So my interview for Mary Baldwin College's Virginia Women's Institute for Leadership (VWIL) is this coming Tuesday, and I must say, I am extremely anxious. I just wish Tuesday would hurry up and get here all ready so I can get it over with and know whether I made it in or not. It's not that I'm afraid of meeting the Commandant or anything like that as I've spoken with him before (and is a very nice man, by the way), but it's really more because I really, really, really want to get into this program.

I'm also about halfway through with completing my application to the United States Coast Guard Academy (USCGA), but since only about 24% of all applicants are accepted, I'm not quite sure if I am capable of getting in since I haven't participated in any sports in high school due to marching band commitments. Mom and Dad aren't too keen on my choice of applying there, but the military is really something I'm interested in looking at. I think that it might be because they're afraid I'll be shipped off to Iraq or something like that. Mom's so against it, in fact, that she even opposes my decision to apply for the VWIL program (though Dad's all for it).

Finally, scholarship deadlines for music, Von Willebrand's Disease, and other things which I qualify for are quickly approaching, though I am not able to participate in the Bland Music Scholarship sponsored by the Lion's Club of Virginia due to the fact that I have no one to be my live accompaniment (since the competition doesn't accept recordings). My school's choir teacher was going to do it, but she said she really doesn't have the time to practice the piano part and would probably be more of a hindrance than a help to me.

It is also official that I will be studying in Japan in my junior year in college, so I'm very excited about that, even though that is still a long way off.

Oh, and before I forget, I got a call from Hollins University the other day saying that I qualify for one of their scholarships starting at $8,000, but they're not yet sure how much the actual amount I will receive is yet. So now I have two colleges offering me money to attend (Mary Baldwin College is offering me $11,000), even though I haven't even applied to one of them!

Ugh, all of this is just so stressful!

Before I stop here, a large thank you goes out to ~Ayavaron for all his constructive criticism and support concerning my artwork and to *Angeliq for naming my portrait of her for her contest as an honorable mention. I am deeply indebted to both of you.