What if I told you that power is already yours? Indulge me for a moment, for what I'm about to tell you comes strictly from my own experiences in life.

My warm(ish) days are precious to me here, nestled in between the concrete and rushed pace of the day, like tiny interludes in a rather long play, keeping me refreshed, relaxed and optimistic. With six classes and several one-unit weekend classes, these little interludes of sun have been quite uplifting. But, even the sunniest days in San Francisco cannot lift my spirits half as much as my simple memory of two weeks of sun strung together, characteristically out of season and far removed from my current geographic location; my winter break on the Kona coast of Big Island, Hawaii. My mom and I went as a surprise for my auntie's birthday.

And now it's over. This week I'll have my last final of my first semester at San Francisco State and I will be one step closer to graduation. And while I'm just glad to be done with my classes for a few weeks, I'm more excited about what that's going to give me time to do.

It was well after 10:30 at night as I trudged my way back to my apartment from school and I suspected I looked just as tired as I felt. When at last I reached my door my suspicions were only confirmed when the door from across the hall opened and my neighbor stepped out, eyes wide with excitement and amusement as he exclaimed back into the seemingly tornado-stricken apartment behind him, "You guys there's a ghost out here! She's back!"

I attacked the youth of America, accused them of being lethargic and uninvolved and in no uncertain terms said they were without passion or cause. Well that was back in February and now about nine months later, I see that everything has changed and my previous claims could not be further from the truth.

With captivated hearts and minds, we watched as Barack Obama delivered his acceptance speech, we watched as Barack Obama was elected the 44th president of the United States of America. I think it's safe to say that I have been an Obama supporter for most of the race, but there was a time several weeks back, during the Democratic National Convention when I was both overwhelmed with hope for the possibility of change while at the same time sadness, in fear that it might not come.

Cute? Sure, but I won't blame you for not rolling on the floor laughing. This sadly is pretty much the extent of my joke-telling skills. I've always wanted to be more funny, to have an endless repertoire of jokes and quips ready to fire off at a second's notice. Basically, if I ever get locked in a room with Will Ferrell and Seth Rogan I want to be able to hold my own. Right now though I'd have to say they'd probably make comedy road kill out of me.

The smell of coffee and cigarettes lingers on everything and mingles with autumn air, creating a strange perfume that feels both very bohemian and very academic at the same time.

But despite the charming atmosphere, there is an easily sensed static in the air, an undercurrent of worry and fear as these young people mill around the campus.

There are parties, clubs, term papers, sweatshirts, roommates, sororities, fraternities, political organizations, late-night study sessions, cafeteria food, excessive amounts of Starbucks for some, while others seem to exist solely off of beer and ramen. It all depends on what kind of college experience you want to have. But no matter what path you take through this academic odyssey, one reality is inevitable: there will be bills.

Leaving home affected my friendships and relationships in ways I never expected. Even though most of my friends are also away at school, it seems to be strange to them that I am now away, too. Phone calls have become more frequent, e-mails and Facebook have become a vital point of contact for us all, and we even keep our promises to come visit! It's like I've joined a club, I've finally begun my rite of passage, and it feels pretty good.

That being said, I am very lucky to have been able to move in with someone I already know. Back in July when apartment hunting was going no where and living in the dorms seemed less than desirable to me as a junior, my friend Tim (who you may know as former blogger Sean Carpenter's brother) contacted me with a proposition to room with him and another guy he found, Nolan. We're almost three months in to living together, and so far we all still like each other.

No one warned me about San Francisco in the summer, about the perpetual state of gray it lives in for several months out of the year, about how when it's 103 degrees a few miles away, there's a heavy blanket of fog hanging over the coastline here by the bay. July and August seemed more like abstract ideas to me than summer months as they slowly slipped away into the chilling mist once I crossed the Golden Gate Bridge.

However, despite the truth that lies in his words, I have to say that Twain's quote is not my favorite. It's a perfect observation, but like most observations of the physical, it fails to touch on what lies beneath. To truly appreciate San Francisco I'm learning that a certain amount of abandonment has to be applied to my surface judgments of this city.

I am a college student after all, so it should come as no surprise that I was hustling a bit to get things done on time. I think at one point it had been two days and I was running off of no more than a half-hour of sleep and an old croissant. It's unclear what days those would have been though, it's all a bit hazy in my memory! So at last I found myself at the end of the long haul, proud, a bit tired, and definitely hungry. Tuna fish on an Asiago cheese bagel was clearly the only solution.

With decision time creeping up rather quickly on me, I made the trek a few weekends back to see the SFSU campus. Unlike my trip to San Diego, I was a little more prepared for my day at SF and going on the designated preview day really provided me with an entirely different experience than the one I had at SD.

With decision time creeping up rather quickly on me, I made the trek a few weekends back to see the SFSU campus. Unlike my trip to San Diego, I was a little more prepared for my day at SF and going on the designated preview day really provided me with an entirely different experience than the one I had at SD.