I am Alive and Dying.

Alert the authorities, shout it from the rooftops that yes, Cameron has emerged from her place of hiding and is alive and well. Just in case any of you were worried. WOW I have not frequented this little blog o' mine in far too long.  My apologies for those who deeply missed my mundane weekly experiences, but time is just flying by and it seems that I don't have a free moment to sit down and blog! To prove this, I will have you know that I am at the moment multi-tasking like a ninja; keeping an eye on the couscous on the stove while also hoping that this post I type will manifest itself into the Anthropology essay I should be writing.  The things I do for my family.

Oh my, so much to talk about!  I would say life has been same old, same old, but let’s be honest-are things ever really same old in Cameron’s world?  Not typically. I would first like to publicly announce (mostly to my Mother) that my apartment hosted a precious dinner party for Laura’s birthday.  We actually sat around the dining room table and everything!  And much to everyone’s assumed surprise, I actually did cook something.  I know, it’s a whole new me.  Now before you all start with the burnt toast jokes…although, shoot.  I kinda did make burnt toast.  It was bruschetta! (spelling...?)  So yeah…burnt toast.  The rest of our meal consisted of honey baked salmon, roasted broccoli, spinach dip, homemade pumpkin pie… I know I know, our taste buds must be made of steel to endure that awesomely random combination of foods.  But you know what?  College kids do what we gotta do.

You are probably all wondering what wonderful things I have been spending my time doing that would excuse such an epic absence from the cow town chronicles.  Well it's been sick.  No, actually sick.  Cough, cough, can't talk, sick.  It all started last Friday when my immune system decided to hop on the next train to "Miserable, USA" and make me useless to the world for a week. I chose the ignore-it-until-it-magically-goes-away strategy. Spoiler alert, didn't work.  Could it have been due to the fact that I did go line dancing at the peak of my nasty-ness?  Perhaps. But I'll be darned if someone tried to keep me away from the dance floor for one day more-I just had to go back! So yes, you could say waking up the next morning, opening my mouth, and literally sounding like a dementor from Harry Potter, was well worth it.

Aside from those fun times-oh yes, did I mention I got every one of my roommates + a significant other sick as well?  Talk about a REAL fun weekend.  Though admittedly there were moments of weakness when I wanted my Mommy (pathetic?), I definitely felt well taken care of! Between a flower/medicine/VitaminC delivery (by one darn cute boy ;) and a "sick tea" from Andipants, I got through it!

Speaking of Andipants, lemme tell you 'bout my friend. My orange-croc wearing, sheep raising, contagious cackling, and Starbucks companion friend. Andi is one out of my (very slim) population of loyal followers-a self-proclaimed "fan", if you will. Week after week, Andi has begged and begged for a shout-out. So, Andsworth, here it is. At long last! Family, grandparents; Andi was my neighbor in the dorms last year.  As most of you know, I made my mark in the halls of the dorms by going door to door handing out cookies. 10 minutes later when Andi appeared at my door saying "Hi, I'm Andi. Can I have another cookie?" I knew it was the start of a beautiful friendship.

Now that that's out of the way....can I just say that I am PEEING MY PANTS in excitement for Thanksgiving?!  Well, just about.  But because my Nani would call an action of that sort unladylike, I will just say that I am super duper excited.  To see my fam bam, to sleep in my bed...but let's be real.  Mostly to spend an entire day weekend doing one of my favorite pastimes-eating.  What's even more exciting is that I have Wuzzidoodle with me so I no longer need to rely upon the sketchy online ride services I have used in the past...So get your buns warmed and your turkey legs a trembling; Cameron's coming to town!!

Dead People and Corn.

Greetings to all, and Happy Halloween Eve! Although you can be sure to expect a post in the near future displaying my epically-awesome Halloween costume, in the mean time I will update you on some recent happenings! (Try not to die in anticipation).

This week started off with one of the worst nightmares I've had in a while. What's stranger? I could remember very vivid and specific details the night day. At first I paid no attention to details which included being kidnapped while eating ice cream, being taken to an abandoned white house, and attempting to hammer my kidnapper to death. However, upon discussing the dream with my roommate, we decided to turn to our trusty friend google to decipher it's meaning. Let me tell you...spot. on. Since, I have been obnoxiously obsessed with decoding every minute detail of the dreams I have. Last night I dreamt that I was pregnant. Kinda don't even want to google that one.

This past weekend was full of festive shennigans to get me in the Halloween spirit! On Friday 30+ pumpkins invaded our apartment to carve pumpkins. On the carpet. In our apartment. Although someone did, thankfully, think to lay down a tarp, I swear I am still finding orphan pumpkin seeds under rugs and against the floorboards. The plus side of this? We have enjoyed batch upon batch of roasted pumpkin seeds, and we cannot get enough of them. I am also cursing the Freshman that brought copious amounts of halloween candy and conveniently forgot to take home the left overs. Forget Freshman 15; I'm all about that Sophomore 30.

As much fun as the herd of Freshman were to be around, I excused myself to take a nice, long, stroll through...our local cemetery. Nothing like precariously stepping around the tombs of the deceased to really liven up your Friday night. Have no fear, I was not alone on this little escapade. It was merely a spontaneous idea and ended up being quite lovely. That is, until we saw bouncing green lights in the distance. No joke. These lights turned out to be a man who was also walking around the cemetery. We didn't think much of him- that is until he turned around and started following us. We high-tailed it outta there faster than you can say "Rest in Peace"!! It was fun while it lasted...but needless to say, we will not be going back anytime soon *famous last words*...

Continuing with the fall festivities, a group of us made our way to the world-famous corn maze! I had only ever been to a meek hay-maze, and I was a wee bit reluctant to go after watching "Field of Dreams". Putting my slight fear of corn mazes aside, I braved up and hopped right in! We split up into teams of 4 people (otherwise, Lord knows I would still be trying to find my way out). For whatever reason my group decided we could manage without a map and without a flashlight. So we were essentially blindly stumbling through agriculture until we saw the light. However, by some Halloween miracle, we managed to finish in FIRST place! How, you may ask? Brianna, I kid you not, directed us by the stars. The stars. I felt like Peter Pan's accomplice as we kept on trucking through the corn. Of course, I gave her a hard time and doubted her ability throughout the duration-but was soon put in my place when we won. Note: The only productive thing I did was wrongly and intentionally instruct strangers passing by that the direction they were headed was a 'dead end'...yup. I play dirty.

I woke up Sunday with a corn hangover and the realization that I had volunteered myself to teach children's Sunday school that morning. Babies, I thought. Piece of cake, I thought. Nope. They were 5 & 6-year olds. Need I say more?

Alas, here I sit, mid-week and studying completely procrastinating and choosing to ignore the fact that I have my second mid-term this week tomorrow. Pesky mid-terms, why you gotta come and ruin all the fun?? Oh, but I must include a shout-out to the person who makes my stressful studying a whole lot better-I think you all know who I'm talking about ;) A surprise delivery of pretty pretty flowers and my studying-fuel (brownies and juice...don't judge) just about made my year! :) And on that pleasant note, I will return to my riveting analysis of the Golden Gate Bridge. Ask me about it sometime.

Is it Thanksgiving Yet?

Greetings, my page-refreshing followers! Gonna be honest with you, I have no immediate thoughts on what to discuss in this blog post. But I've received enough peer pressure via e-mails (in ALL CAPS, mind you) to persuade me to update you all. So, let the mindless flow of fingers to keyboard commence.

I am in the full swing of Sophomore year, my days rapidly becoming filled with copious note-taking and the repetitive action of heating up soup in the microwave. (Campbells Chicken Noodle... I'd be lost without you.) I actually managed to escape the ever-breath taking scenery that is this cowtown and ventured into the wonderful wilderness! (Fall Retreat). Thank you, woodland weather, for reminding me that we are in fact living in the middle of October. Seems that Davis has forgotten, what with our blazing sun and all. (Though I refuse to accept this & shall continue to wear my fall fashions). I enjoyed many a roasted marshmallow this weekend and boogied to my heart's content at our dance party. The theme? Thrift Store Prom. You can can bet your bottom dollar that I broke out my metallic gold leggings. My secret dancing weapon. I also had the pleasure of driving some Freshman gals in the ol' Wuzzinator- and boy, did I put Wuzzy to the test. Despite having 3 co-pilots to guide me, I still managed to just barely miss BOTH freeway exits, provoking screams & frantic swerving as I (literally) bounced over the freeway divider(s). I am sure I scared them away for good.

Although I can't complain that our cabin had a built-in heater (excuse me, where was the AC all my years at Summer Camp?!), sleep was definitely not a priority. Since, I have walked around in what feels like a near-zombie state, as I don't believe I've fully caught up on the sleep I lost this weekend month. And, sadly, no amount of caffeine is helping.  Regardless, I will keep on trucking with the vision of Thanksgiving break in my line of sight. Too soon? Probably. But pretending that the toast and frozen peas I consume for dinner are really mashed potatoes and creamed corn is just about the only thing getting me through. Ah, but there is one holiday standing between me and a gorged mouth full of pumpkin pie... Halloween! Gotta say, never been a huge fan of this one. But, being the festive-freak of nature that I am, I will take any and all excuses to celebrate. And as some of you know, in the past my costumes have been top notch. Just wait until you see what I came up with  have yet to put together this year.

For those who care, I (finally) joined a dance team on campus! I am extremely ecstatic to return to the dance studio and get my freak on. Not really. I've been to a few practices and couldn't wipe the silly grin off my face! Did I mention that I am the only white person in a team of solely Asians? Who knew they could bust a move. It has been the perfect outlet for me to blow off stress in the midst of mid-terms (oh yeah... I actually have to study, too...). In other activity-related news, I was coerced into playing in an IM-Frisbee game. "You won't have to play!", they said. "We just need a complete team!", they said. I played the entire game. I threw one toss. My team still won. #winning.

Well friends, the above will have to suffice for now. As a wrap-up this one, I must mention the elderly man who just biked by me with a full-sized flag pole + American flag protruding from the back of his bike. God Bless you, stranger. And God Bless America.

A Birthday Bee Sting.

I have many things to tell, friends! Well, 2 things. So sit down, stay a while.

1. This week I made a teenie-weenie trip back to Urgent Care... (As some of you saw from the photograph of my eye glowing in the dark). Turns out biking with goggles on is my best bet, as something flew into my eye as I was meandering through a round-a-bout. My left eye remained unable to open despite the tears spilling down just one side of my face, as I blindly tied my bike to the nearest lock and stumbled into whatever bathroom I could find. A half and hour flushing out my eye later, still remained shut. And it was painful, let me tell ya! After an extremely frustration journey trying to figure out how to get to the medical center sans bike/vision, I eventually made it. The nurse spent a good while dousing my eye in water, flipping my eyelid inside out, inserting neon dye, eye drops... ugh. I was instructed to be on "Eye Rest" for the next 24 hours (pssh, not a chance), but it was completely healed by the next morning! I'm convinced it was a bee sting that managed to get me under my eyelid...because that's about what it felt like. Regardless, I can now see & will be sporting safety goggles for the remainder of my college career.

2. This week was also my 19th birthday! Yes, week. I celebrate all week. To everyone reading this who sent me a sweet note/text/call/facebook message/tweet/instagram/package - I am so grateful for your love! It all just reminded me of  how very blessed I am to have people who encourage and love me so much! But that's too mushy for this blog. What I really wanted to relay were the festivities that occurred! I was excited about my birthday being on a Saturday, meaning I could sleep-in, not have to bike anywhere, & of course, have no classes to attend. However, the celebration started Friday with some friends taking me out for an early birthday dinner and staying with me until 12 to be the first to give me birthday hugs! Seeing as how I went to sleep at 4:47 am on Friday, my only birthday wish was to s l e e p . And sleep I did, until the glorious time of 11:00 pm the next morning afternoon. I let myself stay in the shower an extra 20 minutes, sipped coffee out of my Mickey Mouse mug (the best), and did my best to respond to everyone's birthday sentiments! Dutch Bros, a coffee shop, gives out a free drink on one's birthday; and obviously, I was not about to pass that up. Laura came over and helped me bake a cake (yes, I made a cake for myself...don't judge me), & deep cleaned our entire kitchen. Umm talk about the best birthday present ever?

Later in the day more friends came over for the famous Woodstocks pizza, cake, Scattagories and a whole lotta pictures. The biggest fiasco of the night came when someone was (unsucessfully) attempting to get a picture of me blowing out the candles on my cake. Have you ever tried to do this without flash?! It's a difficult task! I ended up laughing too much ("Stop moving, the picture's blurry!!!"), accidentally blowing out the candles before the camera snapped, and got accused of "coughing on the cake". It's my party, I can cough if I want to.

Twas a marvelous birthday weekend, and the celebration continues, as I sit on my bed completing my Evolutionary Biology reading assignment. You win, school. You win.

Look Grandpa, a New Post.

It's the most wonderful time of the year! Cami's return to Cowtown thus the commencement of the Cowtown chronicles! (ooh..I like the sound of that). I know you all have been refreshing and re-refreshing your computer screens day after day, awaiting the moment when I finally resume my writing. And alas, here I am.

A lot has changed since we've spoken last. For starters, I am a Sophomore (but feeling like a Freshman more than ever before). I am more internationally-versed, thanks to a deliciously wonderful trip to Europe this summer. I am living off campus in an apartment. I am cooking heating up cans of soup. And most of all, I have more than just a square box to move around in; let the dancing begin. (My roommates love when I sing and dance. Love it.) Today was also my very first day of classes, reminding me that yes, I am still here to actually get a degree. Seems I tend to forget that little detail.

This past week without school has not been without it's own shennanigans-but most of them include me trying to do this whole grown-up thing and failing miserably. Being inadequate at putting together a desk? Check. Making cookies without sugar? Double check. Hanging a command strip upside down? Yep. Putting up a necklace rack that plummeted to it's death in the middle of the night, causing me to wake up in a state of terror and panic? Oh yes. But arguably my biggest #fail moment of the week has been "misplacing" the key to poor Shelly's lock...(for those wondering, she was finally reunited with her basket. Then this happened. Some lil' bikes can't catch a break).

Earlier this week as I was pondering where the key might be, I simply ignored any pressing suspicions that I may have lost it, instead choosing to believe that it was "somewhere in the apartment". A few days later I begin to casually look around for it. I continued the search with more and more haste until it became somewhat of a panic. Yep, I had definitely lost my bike key. The even bigger problem, is that Shelly is locked to, essentially, the cement below my complex. So I did what any one would do-I turned to the all-knowing, all-powerful YouTube. Much to my delight (or terror, not sure which), I discovered that people actually make videos on how to break open U-Locks. The struggle; they were all men. With muscles. Brianna and I mutually convinced ourselves that together, we would have enough strength to pry it open. ...I will save you the details, but 24 hours later and the lock is still fully intact. And the key is still nowhere to be found.

Well thank the Lord for Unitrans, our bus system. I managed to get to campus easy enough, made it to my first class (Ideologies of Design. My professor is very British and has very good hair. That's about all I got out of today). But upon trying to journey home...I missed my bus. And the second one. And the third. Oh no, you see, I was at the bus station on time. I saw the bus pull up, walked right up to it's doors, and EVERY time the cranky bus driver shut the doors in my face and drove off. #@*&%! What should have taken 8 minutes, took me 2 1/2 hours, by the time I finally got on a bus. Which, by the way, involved practically knocking out those around me to ensure I got on first. These are the benefits of being a second year.

I am wishing on a star that bus debacles and idiotic slip-ups are behind me. I believe Sophomore year will be filled with adventures of epic proportions; especially now that I have Wuzzy here with me! Part of me-okay, all of me- can't believe that the little fellah is still kickin', but he has not failed me yet! And though I'm sure I will become a part-time chauffeur of all my friends, it's worth it to be able to drive to Target. And line dancing. (Oh don't worry, I'm already planning a LD night on my birthday next week). Some things never change.

So concludes my first week back in cowtown. Believe it or not, I already miss the scent of cows in my backyard...yeeaaaaahhh maybe not.

Gatsby, Gatsby, Gatsby!

So I keep thinking, "next time I go home it will be summer!" And every time I end up paying a visit to the ol' house for just one more weekend. Coming back to a world of bikes and books, it seems that summer is teasing me. But you know what? This may be the first time in my life when I am not anxiously, impatiently, desperately craving the arrival of Summer. Of course I'm ready to have a break from school and extremely excited for some adventures I have planned for the next few months--but I am honestly not ready to put my life here on hold for 4 months! Its gonna be tough! We got flyers in our mailbox reminding us that everything "MUST GO" in our rooms; when my roommates and I thought about the sad sight that would be our completely empty dorm room, it was a little devastating! But, onto Sophomore year, with many more new and exciting experiences cowtown advenures ahead! (With some mini summer-visits in between, of course)

Before I took a little trip home, my bestest friend Caila was here to experience the wonders of campus, DC food, and three roommates in one room. I think we may have scared her a tad. But it was a wonderful time, and it made me reminisce on how just last fall I had no idea where the dish-return station was--let alone the in's and out's of campus and downtown. But here I am, 9 months later, giving her an exclusive little tour of my home away from home. She even biked to class with me! (For those who are concerned: Yes, she survived the dreaded bike loops. Though we may or may not have waited 4 minutes after class to bike back until the passing period rush had died down...)

Oh, and have no fear, friends; I FINALLY saw the long-awaited, much-anticipated, The Great Gatsby. It. Did. Not. Disappoint! It was beyond better than I expected! AH! It really did follow the book almost perfectly. I was sad after reading reviews that it was "over-acted", "theatrical", and "over-the-top"...but those critics clearly haven't actually read the book. As someone who spent many a hour having to analyze and over-analyze Fitzgerald's writing in English class...thats kind of the point of the story. Its supposed to be heavily acted, flashy, dramatic. Its what makes the central themes so strong and so deep! But, I digress. Though even if the movie really was terrible, I wouldn't have cared; I got to gaze into Leo DiCaprio's baby blues for 2 hours and 23 minutes. I'm a happy camper. P.S. If all men dressed like Gatsby, I wouldn't complain. Pink pants and all. Just sayin'.

I must return to my studies, but just for the next 7 days! Woo! Plus, I now have Wuzzy here to keep me company, in case the friends and I need to go shopping take a little drive down the town. With no air conditioning, mind you. You can't have it all...

And now, I leave you with a quote from Gatsby that seemed appropriate for this time...

Hot Dogs, Friends, & the ER

Just 2 weeks to go, my friends! C R A Z Y . Guess what I spent my Friday night doing? Eating at the Hot Dogger of course! Told ya I'd do it. And my, oh my, it did not disappoint! I did get extremely overwhelmed when she asked me which mustard I'd like because there were about 3,471 to chose from and I. Love. Mustard. My friend and I saw so many cute little couples hand-in-hand around the town, so we decided to go home and drown our sorrows getting immersed into the imaginary lives of our favorite TV show characters. And with some fro-yo in hand, we immediately felt better. Pathetic? You bet.

I'm a little backed-up on the updates so here's a quick synopsis of last weekend; I was gone for most of it on Spring Retreat. It was a great time to stay up wayyyy late with everyone and plan for next year. We also each made little "encouragement bags", which others could drop little notes into as the weekend went on. Although for a split-second I feared that I would be that girl with zero notes in her bag by the end of the week, I got a good lil' stash. Though it seemed that the 2 common themes that people wrote about were how "hilarious" I am, and that I am "such a good dancer". (We had a dance party a few weeks back...so everyone got to experience the magic that is Cameron on the dance floor...kidding).

Speaking of dancing (and onto this current weekend...), friends were visiting and you bet your bottom dollar that I took them line-dancing! Trevor, Laura & Sarah came up, and I knew that I just had to show them what goes down Saturdays at the Grad. There's also always one swing dance song, which I usually spend reminiscing on my days as a third-runner-up champion...but this time my dance partner was there! We may have showed off a little. Not to mention we were the only couple under the age of 40 on the dance floor.

The rest of the weekend consisted of showing them the beauty of my campus, a quick trip to Fenton's ice-cream ("single" scoop that looks like a pint on your cone? YES. ), allowing them to experience the famous DC food, late-night SNL-watching and not a whole lot'a sleep. But alll such fun things, including a teensy-weensy trip to Urgent Care.  I'll spare you the graphic details (and trust me, they are GNARLEY), but I had some weird skin-reaction all over my legs that I had been noticing. One area in particular seemed to be getting worse and worse to the point where I couldn't identify it & it hurt to bend my knee--long story short...this gal took an adventure to the Emergency Room! It really wasn't a big deal; the doctor took a look at it, "diagnosed" it as a bacterial-infected ingrown hair with tissue damage (gross), gave me some instructions and anti-biotics. Its already looking and feeling much better so have no fear, Grandparents! I'm just a little sad that "Never Been to the ER" is no longer something I can provide in get-to-know-me trivia games...

Which brings me to today; no school (woohoo), a bikeride to riteaid for a bountiful amount of band-aids, & a suprise downpour on my way back! (not so woohoo). But we are all staying inside on this blustery day (I thought Memorial Day was supposed to kick-off summer?!) & all in all it was an extremely fun weekend. Now onto the homestretch and just a few more mid-terms until finals.

The Woman From Up Top.

Hello all! Where do I begin? Let me start by mentioning that despite popular opinion, my new background is not dalmatian print. Those actually happen to be, in my opinion, one of the ugliest species of dogs. No, no, my background is cow print. Ya get it? Cows...cowtown?

I seem to procrastinate on updating whenever I go home for a visit--probably because I can update you all in person! I did go home last weekend and had a glorious time catching up with the fambam and being with my Mama for her day. Its always nice to go home and pretend I don't have any responsibilities for a bit...and then come back and resume my student-life. I have been daily updating my whiteboard for my "Countdown to Summer"; 28 days if you're curious, (12 excluding weekends, holidays, and finals), though there seems to be no end in my near future. I guess its better to think that way, I mean the last thing I need is to be doing something like blogging when I'm trying to get my work done....................

Anyhow, between "mid" terms (a mid-term in the last 3 weeks of school is NOT the middle of the term, people!) and trips home my days have consisted of coffee, classes, biking, studying and repeating. Hence the lack of exciting updates for you all. The most exciting part of my day? Receiving a package in the mail!...Of textbooks from Amazon. Yup, this is some good stuff. (P.S. If you want to make my day; send me a letter! Maybe then I'll have something to write about!)

Do any of my faithful followers remember my escapades back in September, when I went into the horrifically-creepy archaeology building with the even more creepy changing temperatures? Believe it or not, I went back, and I am alive to tell the tale. This time I stayed on the first floor, the "Psychology" ward wing to participate in an experiment. Don't get too excited; for my Psych class we have to complete 6 hours of "outside study" in which we choose a few experiments to partake in. Though I was disappointed that the study involving electromagnetic nodes being attached to my brain conflicted with my schedule, I found one this afternoon that led me to the ol' Young Hall. It was a simple experiment that I just couldn't seem to get a grasp on, a computer simulation of sorts. There I sat, feeling like a complete failure when I consistently could not seem to remember the matching pairs of faces that I was supposed to. Ultimately the prompter just sent me home. Watch as I become the "outlying factor" that messes up their entire experiment. Whoops.

I had an encounter today with a young boy. He got up from his table, approached me and mumbled some phrase I couldn't quite understand. When I looked up at him he said "Oh sorry. I thought you were the woman from up top..." as he slowly lifted his head to gaze towards the heavens. Not knowing how exactly to respond to this I just uttered a "oh, don't worry about it..." and watched him walk away, still with a perplexed look on his face as he continued to look up at the sky. Uhh, okay? Not sure if I should gather that he thought I resembled a deceased woman who is now "up top", or if there is some 4th dimension upper-level to our campus that I am unaware of. Either way I chalked it up to typical Davis student interaction.

One teeny-tiny adventure I see in my near future is an excursion to The Hot Dogger. Its a crummy little hole-in-the-wall shack downtown that solely sells different kinds of hot dogs. This came to mind as I was at dinner tonight, conversing with my friends about our favorite foods and a thought occurred to me; hot dogs.  Amidst all the extraneous things presented to me at the DC, never once have they served hot dogs. Now, where I come from that just ain't right. Time and time again I have biked by The Hot Dogger when traveling into town, and next time I will be trying it. How's that for an adventure?

Oh, and I will be seeing "The Great Gatsby" next week for Tuesday-5-dollar-movie nights downtown. Its one of my favorite books and lets be honest; Leo DiCaprio is just beyond words. He could be sitting on screen for 4 hours doing underwater basket weaving and I would still watch with pleasure. So that's happening.
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Dumplings and Marine Man.

Surprise, the blog got a lil' makeover! And that, my friends, is the result of major procrastination. But its a nice change, don't ya think? I am pretty pleased because the "peak" of my midterms are over. However, we all know there isn't much time to celebrate, as I have an upcoming midterm next week...the sun never sets on the quarter system! But I'm keeping busy, and hopefully it will make the seemingly endless amount of weeks left until summer go a wee bit faster.

What new did I try this week? Not much. I did venture to downtown a few times with friends; once to go check out an old used bookstore (where my friend bought a book for $2.00 titled, "Who Moved my Cheese?"). The other time was for a birthday, and the birthday boy requested the Dumpling House, a place that has intrigued me since orientation. It did not disappoint! Plates upon plates of pot stickers and egg rolls, what more could you ask for? Almost tried the homemade soy milk, but it seemed a bit too sketchy and I'm not that adventurous. I don't know if its a Chinese birthday tradition, but after I convinced the waitress to sing to him (while she simateanously smacked him on the head with a platter on the off beats) she gave him a kiss on the cheek. She was probably 60-years old. Needless to say, we plan on going back.

This week was we had Harry Potter day in the DC. I'm only a newish fan of this series, but no doubt I was bursting with excitement to see what they would come up with. They hyped it up so much, but I was expecting a few decorations, maybe some chocolate frogs. Oh, no. They went ALL OUT! I'm talking floor to ceiling transformation of the DC into Hogwarts, a whole new menu with HP references, miniature "Daily Prophets" as souvenirs, a photo booth, and Sirius Black himself running around. If you aren't familiar with any of what I am saying A) I am so, so, sad for you, and B) We are having a movie marathon this summer. No ifs, ands, or buts. Anyways, I was set on getting a picture with my favorite character, so I essentially stalked Sirius Black around the DC until he saw me. We got a picture together. And my year is now complete. (Photo inserted below).

 Upon popular demand, I have to share another story about nudity. Well, partial nudity. All year long, my friend and I have long-admired a boy we dubbed, "Marine Man"; he is, you guessed it, in the marines, and proudly flaunts his uniform while we swoon. Well yesterday as I was mounting my bike I glanced at the big grass field next to the dorms. And there he was, basking in the sunlight. Shirt off (sorry, I had to mention it), laying down, reading a textbook. Beauty and brains! As I frantically scrambled to text my friend telling her to look out her window and feast her eyes, he stood up in what seemed to be a slow-motion state. Slowwwly, he hoisted himself up, did a few push-ups, and (sadly) put his shirt back on. "fldfk kbgn .........." were the words out of my mouth. And maybe a little drool.

5 weeks until I'm a sophomore, and then I won't have any cowtown adventures to report on for a few months! Though I guess European adventures might be more exciting....thoughts on blog posts: "travel edition"?

A Week of Firsts.

I know I swore I would never mention weather again, but with the climate confusion that has been this week, it seemed like an appropriate way to start this post. One word: HOT. For those who know me, I am not a fan of this word. I want rain and coldness all the time, that its a wonder University of Washington didn't accept me. Anyways, its just pushing 85 degrees around here and I am already over it and ready for Christmas! Though I must say, it does make biking a whole lot more pleasant. Well, until you feel yourself turn into a lobster and break into a sweat as you rush to class. But just around 5:47 pm, with a slight westward breeze--thats the sweet spot.

I did combat the "heat" this morning by venturing to a new part of campus; the swimming pool. To avoid others from being blinded by my white as winter legs, I woke up at 6:30 AM (!!!) to get there first thing in the morn. Apparently everyone else had this same idea, because it was quite full! But I stayed in my lane labeled "SLOW" (if that's not an ego-killer I don't know what is), and enjoyed my lap swimming. Gotta say, I'm just a littttle out of shape in the free-style department, seeing as how I haven't swam for reals in about, eh, 3 1/2 years. Baby strokes, baby strokes. Getting up so early (how did I used to do this every day?!) has made today drag on and on and on. Nothing a good giving in to my caffiene addiction can't fix!

Today must have been a week of firsts, because I also stepped foot in the library for the first time this year. I know, before my parents hang their heads in shame, I just always thought it would be too quiet for me. But due to ever-present knocks on my door and unknown noises from the hallway, it was my last resort. Actually a pleasant little place. I seated myself in front of a happy little window letting in lots of light and got some work done! I may even have to go back! Imagine that.

This week my bike did not experience any more colissions, but I did partake in a rather physically demanding activity-hopping a fence. A very TALL fence with metal spokes at the top. Now before everyone else hangs their heads in shame...I was peacefully running laps around the track of the football stadium, when I see a security guard locking up the gates. Surely he'll leave one open for me, I think to myself. Well, after circulating the track for the final time it became clear that this was not so. So I did what any person would do; I hopped the 15 foot fence. At night. With no footholds. Oy. (Video footage may or may not have been taken).

The last thing I'll leave you with is a laugh. My Pscyhology TA's laugh, to be precise. He laughs at the most inappropriate times, with the most outrageous noise I have ever heard. Imagine if someone were to stab a goat multiple times at a medium tempo speed. Only then would you experience the noise I have to hear day in and day out. At the most inappropriate times.

Involuntary Terror.

Well folks, the day has come. The day of my very first bike "accident" in Cowtown. Technically the day was last week, and the accident was more like a collision, as no one ended up injured. But it counts in my book, as I feel it was only a matter of time until I experienced this right of passage. Here's what happened; I was peacefully peddling down a two-way bike path, clearly focused on the road ahead. I spot a biker coming towards me on the WRONG side of the road. No big deal, I think to myself. I'll just go around her on the other side of the road. As I was merging into the opposing lane, she finally came to her senses and realized that she was in the WRONG lane. Upon realizing this, and in the middle of my merging, she attempted to quickly get back into her own lane. You can probably use your imaginations to visualize what happened next. Neither of us had time to get into our respective lanes and what resulted was a clumsy, slow-motion, collision of my front wheel into the side of her bike. We both stumbled off of our bikes and just kind of looked at each other. It gets better--she lives on my floor. I know her. Of course she was apologetic, but I was just happy that it didn't happen because of my biking inexperience. Lesson of the day: stay in your lane, people!

Aside from that excitement, I have chosen to immerse myself into more physical activities this week. You're looking at the newest Inter-mural Soccer player...Yeah I know. I quit soccer at a young age because I despised it so much. But I made the mistake of mentioning to a leader that I used to play; next thing I know I'm invited to the Facebook group, and a young man ambushing me at church to guilt-trip me into playing. Sure enough, tonight I will be wearing my "black" colored jeresey, and praying that the ball doesn't come to me. College people can be so persuasive. (No joke; I was thisclose to being talked into joining the 'Harry Potter Alliance' Club this week...)

In addition, you all were right; I guess I just couldn't stand a quarter without dance, because I have decided to enroll myself into a Belly Dancing class. Okay, I give you permission to laugh at this one. In my defense, ever since I was a wee one I would sit on the curb at the 4th of July parades year after year, wishing I could be one of them, rolling what my Mama gave me. That sounded a lot stranger than I meant it, but you get the idea. I have always wanted to try this form of dance, so it should be an experience to say the least! It had me at "hip scarf reccomended".

Thats about all the adventures I've been going through as of late; oh, and how could I forget! Last night I experienced the adventure that is a Horror Film. You see, I always tell myself that I like the feeling of suspense, until I am actually watching one, blanket over my head and heart pounding. Others may or may not have been making fun of me. I'm a wuss in that department, okay?!  If you're curious, it was The Strangers. *shiver* It was a good one. (And by good I mean extremely terrifyingly creepy).

Slingshots and Sweating

I know, I know...long time no talk. Just getting back into the swing of things in these parts! My week in review: did a lot of re-organizing, un-packing & cleaning upon my arrival (why does it always feel like move-in day all over again at the start of every quarter?). I got used to the DC all over again, and of course, began my classes. I think everyone who didn't do so hot 1st and 2nd quarter are realizing that they need to do well this time around...its been pretty quiet around the dorms for this reason. Of course, there was still time for a few geniuses to create a makeshift sling-shot out of a deflated bike tube, duct tape, and a couple of sturdy door handles. What? We were putting our engineering capabilities to good use...as we flung paper towel rolls and hackey sacks down the hallway; things that were not too harmful but still bulky enough to make us go "woaah!!". Though you can imagine our horror when a group of incoming Freshman and their families came in to tour the residence halls in the middle of one of our catapults. Whoops.

It rained this week. And then it was hot. And then it poured some more. But bipolar weather conditions aside, our room has been scorching hot to the point of me waking up drenched in sweat and sleeping with no covers on, all because the Russian maintenance men don't believe in turning the air condition on. At least not until May. And we are all dying over here.

This week my wonderful friend Laura was visiting and staying in our room, which made it a bit more cramped but a whole lot more fun! I was glad that she was able to experience first hand the sleep-talker/giggler/singer/snorer that is Brianna. Though I am sure she got absolutely no sleep (Sorry Las...)

As far as extra-curriculars go, I am not sure I will be doing dance this quarter. I think I'm going to try my hand at a Beginning Drawing class, offered through the craft center. I have always wanted to improve my sketching skills past the point of doodles and flowers, and it fits well into my scheudele. I'm a tad scared because at this point all of my animals end up looking like a two-legged gingerbread man. Wish me luck. I also joined a, get this; a Woman's Running Club. No, I'm not kidding. A friend on my floor started it & it has actually been really fun! We run along the arboretum and will increase our mileage per week. On Friday we ended with some extremely unflattering ab excersises, which all of the potheads sitting on the grass had full view of. But as my friend said, "Oh well, we'll have nice bodies and they'll have cancer!" Well said.

Oh, and I can update you on my final grades that I finally got back...A's and B's in my classes! Not the straight A dream that I always strive for...but one of these quarters it will happen! I better get back to my studies now (for those interested, I am taking Psychology, Biology and English. Can you get any more boring per-requisites than that??), so ta-ta for now! Missing you all already.

"Just a Lil' Memorizin' "

Sorry to say that my "adventures" are becoming less and less frequent as finals are approaching quicker and quicker. I must say, I got lucky enough this quarter to have already taken 2 finals, thus leaving me with only 2 during the official "Finals Week".  Seriously, can someone please re-name this time of doom? How about something more eloquent like, "End of Term Assessments" or even a casual "Just a Lil' Memorizin' "? Finals is just about the most depressing word I can think to describe tests that determine your fate. But I digress.

Remember the infamous blog post at last quarter's go-around? When I experimented with sticking headphones in my nostrils? Yeah. Get ready. This Friday begins the insane asylum that is my dorm room when Finals ensue...

I'm realizing that I need to stop writing about boring school stuff that nobody wants to hear. Sadly its all I've known recently. But this blog is about adventures, so let's see...Grandfather wanted to know more about the young men in my ballroom class. To which I have to respond; what men?? They are all boys. And believe me, there is a difference. The only "men" seem to off the market, which is rather unfortunate. I plan to continue in ballroom next quarter, and I can only hope that it provides me with a new mix of cuties who can dance.

Today I went downtown to get finger-printed, to prove to the church's nursery that I am not a felon. Glad we covered that. My title is to literally "hold babies", which is quite alright with me. Every week at church I see these little chubby balls of cuteness, and I have to refrain myself from running after them with outstretched hands, yelling "I WANT TO HOLD YOU!!!". Its a good thing, too, because I'm not sure if that would be well-received by the other nursery workers (not to mention parents).

As this quarter is coming to a close, I am quickly being reminded that in just a few more months I will no longer be a dorm-dweller. I can't even think about this without wanting to cry! I'm going to be such a loner next year! Part of me is excited to no longer bear the title of "Freshman" (my friends and I are convinced that we aren't even considered part of the student population; "Oh yeah, there's UC Davis Students and then there's Freshman!").  But this year has been so much fun that I can't imagine living away from all my friends! Boo. Typical me, worrying about something that is 12 weeks away. But its still bittersweet. Although I must say, I am beyyyyyond excited to have a break from dc food. Don't get me wrong, ours is better than most, but there is only so much salad bar one girl can take. And let's not even talk about the days they don't have garbanzo beans. You do NOT want to see me when they don't have garbanzo beans.

Well friends, its about time I get back to my studies. Story. Of. My. Life. Spring break is right around ze corner, and I can't promise too many updates until then. But hey, finals insanity can make for the best stories...!

School & Nudists.

Somebody tell me to stop. Please. Really, I should be writing my History essay right now. Whats that? You all want a new enthralling blog post written by yours truly? Oh fine, you win! (Please hold History paper).

Hello fellow readers! Before I forget, I must welcome my dear friend ZOE (not cousin Zoe with two dots above the "e"...try not to get confused), as my newest "audience" member, if you will! She recently discovered this lil' blog o' mine, and it seems I have a new fan! Woohoo! Grandparents, please welcome her to the club.

Enough with the shout-outs...2nd Quarter is just chugging right along! Rather fast, in fact. Believe it or not I have just a mere week and a half until finals, and then I am outta here baby! (For a week. Still.) Have I even started studying? Of course not.  But I have begun studying on Saturdays and that is progress in my eyes. I already have my classes lined up for next quarter, which I shall reveal once they are finalized. It feels good to start taking classes that are going towards my major; now if I only I could decide what else to study...it is stressin' me out, friends! My mind must change daily. Sometimes twice daily. English? Writing? Design? Dance? Communications? Anthropology? Education? All of the above? HELP.

I am just at that point where my future could go in literally any direction I want it to; which is why I am starting to feel a little bit of the pressure to take classes that contribute to that said future. Here's the problem, folks; I DON'T KNOW WHAT THAT FUTURE IS. #collegestudentproblems

Okay, I am being a bit dramatic (so out of character, right??).  I really am enjoying my time as a Freshman who for the time being, doesn't really have much to worry about. Just things like what I will wear to my ballroom field trip tonight. We are going salsa dancing! Yippee Skippee! In other dance happenings, I have to perform my very own choreographed solo in front of the class. As a final. And in whatever lapse of conscious thinking I was having, I volunteered to go first. Yes, I am terrified. OH! And I must tell you one last little dance excursion I went on...we were supposed to attend our teacher's dance performance on Saturday.  I didn't know what to expect, but I went and WOAH did I not see that coming! Um, yes. She was naked. They were all naked. Nude, unclothed, MY PROFESSOR DANCING WITH NO CLOTHES ON. I get it, "Its art! Its expression!" UMM its disturbing is what it is! Goodness! A little bit of warning would have been nice! Oh, but wait...I later scanned the program and found it to have a disclaimer on it: "This performance is rated R for graphic nudity". Oh.

Last quarter it was naked statues, this quarter its naked teachers. What is happening.

Q Tips, soft-serve...& a tattoo.

Not too many adventures happening in this cow town.  Mainly because I spent some of my week in my own town stocking up on Q-Tips and cereal.  Ahh yes, the "adventures"of being home. 

Oh, and I got a tattoo on Valentine's Day. Or if you prefer a more technical vocabulary, I got a meaningful word transcribed onto my foot through a permanent ink-depositing device.  Romantic, right? For those who have an aversion to this particular art form; Rejoice!  No really, rejoice.  No, literally. That is literally the word on my foot.  I had been working on a typed-out, formal explanation of my tattoo, planning to attach it to a picture on my varying social mediums.  But I started realizing that it was much more effective to personally explain it to people as they see it.  However, I knew some of you may be interested, so enjoy the following (warning: I ramble. It is long): "Why Rejoice?"

 I used to see my life's worth in being happy. We are often told that happiness is the key to life.  We strive to become happier people, doing more things that will get us to this desired state.  But as I thought about this notion, I realized that happiness is a fleeting feeling; it is subjective to specific situations and associated with certain emotions.  Things make us happy, and things make us unhappy.  To try to constantly be happy seemed to me an unrealistic goal, because life is inevitably filled with unhappy moments.  Instead, for the past couple of years, I've tried to live my life aiming for a state of joy.  Joy, on the other hand, is an internal contentment, that does not waver depending on life’s circumstances.  Joy, is something that can be found even in the most unhappy of times.  God doesn’t promise constant happy moments, but he promises that there is always reason to rejoice.

                I got the word rejoice scripted on my foot for in my sister’s handwriting.  Why my foot?  Because in times of trouble, we lower our heads in anguish and pain.  What better motivation to change my attitude than to see the word “rejoice” everytime I want to give up?  As a lover of using dance to express my self and my joy, I wanted everyone (including myself) to see my joy for the Lord expressed through my feet as I dance.  Why my sister’s handwriting?  Her middle name is Joy, if that’s any consolation.  And as I was thinking through who is the most joyful person in my life, it was her.  A source of joy, and a constant perpetrator of rejoicing. This word took on a very different meaning two days before I got it.  I had been praying specifically for God to allow something to happen that would challenge my faith and remind me of his control.  This was an extremely scary prayer to pray, but it was weighing heavy on my heart and I knew I couldn’t ignore it.  Well, two days later I got a call telling me that my house was robbed, and the majority of things taken were mine and my Mothers.  I know to some this could seem extremely petty and selfish, and let me assure you that it is.  I had to be confronted with the loss of earthly things, though they did hold great significance and sentiment to me.  But I had to remind myself that I still have all that matters in life, and found myself repeating this word throughout my week.  Am I happy that I lost all of my sentimental jewelry?  No.  This is not a happy situation.  But I continue to rejoice.  I thought it was the perfect time to get it, in light of the recent events; a tattoo is something that will never ever leave me.  It is permanent, and because as of late I have seen how easily earthly things can be taken from me, it’s a wonderful reminder of the things I never want to leave me, and that is joy.  Just as this tattoo is a word that will never leave my foot, I can only hope that joy is something that will never leave my heart.  Even in unhappy events such as this.

So thats why Rejoice.

I realize this post is too long, and far too serious.  Let me leave you with an extraneous thought to lighten the mood; today I saw a man in the cafeteria with a water goblet filled with 1/2 luck charms and 1/2 soft-serve.  A heart attack in a cup, I think to myself. But do you want to know what was worse?  I was silently judging him whilst I ate away at my deep-fried jalapeno popper.  Whoops.

RIP Superbowl.

Happy we-lost-the-superbowl!  Sorry, too harsh?  I guess I'm just a little bit bitter because while you all were chomping away on your homemade guacamole (I presume), I was sitting on an uncomfortable office chair studying.  I didn't watch any of the game-not even the half time! And that is surprising, because I love me some Beyonce.  But from the thousands of facebook statuses afterwards I learned that we lost, soo...thats sad.  I just had too much work and not enough time!  I think I'm learning that I really need to at least try to study something on Saturdays.  Since high school Sunday has been my church-and-homework day, but college is a whole new ball game...there just aren't enough hours in the day anymore!  I know, I know, "welcome to real life"...

For whatever reason I have yet to discover, I elected to go to the gym with my guy friend who, as the cool cats say, is "yoked".  I wanted him to help me face my fear of the back left corner of the weight room (aka where all the hardcore scary people workout), and show me how to use actual weight machines so I don't get crushed.  Well, he taught me all right!  2 hours later I left the gym feeling like I got hit by a UPS truck, and 24 hours later feeling like that same truck was actually on top of me.  If you can't decipher my strange metaphor; I. WAS. SORE. Not just "wow my arm burns a little when I lift this 20 lb textbook above my head"--oh no.  It took soreness to the next level.  As in it hurt just to put one foot in front of the other as I walked.  Oy.  But I went back today feeling much better and accomplished! In no time I'll be struting around asking people if they bought tickets...to the gun show.

Other than gettin' "beefy" (another cool cat term), I have been super insanely ridiculously busy with school stuff.  I have 3 mid-terms next week (I'm already 5/10 weeks done with the quarter--say what?!), and since I'll be away this weekend for a Girl's Retreat, I'm trying to get the bulk of my studying done this week.  As in today.  As in I should be writing my Anthro. paper right now.  Oh the sacrifices I make for my family...but anyways, my wall is being filled up with color-coated minute-by-minute daily schedules; I mean come on, this is me we're talking about.  But once this next week is over I will be coming home!  And I can't wait to see all of your bright and shining faces.

I'm a Little Bit Country.

I promise I am not purposely avoiding my faithful followers...just trust me when I say that nothing that has been going on this past week is anything that would be of interest or enjoyment to you.  But I know that if I left it at that, I would get an e-mail from each of my grandparents telling me that "everything you do is interesting to us! We love hearing the everyday mundane moments of your life!"  So to avoid the grandparent guilt-trip, I will disclose a few occurances.

I have basically been making decisions that both bore and scare me to death.  So I guess that's exciting.  Signing leases on apartments, going to a bank on my own to order checks, talking to Major advisers...you know, extremely entertaining things.   I have had a little bit of time for fun though!  I had been hearing about a little joint near campus that holds "Country Line Dancing" nights every Friday.  You had me at country! (Thats actually a lie.  I hate country.  But line dancing conjured images of the epic dance scenes in Footloose, so it intrigued me).  Anyways, I rallied together--more like dragged--some girls on my floor to come with me.  We are always looking for any excuse to wear a dress because it seems that the dress code here is sweatpants and pajamas, so we got all cute and went.  SO MUCH FUN.  Once you learn the steps, you feel like you're in a music video or flashmob or something awesome and spontaneous like that.  And I was even able to stand the obnoxious crooning voices that were leading my feet!  This place took their country nights very seriously...there were bouncers at the door, a light up dance floor in the center of the bar, and not a person in sight who was without boots and a hat.  We plan on going back every week.

This weekend my poor little Shelley (bike) had a little bit of a boo-boo.  Her basket broke off!  So very tragic.  Now I have to awkwardly hold everything in one hand as I bike and poor Shelley can just not handle being without what made her so cute! 

Hmm...we lofted my roommate's bed this week, so my room is now twice as big.  Plenty of floor space for...um...not quite sure what (some more clothing space would have been more appreciated!), but its nice and spacious none the less.  The Russian serviceman walked in bright and early Saturday morning with his drill that, as he stated, "sounds like Vworld Vwar Too" (<-- That was my attempt to phonetically type out a Russian accent).

Well this blog post has sufficiently taken up the 13 minutes that I was supposed to spend writing my History paper, so I must sign off now.  Happy Monday Being Halfway Over to you all!

Grown-Up Moments.

My sincere apologies for not posting as frequently as last quarter.  Crazy how just 2 weeks back can fly right on by!  And boy did it fly.  My time has been spent reading, reading, reading! So much reading this quarter.  Additionally, I am experiencing the joy of early morning classes.  But they have actually proven to be better than expected; I start my day much earlier & am finding that I get a lot more done.  Imagine that!

Classes have been a bit more challenging and not super interesting.  Yay for General Ed and Pre-requisites.  Speaking of which, I made an appointment with a counsellor so I can declare....*drum roll please* Human Development & Family Studies!  Undeclared no more!  I would also love to Minor in Dance, but I still have to make sure it will fit into my schedule.  It would make sense because I have been daning quite a bit this quarter!  Along with one of my classes, Intro. to Contemporary Dance (a very relaxing yet educational class), I am taking a Ballroom series every Wednesday from 9-10pm.  A great way to end my day!  But man oh man, the people you meet in a ballroom dance class...while I prayed for attractive young males, what I got was extremely awkward nerds, or frat guys trying to show off their "sensitive side".  No thank you.

More exciting things--I have begun apartment hunting! Which is kind of insane.  I'm just a kid who watches House Hunters!  I can't sign a lease!  We have formed a good group of girls (looking between 4-6) and found a nice 3-bedroom option today.  (Complete with an extra loft area--perfect for family visitors!) 

Tonight I attended a get together at some Cru people's apartment, where my friend and I were the only Freshman invited.  Yep, I am in with the upper classman, look at me go.  We played "Mafia" (and I lasted until the end of both rounds before being "killed"!) and downed our red cups full of water.  This isn't a hint, people.  It actually was water. (It wasn't that type of get together!)

Anyways, my friends, I hope this was enough of a general update for you.  I will have to remember to keep track of the ever-present strange and extraneous things that I encounter on a daily basis. Because trust me, there are mannny happenings in this crazy cowtown.

And I apologize for any run-on sentences and/or typos in this post. I am writing this at 1:37 AM.  Whoops, bed time.

Back to School.

Long time no talk, my friends!  In my defense, I have been getting acclimated to changing into real clothes before 12pm and re-learning how to ride a bike.  This has been such a looooong week being introduced to a new crop of professors and a different schedule.  I quickly got used to being back here when, on my first day, biked past a parade of young men in the middle of a round-a-bout with signs advertising that the zombie apocalypse was coming.  And they were serious.  Yup, its good to be back.

My classes are significantly less appealing than last quarter; Anthropology, Physiology, History, blah blah blah.  I did manage to fit in a class that is introducing me to the world of contemporary dance.  Whats that, you may ask?  Well to give you a taste, our first excersise was to lie on the floor and make up a dance only using our spines while never sitting up.  Yeaaaah.  I was a little uncomfortable too.  Other classes have been fine so far--well, almost all other classes.  Boy do I have a story for you.  A mortifying, scary story.  (Do not be alarmed, I did not bike into the ghetto again).  All I did this time was sit in the wrong classroom for 5 minutes before I learned it was a Chemistry discussion group, frantically call my roommates to get the correct room number, wait hours upon hours for my schedule to load on my phone (no thanks to you, crummy service in Wegman hall), and finally stumble into the correct classroom expecting the TA to show a little mercy.  Nope.  No mercy was shown.  All I got was her quoting the syllabus while looking directly at me, which clearly stated that those who are late receive 3/5 points for the day. Following her emphasis, she asked for my name and typed it down so she could presumably dock my points on the first day.  I'm a Freshman, lady!  I tried to argue this to her after class just to be ignored midway through my explanation.  Baaaad first discussion section.  A discussion, by the way, that she ended halfway through because we weren't "prepared enough". Ugh. *For a more detailed and ridiculous re-telling of this story, including bonus quotes and impersonations, please contact me.

Moving on. my roommate and I have officially started our "10K" training regime!  Going on Day 4 and going strong!  Running along the arboretum (man-made lake in the center of campus) has made it a bit more enjoyable, and despite the 35 degree weather we are bundling up and pushing through it!  No excuses!  Although any calories I do burn will likely be quickly replaced with the enormous quantities of leftover Christmas treats laying around our dorm.  Brianna even had the nerve to place her new M&M dispenser smack dab on our window sill.  Really?  Does it have to be the first and last thing I see as I go to bed and wake up?

My overall goal for this quarter is to figure out where I want to invest my extra time and efforts in the most, whether it be dance/dramatic art, volunteering in the youth program, jobs, or all of the above.  Whatever happens, you know you will hear it here first!  Ta-ta!