverage, being called "ma'am" dozens of times a day is not strange anymore (although I did find it very amusing when a black guy with his grills and tattoos called me "sweetheart" the other day when handing me my boxed dinner in the kitchen), and I hardly even notice the accent a lot of the time now. Even killing horrible palmetto bugs has become a normal part of life- it's almost a reflex. Hopefully writing that didn't just jinx me, since I've actually only had one in my house in the last three weeks. It hasn't been quite so hot, so apparently they are content staying outside and don't find it necessary to invade my air conditioned house in search of water. The internship direction informed me recently that I am the only intern she knows of who has kept a tally of hte number of palmetto bugs killed in the intern house (9 so far).

I have really been enjoying Florida. During the last month or so, all the crape myrtles have been in bloom. They are my new favorite plant (tree? bush? flower?) because they are everywhere, and it makes me so happy to see so many plants covered in big clusters of pink, purple, or white flowers. The magnolia trees blooming were nice, but the crape myrtles definitely top them in my book. I'm really bummed that the flowering period is basically over for them now. It kind of makes me want to stay in Florida just so I can be here for it again next summer! :)

My other newfound love is canopy roads. There are several of these in Tallahassee, and they are a completely new concept for me since moving here. They are exactly what the name implies- the trees and other plants make a canopy over the road, so it is almost like driving through a tunnel of vegetation. They're very peaceful, and I think they're really really cool. I love the landscape of rural Florida in general, though, and am fascinated by so many different aspects of it, including the Spanish moss and the egrets along the sides of the roads.

As far as the internship goes, being an intern is really hard work. It's gotten better in the past week or two, at least in the sense that it's not quite so difficult emotionally, but it's still exhausting. Things are starting to connect in my brain and come more naturally, but every day I realize something else that I don't know how to do, or thought I could do well but really was only ever at a very basic level. Some days it makes me question being a music therapist, but one of the Tallahassee interns and I have been telling ourselves (and each other) that it will get better eventually- this is something that every music therapist has to go through! A lot of the really specific knowledge I have about schizophrenia and the big and noble ideas about how to optimize music therapy treatment for it have kind of taken the back burner so far. I've not been discouraged about it per say, but have realized how much I need to learn about the therapeutic process and grow in my skills in that area before I can really start implementing those ideas. It's a little frustrating as someone who just wants to start pumping out really influential research studies.

One of the Tallahassee interns and I are planning to spend a day at the beach this weekend to celebrate her birthday. I'm really excited about it, because it's been a while since I've done anything really touristy, and it will be nice to just relax with pleasant (non-psychiatric) company.