After a long, quiet day at work...complete with standing around, bored, with co-workers, and joking with patrons...I checked my school account and found this:

Squee!! :) Nothin makes me grin harder than seeing all my hard work paid off this past semester! 

I'm one of those paranoid people who stresses about grades and thinks she's failed if she gets a B. 

I know that can seem very obnoxious to people...as if I'm so stuck up that if I get a grade lower than an A then I get upset.

In a way, I hate this most about myself. I've been realizing more and more how very 

much of a perfectionist I am. I get so easily stressed out if I do not get good

grades. Part of me even feels like I have to work harder in college because

I cheated in high school. *gasp* Horror, I know! A home schooler

who cheated?? But yeah, I did. Stupidly too. :P Got caught, had to re-take

the class. My perfectionist side reminds me of how that was a failure

in my life. And while that still bugs me from time to time, I have

slowly been realizing that I do not need to push myself to make up for that

one mistake. It's in the past, it's done, over with...I've regretted it and now I have to move on. 

Another part of  me pushes to get the good grades because I *know* I can. My mind tells me

that I can get perfect grades if only I push myself hard enough. 

The struggle is telling my mind when pushing that hard is just not good. 

The stress alone is not always worth the extra-good grades. 

So while I am thrilled to have made perfect grades, I am also happy that I took the time this past 

semester to focus on having good times outside of school, and that I took the time to ENJOY

my classes instead of just being so focused on being perfect. 

And I was surprised to discover that...even while enjoying my classes, I could still work hard

and accomplish great grades. 

And while my mind may tell me otherwise, *I* tell myself that if I do indeed ever get a B or even a C, it's okay. Not the end of the world. What matters is that I did my best, enjoyed life, 

and didn't become obsessed. 

So yes, there's one of the goals on my 2013 Bucket List!

Enjoy school and become less of an obsessed perfectionist. ;) 

For now, I will celebrate my good grades with hot cocoa and a movie. 

Hard work deserves some sugar and mindless activity. ;) 

You could always join me. :P Harry Potter movie night, anyone??