1 down, 8 to go

ACCEPTED to Penn State today!!!!!!

Yay, I am so excited, and it doesn't even feel real! I wish I had something on paper, or even in email so I could look at it, and prove to myself that the phone call really happened. But, anyway, yeah.... I had felt all day like something was going to happen today. I stopped at the library after work, and had just gotten in the car afterward and backed out of my parking spot, when I felt my phone start buzzing in my pocket. I fished it out, area code 814. I had no idea where that was, and was half expecting a telemarketer, but I answered. A woman asked for Emily. I said it was. She said "This is Julia Kasdorf, at Penn State." I think my response was "Oh, hi, how are you?" like she was an old friend or something. She asked me if it was sunny outside, and I said, no, it's pouring down rain. We talked about the weather for a minute, then she told me that they were accepting me to the program AND offering me a fellowship. All tuition paid, a stipend, one semester of teaching, one without teaching, health insurance. Wow! I didn't know what to say. I was grinning. I think I said "this is so exciting" about a dozen times. She talked about the program, how they're only taking 2 new poets for next year, how closeknit and cooperative it is, how the MFAs this year have submission parties where they all print out poems and get together to mail them out to magazines. There is some sort of weekend open house in March, where they invite all the newly accepted students to campus, to meet faculty and current students, AND they'll help pay for me to come. Isn't that fantastic? We talked for about 15 minutes, she said they'll send me the offer letter and everything by mail, and the graduate secretary will call me about that weekend visit (which happily falls on a weekend where I don't have to work).

I came inside and realized I was shaking. I just couldn't stop smiling. I texted some of my friends, and updated my facebook status. I'm such a dork! But I am so relieved to know that I at least have one acceptance with funding! I know that I would be happy there, so I am super happy, and am, in a way, even more anxious to hear the rest of my results so I know what all my options are.

But, anyway, yay! I am so excited!!!!!