My Week with Patch: In Which I Face My Commitment Issues

Hi all,

I’m Mary Kate, Patch’s summer intern. Sometimes, I like to call myself a reporter when I get the chance, but really and truly, I’m an intern.

Not that I mind. I like being an intern. I know what you’re thinking: Really? You enjoy being on middle ground? The in-betweener? Somewhere between fully employed and unemployed? Yes, really. I am enjoying this. Please stop trying to take pity on me, friends and relatives. Internships are a lot better than you think.

This internship – and really any internship, for that matter – is exciting because, unlike being a full-time employee, I get to test out this job and see if I love it. I get an inside look at the action but with none of the full-time commitment.

If my extensive knowledge of romantic comedies has taught me one thing, it’s this: An internship is kind of like a no-strings-attached relationship.

But as every rom-com out there has also taught me, no-strings-attached relationships don’t always end well. Or at least, that’s the stigma.

When people hear the word intern, they assume it’s a bad thing, like I’m somebody’s flunky, underpaid and underappreciated. But stigmas aside, being an intern is kind of awesome. Here’s why:

• I get to gain experience in my field,
• And do what I love to do,
• As a college student,
• And it’s okay that I don’t know everything
• Because I’m learning from this; I’m not supposed to know everything.

So yeah, I’m kind of loving this because there’s no better way to learn to swim than being thrown into the deep end without your floaties. Okay, maybe that’s not the best analogy. That actually sounds pretty dangerous. Lifeguards, don’t do that.

But to amend that a bit, there’s no better way to learn to swim than, after a few swimming lessons in the shallow end that is college, being thrown into the deep end without floaties. And I’m diving in head first like Pete Rose.

Now on the no-strings-attached relationships front, I am in no way condoning actual no-strings-attached relationships. All sorts of things could go wrong – I’m a college student. I’ve seen it happen too many times.

BUT despite all the bad things associated with it, every once in a while, that summer fling that all your friends once deemed ‘silly’ turns into something special. It doesn’t always happen, but have you seen ‘Friends with Benefits?’ Yeah. Internships are like that. Sadly, not all of them come with Justin Timberlake, but even so, they can still be awesome if you give them the chance.

So as an intern, yes, I may still have some commitment issues, but that doesn’t mean I’m not thinking about it down the road. For now, my job as an intern is to live in the moment, enjoy every minute and try to cut down on the clichés. And then maybe, if I’m lucky, my something special will come along.