One More Day

Until I get to go to that place affectionately known as home. Yes! The 24 hour countdown has begun. Never mind the fact that I have two finals within these 24 hours. Nothing, and I do mean nothing, is going to stop me from being super excited. I have waited all week for this day to come. All week I have been studying and generally torturing myself with academia. But in 24 hours, it will all be over. My parents will be coming down and I will be heading back to Fort Wayne.

It is the first Christmas break that I will have no homework whatsoever. Isn't that a novel concept? So instead of slaving over books I will be relaxing and enjoying life. Oh. And Christmas is only 8 days away! Now, I don't have all of my Christmas shopping, but that's mere details, right? Right.

I can't wait to go home and give my cat a huge hug. And to see my brother and sister who I know have missed me the past three weeks that I have been gone. Honestly I have been ready to go home since I got back from Thanksgiving. However, I have persevered and the glorious day is drawing near! Home home home! Just a little bit more packing to do, some studying, and of course, sleep and then I will be well on my way. :)

Spaghetti is the essence of life

No, this post is not going to be about spaghetti. Not entirely, anyway. I did make spaghetti for dinner tonight. It's the first time since I have moved out of my house that I have had it. Okay, at least I think so. I can vouch for this in regards to the dining courts. For some odd reason we never eat spaghetti. They have served every other type of pasta, but no spaghetti. Oh how I had missed the twirly goodness of spaghetti! It really does warm the heart after a long day...

Anyways, it is coming to the end of December meaning that another year has come and gone. Around this time of year I usually go through and re-read what I have wrote in my journal. Most of the time I laugh at memories that I had seemingly forgotten. Sometimes it hurts to read things that have happened in the past. The main reason that I read through my journal is to see how much I have grown over the past year. Sometimes it is easy to think that I am not growing at all. That's why I keep a journal, to remind myself of where I have been and how I have changed. In light of this, I have found many funny quotes in my journal. Taken out of context they sound odd. Hopefully they will make you laugh and make your day better! And if you really want some more explanation or the context of these statements, just comment away :)

"Sacrifice is always stark in the dark."

"Mightly convenient seeing as my mom has my sunscreen"

"I had a pina colada-this time it was really good."

"I love the iced tea and the possibility of alcohol...ha ha!"

"I had no idea what I was doing so I "faked" it for a picture."

"I think I can be nominated for epic failure in keeping a journal"

"I am not going to change who I am--that is crazy"

"But in her fragile state, I am dubious"

"But oh. The chance of something more is a double edge sword to my heart"

"Friendships are so tricky. Hard to make, hard to keep, wonderful to have"

Christmas

This is the first time that I have really had a hard time to get into the Christmas spirit. I blame it on the fact that all of the things that signal that Christmas are coming are not present. I put up the Christmas tree over break and the Christmas lights outside, but that's about it. I wasn't home when my mom baked Christmas cookies, didn't go to Holidays with Charisma, and I have certainly not seen the gifts (or lack thereof) under the tree. Sigh. Such is life.

However, I do have a Christmas tree in my room and the lights are sparkling. That helps me to stay motivated when I am studying for my finals. Yes, the finals are coming right around the corner. I have finals next week on Tuesday, Thursday, and Friday. Then I will be home, sweet home :)

Love

It is interesting how this four letter word stirs up emotions and memories in people. Love. It's a word that doesn't have just one definition. Love means different things to different people. And in a society where love is thrown around with words like french fires and cars, I would venture to say that it has has been cheapened.

This is the one area where I will freely admit that I am too cynical for my own good. I always consider this to be somewhat of an oddity. My parents are still together and I have grown up with many positive role models. I myself, have even been in love. So why the cynicism? Indeed, I would like to know why. At my core, I am a hopeless romantic. Everytime I hear Love Story by Taylor Swift I get all happy bubbly inside. I don't cry  very much, but pop in a chick flick and I will tear up.

I would like to believe that everyone has a special someone and that it all ends in bliss. Really, I would. But I have a hard time convincing myself of that. The soulmate theory has never appealed to me. Maybe it's because I am afraid I will miss out. What then? Do I blame myself or just ditch the theory?

One thing that I know to be true is God's love for me. I can't even begin to comprehend how much He loves me and He has great things in store for me! If God loves me this much, then why do I worry? Why do I get caught up in the silly things? God is in control, not me. It's a simple truth that I have to remind myself of time and again.

So with that in mind, I press forward. My love questions remain, at this time, unresolved. I might continue to be skeptical, who knows? But as a wise friend told me, "one day that boy is going to come and sweep you off your feet and you won't remember all the pain". Ah, so true. Until that day...

Have a great day today! It's getting closer to Christmas! :)

Thanksgiving Break

I am still in shock as to how this can happen, the longer I am at home the faster time seems to go. Case in point-Thanksgiving break. I was home for 5 and a half days and it felt like nothing. Everything came at me so fast that it hardly felt like I was on break at all. Don't worry, I still had a great time. I just need a little bit of time now to recuperate from break and then head into finals!

Some highlights:
I got to see two of my best friends from high school on Wednesday: Julia and Shelby. We met at DeBrand's for Julia's birthday celebration. I hadn't seen Shelby since we started school so it was great catching up. And really, who can deny the luscious goodness of DeBrand's chocolate? I can't, that's for sure!

I was excited about seeing the lighting ceremony on Wednesday, but we decided it was too cold and rainy to go downtown to see it. I was a little bit sad but it will be there until Christmas, so we can always see them later. Thanksgiving of course, was the big deal of break. Katie came over in the morning and helped us in the mad rush to get ready for the relatives to come. We hung out and it was just like the old days. We even went to Scott's although there weren't any good samples. A ton of family members came to our house, and I am not even sure how many that is! Although it was a little bit stressful having so many people, I was mostly happy they were there. It is always great when I can see the majority of my extended family. I ate way too much good food and spent way too much time looking at Black Friday ads, but that's all part of the fun. Thanksgiving lunch turned into dinner and then everyone left. An eerie silence fell over the house. My mom and I decided that we weren't going shopping on Friday, much to my brother's dismay. I usually go as moral support for my mom and since she didn't need anything, I was more than fine sleeping in on Friday.

Friday was a good day, although I had to go to the doctor's office for my sinus headache/infection whatever you want to call it :) After that diststerous office visit, I got the chance to see my friend Trey who is attending college in Boston. Everyone had a great time at Steak n Shake and I wish I could have stayed longer than 20 minutes. After that, my sister, my mom and I went to see New Moon. Don't go see it. I was once again questioning why I subjected myself to such horrid acting. However, Taylor Lautner is F-I-N-E and made the movie slightly bearable. Friday night I got to spend the night at my bestie Katie's house. We had a great time watching classic Disney movies and chatting about life.

Saturday was dedicated to shopping and decorating for Christmas. The shopping part came about primarily because all of our Christmas lights somehow burned out...hmmm. Nevertheless, I got some of my Christmas shopping done and was glad to find some leftover Black Friday deals. My cat is going to love his new puffer vest! (Shhh it's a secret!) I also got my bro his birthday gift since I won't be home to give it to him :( Speaking of my brother, his girlfriend came over and I had the opportunity to hang out with them. Man, I love middle school relationships. They are so cute together! And I got the chance to play on the Wii...always a good day! I also baked choco chip cookies----yummmy!

Sunday, the last day at home....mmmm. I had a great time at church even though I had to go earlier than I would have liked. It's always great being able to go back to the home church. I really miss my church fam when I am away at college. My sis let me play Sims 3 on her laptop, and even though it was frustrating me greatly, I had fun. Sims is way too addicting and I am really glad that I don't have it here at college. It would distract me even more than Roller Coaster Tycoon does. We had brunch for lunch (that's a mouthful) and it was so yummy! Sundays are made for brunch in my opinion. Of course, all the fun had to end and we left this afternoon. We ate at Bruno's in West Lafayette for dinner and it was delicious! The pizza was absolutely fantastic and anytime you are in the area you should go there.

And so now I am back at Purdue. I should be doing productive things with my time, but that is highly overrated anyways! Ah. Onward ho to the finals I go!

Dental Floss

I will freely admit that I am probably a big nerd for even writing a post about floss. But, it is an invention to  mankind that is often overlooked! Last night, I had a frightening experience. As I was flossing my last tooth, the floss got stuck. It's the tooth I always get scared about. It has turned just so that it bumps into my last molar. There is just a small space and I always hesitate about flossing it. But you can't just leave a tooth hanging! Anyways, the floss got stuck. What can you do in such a situation? No one can help you out! What if it got stuck there forever! These were the thoughts going through my mind as I was freaking out. Obviously I am alive here today and yes, I got the floss out. Next time you think that little things don't matter, maybe you will remember my silly, little story.

Seventeen

Yesterday I was talking to my best friend Julia who turned 18 today. We were talking about how great being 17 was. And I have to agree, 17 was probably one of the best years of my life. Why, you might ask? Well...

I went on my first international mission trip-something that I had wanted to do since I went on my first mission trip my sophomore year. I saw the great West in all of its glory. Arizona and California will forever be blazed in my memory. (Literally as it was 100 degrees outside, and figuratively) It was the year that I got my first job. Even though I can't say I always loved having a job, it taught me how to be responsible. And the pay checks were always the best. 17 was the age when I became a senior. I loved being at the top of school even though I had senioritis like no one else. It was the year that I fell in love. I interned at Grabill Missionary Preschool and loved every moment of it. I was incredibly blessed to coach a group of girl soccer players with my best friend Kaitlyn Beer. It was the year that I hit a deer on Halloween...okay, so that wasn't so great  but now I can laugh about it. I grew closer to my family when we lost power for three days and sat in a freezing cold house. 17 was when I decided what I was going to do with my future-namely heading to Purdue University. The year that I took ACTs and SATs until my head almost fell off. The time when I learned to appreciate the literary genius of Gabriel Garcia Marquez. 17 was the age when I watched my brother and sister begin to grow into the people that they would become. The last year I would spend my entire age under my parent's roof. Being blessed enough to go and see Barack Obama be inaugurated in Washington DC. Even though we were cold it was worth it enough to see history being made before my eyes. Hanging out with my friends making cupcakes until we were comatose from all the sugar. Sharing pain with friends who were going through hard times. Realizing that I was becoming an adult way too soon. Spending the last few weeks of being a youngin' with the best of friends. And finally, finding a golf ball at the old church property with Katie. Oh, and remembering my last day of childhood by eating an ice-cream cone at McDonald's.

Yes, 17 was a great age. If I could, I would travel back and do it all over again. There is not a thing that I would change. I know that as I get older, I will probably pick another age that was my favorite. But here and now, 17 was probably the best year of my life.

One of those days

Some days you want nothing more than to be noticed. You go out of your way to see that special someone. Maybe you even call numbers until someone, anyone picks up. Other days you just want to not be noticed. To fly under the radar, per se. Today is one of those days.

I would like nothing more then to put on my sweats and find a big chair to sit with my cat, softly purring. I'd pick up a good novel and get lost. Leave reality for a few hours and lose myself in another person's world. TO forget about my present reality fraught with complications. Unfortunately, my cat is over 200 miles away. So today I will have to settle for a hard desk chair and a boring textbook.

(Written while eating broccoli pasta soup in Windsor Dining Court)

TSO

I came home early over the weekend to see Trans Siberian Orchestra. I had no idea what to expect, and I was thoroughly happy with the performance. My sister, mom and I all went and we all had a great time! They played for 3 hours and it was well worth it. The lights were crazy, the music was loud, and there was fire! Oh yes! It was definitely worth skipping school on Friday :) The concert was an event of a lifetime and I have never seen anything like it. I am so glad that my mom decided to buy us tickets. 

Friday was a slow day, I didn't have much planned. My mom told me that they had H1N1 shots again, so I headed downtown and waited to get one. The line wasn't too bad, and the wait was only 2 hours long. I must say, however, that my patience was dearly tested. There were lots of screaming children which unnerved me and made me feel bad for their moms. Fortunately they did not run out and I was able to get my shot in due time. After that I headed to Applebees to have lunch with my good friend Corey. She was in town for a wedding and we had a great time catching up. We spent way too long at the restaurant, but it was well worth it. 

Friday night was declared "family night". We spent the evening eating a delicious dinner prepared by my mom and watching "Rugrats in Paris". I half-watched, half-slept during the movie. I suppose that it is the family time that matters, right?

Saturday was a day of unexpected warm weather. My dad and I decided to make the most of it and hung Christmas lights. We didn't plan to hang many lights, but Purdue football didn't go so well so we got the majority of the lights up. It was nice to get up the lights when it wasn't freezing cold outside. My mom, sister and I also got to go to Target and buy some new socks!!! Saturday night my dad and I watched a documentary on the National Parks. It was nice documentary but the narrator was so soothing that I nearly fell asleep!

Today was a nice day because I got to go to church with my parents. We actually got to sit with each other, something that doesn't happen often. Lunch was huge and delicious-my mom made some very yummy sweet potatoes :) The afternoon was spent baking cookies and playing board games like Monopoly Junior and Life. Sadly, the time to come home came and we headed out to go to West Lafayette. Fortunately my family (minus my brother who was at youth group) was able to help get all of my stuff situated. I wasn't aware that I had brought home so much laundry!!! 


This week is going to be busy as it always is. My sister has a show choir competition in Crawfordsville on Saturday so I will be heading down with them to see her perform. Have a good week!

Oh how I wish

I had such an amazing weekend at Quest. (The youth retreat for my church) We had a great time getting to know each other and learning more about God. It was nice to leave the campus and have a time to de-stress and grow closer to God. I got to meet lots of new people which was awesome! We did lots of fun activities and I am just really glad that I decided to go.

This week, however, has seemed to drag and it is only Tuesday! I suppose it probably has something to do with the fact that I had to do a ton of homework on Sunday. I had a test yesterday and I had to give a speech in my Communications class today. It's okay though because on Thursday I am going home! My mom, sister and I will be going to see Trans-Siberian Orchestra. I am absolutely thrilled about this and can't wait! I love them so much and have wanted to see them for quite some time now. Of course, I will be skipping class on Friday, but is that so awful?

There have been a lot of things on my mind lately. I wish my problems would just solve themsevles. Or it would be nice if I were inspired to write some poetry. Unfortunately, this has not been the case for almost a week now. It's apparently a come and go thing.

Have a great week and I will be back on soon!

New Things

It has been a very crazy week. I don't know why, I haven't really had all that much to do. But I just feel all of the deadlines looming over me and they seem to push, push, push against my life. It doesn't matter if they aren't due for another week or two, they are still there. A constant reminder that, oh yeah, you are in college TO LEARN. Mmm, how quickly that gets lost sometimes. 

Some highlights this week included:

On Monday I had an appointment with my advisor. I really don't have a clue what I want to do with my life. I still really enjoy psychology and I am planning to keep that as my major. However, the degree itself does not require a lot of credits. I am now in the place where I am trying to decide on what my second major will be. A double/dual major will be totally feasible and I feel that I would be unwise to not take the opportunity. I have at least until we schedule classes for next fall to think about it, so I am not too worried. I am taking child psychology and I pray that I enjoy that class. I really would like to be involved with children somehow in my future career, so enjoying this class would be beneficial. Hmm..but I am trusting God with all of this.

Tonight I auditioned for the mystery dinner theatre production on campus. You might wonder, why did you do this? Well, first of all, I have always wanted to try out for a play. I couldn't in high school because I was always super busy with academics. And I wanted to prove to myself that I could do it. So whether I make it or not is so important. The fact that I did something out of the ordinary is what matters. I will let you know what the executive call is as soon as I know.

This weekend I am heading off to Camp Techumseh with the youth group from my church here at Purdue. I hope that we have a good time. I am looking forward to meeting the other college kids at church. Sunday I know that I am going to be crazy busy with homework, but it is going to be totally worth it! I will blog after wards, I promise :)

Have a good weekend!

Little things

It's the little things in life that seem to make the difference. 
The difference between making a light or not.
The difference between waiting in a long line or not.
Getting a good grade or a bad grade on an important exam.
Whether there is good ice cream or not in the dining court. 
If there are enough cookies for everyone to eat.
You get the idea.

Anyways, I have been extremely observant the last few days. This really isn't much out of the ordinary, I always remember the most minute details. But I have noticed a lot of things lately, like the ones above. Although to be honest, there hasn't been an issue with the cookies. 

It's crazy though how the little things can make or break my day. My hair doesn't go the way I want it to, bad day. The sun is shining, good day. Strange, isn't it? I would think that the day to day is just mundane. But maybe it's those little extra things that make life bearable, and not too boring. Just some food for thought.

What A Weekend

So plans have been in place for well over a month now to have Katie come down and see me. I mean, we are best friends and haven't seen each other since we moved away from home. Needless to say, we miss each other. Things had kept coming up and it was looking like maybe she wouldn't be able to come down. However, things finally worked out this week, and so on Friday night, I had three of my friends standing on my doorstep! Sam and Ashley picked up Katie from some train station and drove down here. A fun weekend was about to begin!
We spent some time catching up, but mostly we just primped to go out. Ten o'clock came around and we were out!

Priorities are priorities, and we went to McDonald's first. (Everyone was hungry!) My amazing directional abilities got us to the Grant Street parking garage and then we went to the Union for Rocky Horror Picture Show. Wow. There was quite the line and quite the parade of people to see. My friend Heather and her friend Jason joined up with us and we had an enjoyable evening. We were thoroughly educated (hack hack) and that is all I am going to say on the blog :) It was about 3 AM before we got everyone back to their dorms and back to my apartment. We had a good time and it was only day one!

Saturday morning rolled around, full of potential! I made pancakes and then we got ready for another fun-filled day. First on the list was to pay a visit to Ford Dining Court. We ate too much food but that was okay because we took a nice walking tour of campus. Unfortunately, the weather definitely was not cooperating and we all ended up with quite the chill. All the work made us tired so we...took a nap. After our nap we jumped in Sam's car and headed to the Super Target. Holy consumerism! I loved it! I have never been in a more marvelous Target in my life. Everywhere I looked there was a new sight to be seen. Mmm..I wish that I could go more often!

After we were done at Target we ordered a pizza and headed to the Den. Everyone got to experience the joy of a 44oz pop for 60 cents. We picked up the pizza, headed back to my apartment, and pigged out on pizza goodness. We played some Scattegories, I lost. Next was watching "The Breakfast Club". I understand that it is a cult classic and blah blah blah, but I really didn't see what was so awesome about it. Although I did like the dancing scenes, those were pretty sweet.

Today came way too soon! 11:30 rolled around and there went my friends out the door. My apartment has been strangely quiet since they left. Homework just didn't hold any appeal, but I managed to drudge through it. I am so glad to be blessed with such great friends in my life. Even if I only got to see them for a weekend, it was totally worth it. Christmas is not too far away!

Why I keep writing poetry

Poetry is robbing me of sleep. I start to fall asleep and then all of the sudden words and lines start running through my mind. I know that I won't be able to remember them in the morning, so I have to get up and grab my journal to write them down. Needless to say, my  bedtime keeps getting pushed back farther and farther. But I am contributing something to society with my ideas, right? Sure. That's what I will tell myself if I become an insomniac :)

All That is You

Your smile makes me forget,

The way your eyes dance

Makes me melt

Your wit makes me think

And wonder how one person could have

So much going for them

The way you play it cool

Hurts me on the inside

Do you have feelings at all?
Are you aware of what you do?
One sight of you and I lose it

A word from you makes me soar

But oh how the days stretch
When you are not around

It's like a never ending sea

Of monotony

Until you burst back on the scene

Filling my world with sight and sound again

Skype Madness!

I love nights like this. I had told my friend Chelsea (that lives in Atlanta) that we needed to skype. I haven't seen that girl since she left in August! I spent 20 minutes trying to figure out the wireless internet, and by some miracle of God, I got it to work.

We spent the next 45 minutes talking about anything and everything. It was like we were back home again sitting at our local starbucks. (although I was drinking the Starbucks and she was eating hot cheetos) I can't believe how much things have changed in the last 3 months. College is so amazing, but it makes things change so quickly!

Now I am sitting here wondering what else the night will have in store. I am super excited about the Office being on at 9, it's usually the best part of  Thursday night. Isn't technology the greatest?

Rain

The rain is falling steadily on my windowpane

As I stare out into the dark night wondering where you are

I wish the rain would wash away,

Every memory I have of you

Far, far away into the sea

To the ocean depths I can never reach.

For if you were far away,

I would never want, hope, reach for you again.

And instead of watching the rain,

I could become the rain

Starting anew, all over again

Be prepared to be shocked

Today, I betrayed my personal beliefs and convictions.
I fell in love....with Wal-Mart.
That's right, you read that right. I am ashamed to be typing it right now.

I hate Wal-Mart, really I do. I hate all that it stands for. I hate that Fort Wayne has five Wal-Marts, for what reason may I ask you? But today, I did something absolutely horrific. I was glad (!!!) to be able to step foot into a Wal-Mart. What has drove me to this, you may ask? College. College has broken down my barrier. You see, I needed to go buy my friend a gift. And Wal-Mart is only ten minutes off  campus and my roommate has a car now. So we drove to Wal-Mart.

A strange feeling took over my body when I walked into the fluorescent lit store. I felt happy and free. There was nothing at Wal-Mart to remind me of exams, papers, or lectures. Just pure commercialism. I suddenly felt an urge to buy every food item I saw on the shelf. Don't worry, I restrained myself. It was like I have been deprived of grocery store normality that Wal-Mart just happened to fix my need. I didn't even know that I was suffering until we pulled into the parking lot. Now I really know.

Anyways, I only bought the stuff on my list, so I was pretty proud of myself. Please understand that I am being highly dramatic in this post. However, it is still a bit of a frightening revelation for myself. Have a nice evening, and a wonderful Wednesday tomorrow!

Mondays aren't so awful

People always say that they hate Mondays. But I really don't struggle with Mondays as much as I do Tuesday or Wednesday. Today promised to be full of adventure when I nearly faceplanted into the concrete after tripping on the four steps outside my apartment. Oh well. 

It was in the upper sixties, maybe even 70 today! I love it when it is warm when you don't expect it. The sun is shining and it's so easy to thank God for a good day! I got to ride my bike and wear flip flops so I was one happy chick. Spanish class got done early so I got out of class earlier than I usually would. I had a letter waiting for me after I had already gotten a package from my Mom. Adding to all that, there were peanut m&m's in the dining court. Now, please understand. I know that I could just buy a bag of them or even eat the ones in my fridge. But instead, I sneak some out and sit them on my desk. They sit right in front of my eyes and when it is a rough day I can eat a few. I don't know why this brings me such intense satisfaction, but it really does.

Today I also had to wear my glasses. This was scary to me because even though I have glasses prescribed for me, I rarely ever need to wear them. I ended up in the back of my Spanish class, and wow! those words on the screen are super blurry. Thank goodness I had my glasses. Maybe I just don't notice the need for them because I always sit close to the front of the classroom. Either way, I am not too worried about this development. I am sure my eyes are just fine, and I am sure that my eye doctor would be happy for me wearing them :)

Tonight is a calm evening. I don't have any exams this week and I wrote my paper over the weekend. I will probably type up my reference page and then I am watching Jon and Kate with my roommate. Happy Monday to you all! And if it was not a good Monday, tomorrow is a new day!

Fallen

I realize that I have fallen

Over my head,

Way too deep.

Lost in those eyes of yours.

I have lost myself,

In all that is you.

Your witty humor,

Your charming smile, 

And your constant news.

More than once I have tried,

To break free of you. 

To give myself a chance

To breathe, to stand.

But one glance back,

And I stumble.

Like a stupid little girl,

I have fallen for you.

Why I love fall

Some leaves outside my window inspired me, here is a ten minute jaunt down memory lane.

I love autumn so much. I love the warm days with crisp nights. Its wonderful to walk around and hear the familiar crunch of leaves. The trees are in full splendor, but it only takes a gust to knock them to the ground. Warm cider warms my soul and tickles my nose. A crunchy, chewy caramel apple make my day.

Looking at the leaves reminds me of grade school days when I would collect leaves. I would bring them to my mom and she would smile at each revelation. And when dad would rake the leaves, it was the best! I would jump on the tarp as he moved the leaves across the yard. He would break out in a run and I would squeal in delight. My sister, brother, and I would jump into his perfect piles throwing leaves everywhere. When my brother was younger, my sister and I would bury him in the leaves.

And when Halloween came around we would carefully gather those leaves and put them in these giant plastic bag pumpkins. Halloween of course, was a celebration in of itself. Carving pumpkins was always a family activity. I was so happy when we carved pumpkins while I was home over fall break. It's hard to forget the costumes and trick or treating in the neighborhood.

But the best part of fall is apples. We would start off with going to Johnny Appleseed Festival. What a treat that was! Sometimes we would even go to the apple orchard. My mom was patient as we ran around picking as many apples as we could. My mom made everything imaginable from those apple! I still remember making the applesauce.

Now that I'm in college, I don't have to worry about raking the leaves. My apple selection is reduced to what the dining court provides. But if I could, I would rake up the leaves just to jump in them. I would love to travel back in time and re-live some of these childhood memories. Those memories are why I love this season so much.

Adventures on Purdue's campus

It's strange, the things that happen when you try to plan "going out" for an evening. For example, the plans can go arye, you could not go out with person you expected, or you might even wear inappropriate footwear. Quite the problematic scheme, you see? Well, two of those three things happened on my Friday night. Heather and I had been planning for weeks to go to the semi-formal dance that Hillenbrand (a residence hall on campus) was planning. Being the girly girls that we are, we primped for ahem, too long to go to this dance. We were dressed in our best and had heels to match as we marched out in the 40 degree weather. Nothing was going to stop us enjoying our Friday night. Well, we got to the dance and there were literally two people there.  Now, it's one thing if you have a bathtub of confidence to go and bust a move, but it's quite another if you are a freshman girl just trying to have fun on Friday night. Needless to say, we didn't stay.

Of course, we couldn't just give up on the evening. We had, after all spent an undisclosed amount of time getting ready and we were wearing our semi-formal dresses! I had the brilliant idea of heading to the Union to see what was going on. The only problem was that neither Heather nor I were wearing appropriate footwear for a 15 minute walk across campus. Thank God for public transportation! Around that time, the bus came around and by golly I was going to get on that bus. I might have disregarded a few pedestrian safety rules but the important thing is that we got on the bus.  Now before anyone starts freaking out, the bus is very safe. It was early in the evening so there were not any questionable characters on the bus yet.

Flash forward to us riding the bus around campus. We saw fraternity houses and sorority houses that we didn't know existed. The kind bus driver deposited us outside of the Union and we were in business. It just happened that a poetry slam was going on at the Union so that's where Heather and I went. (After ordering a little something from Starbucks)  The poetry slam was very good, and we heard from a lot of talented poets on campus. All in all, it was an enjoyable evening. Plus! There was a small window for dancing, so we didn't get all dressed up for nothing! 

Today was the Purdue vs. Ohio State game. I must admit, that I had very slim hope of Purdue pulling off any decent game. But at half time we were up and so I stayed. I am very happy that I decided to stay at the game! Not only did we stay up, we won the game! About two minutes left in the fourth quarter and we start to hear "rush the field, rush the field!" I happened to be setting in the seventh row and I knew that whether or not I wanted to rush the field, I was going to be rushing the field. I said a small prayer and when the buzzer went off, I started to be pushed forward. I got to the barrier and looked down! Whoa! That barrier is taller than I thought. In my usual graceful way I managed to jump down, although I landed my knees in the mud. Nevertheless, I was shoved into the middle of the field, probably no more than 10 feet away from the players. It was the most exhilarating and at the same time, terrifying five minutes of my life! What a wonderful day! What a sweet victory! I love college football!!!

And so it is that I have had a wonderful start to my weekend. Next week is going to be extremely crazy, but I am not too worried about that. All I have to do is think back on the football game and I know everything will work out!

Fall Break

It's hard to believe that Fall Break came and went already. Okay, to be honest, I am still at home. But in a few hours I will be in a car heading back to school. Part of me is ready to get back and into the routine of life, but part of me likes being at home with my family. There is just something about family that isn't transferred over to college. It's not the same when you aren't a part of the daily routine anymore...weird, actually. So looking back, here's what my fall break looked like.

Friday:
My mom came down on Friday afternoon to come rescue me, Heather, Emily, and Max. I had class until 4:30 so she went to Wal-Mart first and then came and got me. We headed back to the Fort, and had a blast! We ate skittles in the car and listened to music that made my mom cringe..he he he! In Wabash we stopped at Wendy's and talked about dipping french fries in frostys :) The car ride took much longer than expected (3.5 hours) but that was okay because I was finally home! My sister was so excited to see me and so of course, we had to watch a movie together. Granted, I did say at one point that I wanted to watch Hannah Montana the Movie. So, watch it we did. It was painful, it was hilarious, I almost cried. A good movie, I guess. Of course, the best part was when Taylor Swift herself showed up. Or when Miley Cyrus sang "The Climb" It's hard to decide between the two. Off to bed and then came...

Saturday:
I was up bright and early for my hair appointment at 10 AM. I must say, there is nothing to start off your day with killer hair! Okay, maybe I am being a little vain. But I did need a haircut quite desperately. After my haircut I headed out to the Hub to watch my mom coach her last soccer game. This was not in my plans so needless to say I was not dressed appropriately. I stayed until halftime and then headed  back home. Saturday afternoon was spent going from shop to shop trying to knock out my shopping list. We managed to get everything in a shorter amount of time then I had expected. The good news is that I will be really warm this winter. The bad news is that I forgot my duffel bag so currently I have a pile of stuff in my suitcase that won't quite fit...Saturday night Rachel and Corey came over for coffee and cookies. I must say that we had some difficulty with our cookies. Some of the cookies were deformed, some of them were burnt, but most of them were really tasty. It was great to spend an evening with friends that I haven't seen in a while. And I am sure that all the cookie will be gone soon enough.

Sunday:
I headed to church for 2nd service-something I haven't done in at least eight years. I love being back home and being able to go to my home church. It's so great to be able to see everyone and talk. Although I do love this, sometimes I wish I could just go to church and be a normal person. After church we headed to Applebee's with Sam and Ashley for a tasty lunch. (Katie was there in spirit) Alli and I went to the zoo after lunch so I could talk with my co-workers. Even though it was really chilly we had a great time chatting and drinking hot chocolate. I must say, I really do miss my job! Sunday night I baby-sat for our small group. Again, I really do miss baby-sitting! Kids are so cute and fun to be around. And it's probably one of the easier jobs that I have held in my life. After all those activities I was worn out!
Monday:

I spent the first part of Monday downtown at Parkview trying to get my H1N1 vaccine. After waiting in line for 1.5 hours and not getting too far I decided to call it a loss. I tried to get home, but came out of the parking garage a different way and proceeded to become hopelessly loss. I got on roads that would have led me home but I always turned the wrong way. Nevertheless, I did get home and I did so without a phone call or a map. Phew! My grandparents came up for the afternoon and it was nice to be able to spend time with them. My mom made my favorite dinner (lasagna) which was much appreciated. After dinner I grabbed coffee with my friend Kristin. Coffee was very nice since it was such a chilly night. Next on the list was carving pumpkins. It doesn't seem to matter how old I get, carving pumpkins is something I always love. 

And that brings us to today. I got up early this morning and took Jon and Alli to Dunkin' Donuts before school. I love donuts!!! Okay, maybe not. But I do love to go to Dunkin' Donuts and hang out with people I love. I took them to school, and that pretty much brings me to now. My mom will be coming home soon and hopefully we can finish off my suitcase. What a great break!

Traces of Me

I found a trace today,
A trace of what we used to be.
I felt a stab of pain straight through the heart,
As I read through the words we used to share,
The life we used to lead.
Was it really so long ago?
As I sat there, watching the words go past my face,
I felt mesmerized.
It was terrifying.
I so desperately wanted to stop the words, but couldn't bring myself to hit the delete key.
But then I realized something.
That's not who I am anymore.
It's not the life I lead, it's not going to help me get to where I need to be.
And all those lies I believed,
That I couldn't love, that my heart was too cold, too hard.
I knew that they were never true.
So I'm taking power back in my hands,
Starting with the delete key.

Fall is Here

I am sitting outside as I type this post. There are two reasons for this. First of all, it is a gorgeous day outside and I want to enjoy it as much as possible. Secondly, they turned on  the heat this weekend and even though our radiators are off, it is ridiculously warm in our room. Now, I will be the first to admit that I was very happy when the heat came on. Last week was a chilly week and our room was pretty cool. But now it is so hot that it is not enjoyable. Its just a lesson of be careful for what you wish for. I am sure that I will be glad for the heat when it starts to cool down again this week.

I had a fairly relaxed week-no exams to worry about, and just a small project due. I have been working on a speech outline this weekend along with a paper outline that is due at the end of next week. Not much of anything happened this week. It was homecoming week, but there wasn't a ton of stuff going on campus. Friday night I watched the Homecoming parade which was a lot of fun. Saturday I went to the Purdue v. Northwestern game, only to be dissapointed once again. :( Other than that, it was basically just the same old, same old. Last night, some friends and I met up at the Union to go bowling. There weren't any lanes open, so we decided to go to Pappy's Diner and eat some food instead. We will try and go bowling another time.

I am very excited because fall break is next weekend. I am so ready to go home and see all of the people that I have been missing. It won't be all rest and relaxation, though. I have some exams coming up that week, and of course my mom and I will be doing some shopping.

I took a bunch of pictures today from around campus. I figured it might be helpful if you actually knew what I was talking about when I mentioned buildings on my blog. So here is the link to the photo album-enjoy!

http://www.facebook.com/album.php?aid=2037588&id=1089343868&l=e09c9f2734

Catching Up

Life has been pretty crazy lately, hence why it has been four days since I blogged. In the grand scheme of things, blogging sits pretty low on the priority list. I mean, who doesn't love laundry? Or studying? You know, the important things :)

Saturday was the big Notre Dame vs. Purdue football game. But before we discuss that...Saturday morning I went to a brunch for the women of Navigators. We had a great time talking about God and eating yummy food. I am really loving all of the opportunities here for Christian fellowship. I try to take advantage of them as I have time. Of course, the game was a big deal here on campus. I went to the game with my friends and we sat in the crazy student section. We chose good seats right in front of the hot dog, mustard, and ketchup guys. These were good seats because when they were on tv my parents were able to pick me out. Apparently there were several shots of us, which make me very happy. The game, well it didn't turn out so well. But we had a great time cheering on our team and losing our voices. After the game, I went to McDonald's with my friend. (Disclaimer: I do not support McDonald's but sometimes you just gotta eat a sundae)

Sunday morning came around way tooo early. I did go to church though, and I was really glad because the women's choir from Purdue performed for us. Wow. They are an amazing group and their voices are phenomenal. I spent the rest of Sunday doing homework, taking a nap, and talking to the fam. Later that night I went to a presentation by the Center for Career Opportunities on how to approach job recruiters at the job fair. The information was very helpful and I feel much more knoweldgeable when it comes to this whole job thing. And! Ken Burns' new documentary premiered on PBS last night. I only watched an hour because I was so tired but it was amazing. I am hoping to catch a few more episodes this week.

I got a response about my job application back...this job is a secretarial position. The lady will be reviewing resumes and will be contacting people about interviews this week. I am praying that this works out. I really want a job so that I can make a little money and have something to  do in my "spare" time. Homecoming week is this week, so there should be lots of fun activities going on campus. I will try to blog again later this week.

Rainy Thursday

Even though it is the first week of fall in Indiana, the weather has been anything but. Earlier this week it was muggy and warm, now it is cooler and rainy. I don't mind the cooler temps, but I am not a big fan of the drizzly rain. It does make for good study conditions though :)

This week hasn't had much going on, which is probably why I haven't been on to blog. Monday I had my speech presentation in Communications. I think that everything went well, I didn't get too nervous. We are supposed to get our grades back on Monday so I am eagerly awaiting those. Tuesday night I had my Senate council meeting which was a lot of fun. It is so cool being a part of the decision making on the Hill. Afterwards I helped out a girl from my Spanish class with studying for the exam. We met up again on Wednesday for lunch to study a bit more before the exam. Hopefully the extra studying did me some good and I got a good grade.


Last night I was able to go to my Bible study. There were only five of us there compared to the 12 or so that were there two weeks ago. Exams were in full swing this week, so that's where a lot of the girls were. It is so awesome reading Ephesians and being able to talk to others about what they are learning. I am so excited to be part of this study and I can't wait to see what God has to teach me through this study.


Today is "Celebrate Indiana's Apples" day in the dining court. Everything is apple themed...yummy! I am very excited about going back for dinner tonight :)


This weekend is the big Purdue vs. Notre Dame game. Hopefully our players will actually show up for the game, unlike last week. It should be a lot of fun even if we don't win.

Family Day/Weekend

Ah. What a great weekend! The family came up on Saturday which was very nice of them...you know, it was Family Day after all :) Anyways, we went to the stadium with high hopes for our Boilers, and left with crushed hearts. But that's quite all right. We had a great time hanging out, eating cotton candy, and being fried by thes sun. Even though the Boilers didn't pull out a win we still had a great time at Ross Ade. 

After the game, we went to the Den to get our Den pops...yum! Then it was out to the Tippecanoe mall. I was supposed to find a winter coat (which didn't happen) but instead I found a fleece and some cute shoes. The mall was nice, we spent a lot of time walking around in all of the different stores. By the time we were done at the mall we were ready for food. Pizza Hut did the trick, as the buffet always does. Wal-Mart was next on the list and my mom insured that I would not go hungry for the next mom. I can't wait to dive in to all of my new goodies :)

Alli came back with me to the apartment while the rest of the family headed to the hotel. We had a great time bonding as sisses. She somehow convinced me to watch Twilight (I think there was something in the water) with her. Nevertheless, we still had a good time eating oreos and laughing at the movie. She claims that the futon was not comfortable, but it's better than the floor, right?

Sunday morning the parents and Jon came back for us and we went to church at the University Church. Its quite a bit different than the church back home, so I don't think my brother and sister knew what to think. But we had a good time together and that's all that matters. Next on the list was eating lunch at  Wiley Dining Court. We stuffed ourselves full, but not too full! After lunch we headed to SnoBear Frozen Custard and ate some good frozen custard. Like all things, our fun time had to end. The fam left around 2 and I had the joy of doing all that homework that had piled up over the weekend.

Not too busy of a week next week, and I am looking forward to that!

A Week of Firsts

Tonight I had my first math exam! Wow, that is really not that exciting, but it should be noted. I sat in Elliot Hall of Music with too many other students. If you think that taking a math exam is nerve wracking imagine it with probably 500 other people with a lap board. Yes. Math is fun! Anyways, I think the exam went all right there were just a few questions that I wasn't sure what the answer was.

On Tuesday, I rode the bus to Wal-Mart. This was a first for me. I have rode the bus around campus but never off campus. Not only did I ride the bus off campus, I also rode it alone...duh duh duh! No worries, I made it to Wal-Mart all right and I made it back in one piece. See, all is good! :) I actually don't mind the transportation here even though it can be a little bit unreliable.

Monday really wasn't a day of firsts, but something exciting did happen! General Mills was on campus and they had a cereal bar set up next to the engineering fountain. They had every cereal known to man avaiable! Needless to say, as soon as I found out about this I got myself a bowl of Lucky Charms. Its crazy how a little bit of cereal can make your day so much better!

On Friday I have my Spanish presentation. I hope that I get rid of my cough by then...it is rather difficult to ennunciate when every word I say sounds awful or is interrupted by a cough! No worries, I don't have the flu, just the sniffles :)

Great Weekend!

Saturday started off really early-I woke up around 7:30. I had to be at my volunteering meeting place at 9, hence the early morning. I headed to the Boys and Girls Club with about 25 other people who were excited to volunteer. (Or as excited as you can be at 10 AM) We helped out the organization by painting many of the rooms in the inside. We had walls to paint, tiles to paint, cinder blocks to cover, etc. Needless to say, there was a lot of work to do. In just 3 hours, we nearly completed everything that needed to be done. Its amazing how much work can be done so quickly when there are a lot of helping hands. I love being able to help out in the community, and one Saturday a month isn't even that much.

After I was done volunteering, my friend Heather came over and we spent the afternoon hanging out. I was doing my homework, while she browsed my music selection. Although the football games were one, we didn't really pay attention. (I am actually sad that I missed the Notre Dame upset...) We wanted to watch the Purdue game, but it didn't start until 10:15. Needless to say, I didn't watch that game...

This morning I headed to breakfast and ran into my RA and her fiancee. They invited me to eat with them...a nice treat! Plus they drove me back to my apartment. Any time I don't have to walk up the hill is always a blessing. I went to church around 10:30-I actually tried riding out my bike. It went relatively well so I think I will be doing that more often! We had a great service, and I met a new freshman. After church there was a bbq and free rides on the Boilermaker Special. (The official mascot of Purdue!) I am so excited that I can now say that I have rode the Boilermaker Special!

This afternoon I have been working on my homework, and I am planning on heading down to the library in the next few minutes. The weather is great and I am so happy about that! Its supposed to be nice all week, yay! I am going to be pretty busy this week, but I will try to blog at least once :)

The weekend...it's in sight!

I love Fridays. Not only because I have only three classes but also because it means that the weekend is almost here. Even though it was only a four day week, it seems like it has gone on for much longer than that. I can't believe that it's only been a little less that I was at home. Crazy stuff!

Wednesday night I went to my first Navigators Bible study. I was doubtful about going only because it was "across the way" at Windsor at some hall I had never heard of. However, I did decide to go and I am glad that I did. There are about 12 or so other girls in the group, most of whom live in Windsor. (I am the only Hilltop representative, woot woot!) We are going to be studying the book of Ephesians this fall. I have read the book before, but I am looking forward to reading it again. At first I was a a little worried about the study. For eachchapter of Ephesians we are supposed to mark everytime God, Jesus Christ, Him, He, or Holy Spirit comes up. Then we are supposed to write a sentence using that word. It sounds like a lot of work, and I know it will be. But if I am going to be serious about growing in my faith, it's going to take some work. This is just for the overview of Ephesians, so it will be interesting how the rest of the study pans out. Unfortunately, I am not going to be able to make it next week because of an evening math exam I have..

Last night, I went to the Photography Club callout meeting. They seem like a pretty cool group of kids. The best part is threre is an actual darkroom on campus that we can use. I am hoping that I will be able to go to their meetings, but my weeknights are already really full as it is. We will just have to see how things work out.

Tonight, my RA is having a movie night for our building in her room. I am really excited about going and getting to know the other girls better. Tomorrow is the Boiler Volunteer Network day. I am going to some organization to help with some general housekeeping. It might not be the most exciting job, but I am looking forward to being able to serve others.

Other than that, it's just homework and studying along with heading down to the food court to get some tasty food! :)

What a week!

I am so sorry that I haven't blogged in over a week. To be honest, I am not even sure that last week was even that busy! But a lot did happen over the weekend, so let's recap.

On Friday afternoon I decided that I was going to come home. Bruce and Marissa were coming down for the football game on Saturday so I was just going to catch a ride with them. Saturday morning started early with the drums goinng up and down State Street around 6 AM. Shortly after, the Boilermaker special was running around campus. Needless to say, sleeping in on Saturdays just does not happen! However, it was okay because I headed down to the dining court and they had coffee so all was good. I headed over to the stadium around 10:30 with my roommate, her friends, and one of my friends. We got good seats in the student section near the far end zone. The game went really well (Purdue won!) and I had a great time. It was super warm with the sun beating down, but other than that I can't complain.

After the game, I gave Bruce and Marissa the best tour I could muster. Fortunately I did not get lost, which was somewhat of a miracle. It is so awesome to show someone else what is going on at the place where I am living. It is like seeeing the world from a whole new perspective. Once we had tramped around campus we were plenty hungry for a good dinner! Ford was just the place...and it was the only dining court open! Ah, the joys of a buffet dinner after a long day with no food since breakfast! Of course, after we were done eating we were all nearly comatose. Fortuantely we were not too tired, and were able to make it back home safe and sound.

Sunday started early with church. It was so good tobe back at my home church to see everyone. I have missed my church a lot since I have gotten to Purdue. After we were done with church we went out to eat at Mancino's...yummy!

Monday was an exciting day because my mom's parents came up for the day. We hung out togeter, minus Alli because she had to go to work. We had a nice bbq lunch...compliments of the father chef :) My friend's parents came around 2 to take me back to Purdue. The weekend sure went by fast! I was so glad that I was able to go home and be with the fam. (And to take food back of course!)

Classes have started back up with full force. I have a few speeches I am working on which I am hoping will go well. Tomorrow night I have my first Bible study meeting with the Navigators. Hopefully that will go well. Other than that, it's just class and studying.

I survived!

The first week of class...ha ha! But seriously, I did :)

Anyways, last night we had a great time for our last day of Hillapalooza. Even though it was raining, I still braved the elements with my roommate Cindy. We headed down to the office and there was quite the buzz of activity going on. First thing first, we got the food! They had nachos and those yummy cinnamon chips. After getting our food we sat under the tent and ate while listening to an eclectic mix of music. Some of the Hilltop council members were making cotton candy, but I declined to eat any. Next on the list was tye-dye! There was a bunch of Hillapalooza shirts that we could dunk in any number of colors. My first shirt was so much fun that I just had to make another! Cindy also made me one, so I think that I will be set on tye-dye for quite a while now. I headed back to my room around 8:30 just because I was so tired. Apparently they still showed the movie but I was probably out when it started.

This morning I grabbed breakfast with my friend Heather and then trekked to Purdue West. I had an interview with this guy who told me that basically I would be hired, and do you know how to decorate cakes? I told him that I never learned how to do that (since we didn't make cakes at the zoo) but I would be willing to learn. So now I will be going back sometime next week to be trained on cake decorating. I am pretty excited especially since it will only be a low hour commitment.

The hope today is that I get laundry done and the bathroom cleaned. I am going to get my hair colored, so cross your fingers that everything works out! Tonight they are showing Star Trek on Slater Hill so I am going to go even though I have no interest whatsoever!

Have a great weekend!

Friday!

Today is Friday so it should be a day full of rejoicing and excitement for the weekend. Okay, I am excited about the weekend but I am not full of rejoicing quite yet.

I went to PUSH this morning--everything is good and fine. Of course, it would have been nice to know that before I dragged myself out of bed at 7 AM. However, I suppose it is better to be safe than sorry, so yay for that!

This morning I have a math quiz, which should either go really well or horribly! I think I finally nailed what I needed to know over pizza last night, but....Nah! I think I am going to do just fine. Last night was a lot of fun because we had a Hilltop campfire. Our RA's bought like 20 different kinds of chocolate, marshmallows, and graham crackers so we had quite the s'more creation going on. I had a s'more with cookies n' cream and dark chocolate...mmm! Then we started telling ghost stories, or listening to them might be a more appropriate word to describe what we were doing. All in all, a good night.

Today I have three classes I have to go to and then it's finally the weekend! Tonight they are showing "He's Just Not That Into You" which I am very excited about. Tomorrow night, the PSUB is showing Star Trek on Slater Hill...not so excited about that, but I am still planning on going. Otherewise, it's just the same old, same old.

College-Week One, Day Two

Yesterday was the official start of college classes. I had five classes yesterday so I was very busy! Fortunately I did not get lost at any point, although I was a little bit disorientated for most of the day. After my morning classes I had a two hour break so I came back to my apartment. I decided that a bike ride would be nice for my afternoon classes. Don't worry--I didn't get hurt! In fact, the bike ride went just fine. I got around a lot faster although most of the pedestrians didn't seem to pay attention to where they were walking. The best part was when I was trying to put my bike lock on and this guy looked at me like I was nuts. (I suppose that me standing nearly on top of my head was pretty amusing) By the end of the day I was very tired and slept very well.

Today was supposed to be an easy day--only two classes! However, I discovered that I had a lot of business that I needed to take care of around campus. After lunch, my friend Heather and I braved the campus bus and headed down to Chauncey Hill. While there I purchased my psychology handbook and a "scientific" calculator. After that we waited at the Union for the gold bus. I have been having issues with my left ankle/Achilles tendon the last few days so I figured I should go get that checked out.

We ended up at the PUSH, which is Purdue's clinic for students. I joined a line with many other students who all needed to be seen. It seemed to be my luck that the sports doctor was not in. I figured the general practioner would do the trick, so that is who I saw. Not surprisingly, he told me that my ankle was swollen and that my Achilles tendon was injuired. Of course his advice of not walking and using crutches is nearly impossible for me to do. Instead, I am taking ibuprofen and icing at night. On Friday I am supposed to go back in and see the sports doctor. Hopefully he or she can figure out what is going on and help me out. I don't like being in pain...although I suppose no one really does. As long as I wear my tennis shoes I suppose that I will make it through the next two days.

Other than that, not much is going on. It is getting really warm again down here, but I can't complain too much :)

Looking back--BGR

It was a fairly crazy week so I didn't really get a chance to update my blog. Monday was our first day of official BGR activities. During BGR, we learned a lot about the university and what we needed to know to be succesful boilermakers. There were a lot of guest speakers that came in and helped us out. There were comedians that came in and taught us important life lessons while making us laugh. The Purdue police and fire department chiefs came in and told us how we can be safe on campus.

Of course, a big part of BGR was meeting in our smaller groups and getting to know each other. This was great because I saw these people everyday so it was easy to start forming relationships with each other. Our group leader made sure we got to where we needed to go and shared some helpful tips along the way.

On Monday night we had the opportunity to go to Meijer late at night. It was a ton of fun even if it was raining and we got wet! I actually got to meet some new people because everyone wanted under my umbrella. We also had a fun night at the Union Monday. We got to eat yummy food, listen to a cool guy sing, and dance. I decided to leave a little early and promptly got drenched while trying to navigate campus. Tuesday night was our night at the student recreation center. We toured the facilities (they were nice!) and ate some pizza. I didn't have an overwhelming desire to exercise so I hung out with some of my friends afterwards. Wednesday was our last day and it was very exciting. As my group and I were eating dinner they announced that there was a tornado warning but we didn't need to worry. So we continued to eat dinner and talked to some girls from Navigator. Twenty minutes they told us that the storm was 10 miles west of campus and that we needed to leave if at all possible. Needless to say we headed back to the apartments and got in the basement. For the next hour we sat in the basement hanging out and having fun. The closing ceremonies were really fun, but I was sad that everything was over.

Since BGR, I have been bumming around my apartment and taking care of campus business. On Friday I did laundry which went surprisingly really well. I got my textbooks yesterday-which were very heavy to haul up the hill! Sam and Linsey came down yesterday and took me to Wal-Mart. We went to Convenant Church today which was great! Now I am just waiting around for our RA meeting and ice-cream social.

Classes start tomorrow-I am so excited!

Move in Day

First of all, this is my first time back on my blog in a looooong time. I figured that this would be one of the easier ways to communicate with a large group of people.

On Sunday, the family and I loaded up the truck and my car and headed down to West Lafayette. We had quite the surprise when we realized that part of 25 was closed. After a long detour and a stop in Delphi, we were back on our way. The weather didn't seem to want to cooperate either--it was 95 and humid! There is no air in our apartment so we had a toasty time unpacking all of my stuff. We ate at Buffalo Wild Wings for lunch and then continuecd unpacking. Jon and Alli were great helpers--Alli took care of my desk and Jon was ready to tackle any of the construction projects that we had. Dad and Mom worked on the loft, which really freed up the room.

Boiler Gold Rush is this week, which is the freshman orientation program at Purdue. We have been really busy with various sessions, comedians, and campus tours. Wednesday is our last day of orientation, then we are free to do whatever. Tonight is the party at the Union which should be a lot of fun. After that we have a run to Meijer--and I am looking forward to buying some filters for my coffee maker!

I'll try to update this blog weekly--more often if I have to do so.

Boiler up!