A Paris Moment

No, not this Paris (although this is where I was last January):

I'm talking about the Paris in Gilmore Girls:

Image from Tumblr.

She's pushy, socially clueless, scary. And I have something in common with her. I was watching Gilmore Girls on DVD, as I do from time to time, when I saw The Paris Moment. I remember seeing this scene on reruns of the show when I was in high school, but it didn't mean much to me at the time because I was not applying to grad schools.

I dropped out of the blogosphere this fall because my life was way too busy to even think about Musical Mondays, never mind read for pleasure. In the last few months I did the following:

• Submitted and presented my senior English portfolio. (The eighty-three page monstrosity received rave reviews from the English faculty, which was nice, but ate all my free time and a large chunk of my ZZzz time, which was not so nice.)
• Applied to graduate programs for library science.
• Saw one of my paintings in a professional museum gallery--I got into the invitational exhibit I wanted into so badly!
• Applied to MFA programs for painting.
• Paused for three days to celebrate Christmas.
• Kept applying to MFA programs.

I turned in my last grad school application yesterday, and the Waiting Game is now in full swing. I'm done requesting recommendation letters, following up with my recommenders, nervously triple-checking deadlines, writing essays and statements, painting painting painting, painting some more, editing portfolio photos, uploading resumes, filling out applications. As the director of Career Services at my university pointed out, this application business had become my full-time job. And in about a month and a half, I will receive letters and e-mails with acceptance decisions.

Image from Hey girl. I like the library too. on Tumblr.

Gilmore Girls's Paris receives her pile of acceptance letters in Season 7, Episode 19: "It's Just Like Riding a Bike." When Rory gets back to the apartment she shares with Paris and Paris's boyfriend, Doyle, after class, she finds the two of them standing nervously near the door.

Doyle: Paris has some news.

Paris: Not some news. The news. Responses from Harvard Medical School, Johns Hopkins School of Medicine, Penn Medical, Yale Law School, Stanford Law School, and Columbia Medical.

Rory begins opening the letters for Paris, and each one begins, "We are pleased to inform you . . ." The three of them jump up and down and shout with glee, but after a few acceptance letters, Rory and Doyle stop screaming so loudly. Paris notices.

Paris: What's that about?

Doyle and Rory: Hmm?

Paris: Your noticeable drop-off in enthusiasm? Is that a reflection of the fact you're less impressed by my admission to the University of Pennsylvania School of Medicine than you were by my other acceptances?

Doyle and Rory assure Paris that they're just as impressed with this acceptance as they are with the others, and Paris rattles off the school's merits. Doyle and Rory agree that the school is top-notch. But Paris doesn't really listen to them.

Paris: Fine. You've made your point. Perception should play a role in my decision-making process . . . . So. How do I decide? How? This is a huge decision. The biggest decision I've had to make in my life. Law school or med school? I have two passions and obviously I'm vastly talented in both fields. What muse do I follow? Not to mention location-wise. Where do I wanna live for the next three or up to eight years? [To Rory:] Open the others.

Rory: Yeah? Okay. Columbia. That's also a good school . . . [opens letter] . . . "We are pleased to--"

Paris: Oh, God!

Rory tells her she's being silly, that it's good to have options. Rory opens up another letter.

Rory: Hey, hey, you got into Stanford!

Doyle: Woo-hoo! Someone's on a roll!

Paris: Enough with the hysterics. I have a big decision to make, and all this hooting and hollering isn't exactly helping matters.

Paris ends up sulking on the couch with a pillow over her head.

Like Paris, I have two passions: Literature and library science, and art. And--unless I can come up with a creative way of integrating the two--I will have to choose between schooling and careers in these two fields in a matter of months. As Paris said, it's a big decision. But I hope I have a decision to make. I want a Paris Moment, with acceptance letters from both fields. I don't want to end up in one field just because the doors to the other one all slammed shut in my face. Applying to grad school requires one to really evaluate why one wants to go into a specific field; I had to dig in and articulate my passions, hopes, dreams. I'm grateful for this part of the application process, because it helps to know what I love about libraries and information services, teaching, and art making.

And now the rest is up to admissions committees. If I get my Paris Moment, I hope I accept it more gracefully instead of huddling into a corner of my couch. Until then, however, I am on break until the beginning of spring semester, which means books! And blogging! And one more picture of library-loving Ryan Gosling for the road:

Image from Tumblr.