Martha in Motion

2008-11-16T14:22:00.000-08:00

So... it has been over 5 months since I updated this thing. I will be very surprised if any one actually checks this anymore, but here is what has been happening in my life. Work. Ok, so that basically sums it up. I will update in another 5 months to let you know what has changed in my life. HAHA

I guess I can be a little more elaborate in my explanation. Well, I have been working my part time jobs at Mayo and at Olmsted Public Health. My job at Mayo has been going just dandy. Only a few cranky patients to speak of and my co-workers are as always great. The only crappy thing about the whole job is the unattainable goal of reaching a point where I feel completely competent. There are always changes with computer systems or patient care practices. And if I think it is hard to change, it is even harder for my co-workers who have working and doing things the same way for over 10 years. I am learning how to do "intakes" now, which is basically what LPNs do for staff and what we do for residents. Essentially we room the patient, get their height, weight, BP, and pulse, and go over medications and allergies. I am not qualified to do this in my opinion, but I think Mayo is even getting cheap and only wanting to pay the salaries of Clinical Assistants rather than hire more LPNs or RNs.

My position at the health dept. as a tobacco prevention educator is going ok I guess. The grant cycle we are currently in ends at the end of December, so in October my co-worker Shay and I worked on writing a grant extension for 2009. Well, it is no secret that the economy is going in the crapper. A week after we were supposed to hear if we got the grant extension for the amount we requested, we got an ominous e-mail that said MDH had reviewed our application, but because of unforeseen circumstances we would not hear from them for another week when they would tell us their final decision. On Thursday we received a response that they would give us an extension but would cut $50,000 from our budget, which is rather substantial. That accounts for about 20% of our total budget. :(

In October I had quite a few opportunities to practice my cake baking skills!! I made a cake for Shay's daughter's first birthday, 3 cakes for a volunteer appreciation dinner at a local church, a birthday cake for another co-worker's daughter in the shape of Eve from "Wall-e", and a birthday cake for my Aunt Sandy's b-day. Now, I am on a bit of a dry streak, but for Thanksgiving I am bring an oatmeal cake to our family gathering. In the far off future maybe I will get to change careers and open my own bakery. :)

And lastly, on the Christmas Music front, I have officially been listening to Christmas music for the past month... maybe even month and a half. There nothing more exciting to me... nostalgic. In fact right now I am listening to Celtic Christmas :) Makes me want to do a little jig and maybe a leprechaun jump. I caught myself doing one in the middle of the Mayo shuttle lot on Thursday night while walking back to my car. I hope no one saw me! :)

Life is way too complicated

2008-06-06T17:52:00.000-07:00

So, I am in a real predicament. What the heck am I suppose to do? Here is the deal. I am working at Mayo as a clinical assistant part-time... .5 FTE. About two weeks ago a health department job was posted for a grant funded position that is a 1 year provisional position. I am familiar with the grant because I worked with the individual who use to be in charge of the grant during my internship. So, should I apply for the position even though it is provisional? The pay is much better and it is full time... but leaving Mayo after 3 weeks of training may tarnish my name and make it difficult to get hired at Mayo in the future. I talked to my supervisor/mentor from the internship who is also supervisor of this particular position and she really encouraged me to apply. I ended up applying but I really don't know what I should do if they call for an interview. I would be making 3 times what I am making at the clinic and it would have to do with my degree. However, I have been contemplating returning to school to get my masters because Mayo will provide tuition assistance... $7200 a year for graduate school. Maybe the part-time position is suppose to give me the opportunity to do that. I really hadn't planned on going back to school, but it would give me more opportunity and possibly higher pay (not that that is my ultimate goal). This has really been stressing me out.

And then I think about it and it really isn't that bad of a thing to be agonizing about... in fact I shouldn't be because there are so many other people encountering much more difficult situations. All my co-workers seem to have such difficult lives. Children to support, bills to pay, medical problems, divorce... I really should keep my trap shut and be happy with my life. I have a job, a home, supportive family and friends. My life is pretty darn good. Slap me if I ever complain!

Graduation

2008-05-19T17:01:00.000-07:00

Well, I am officially done with college... for the time being. Saturday was the ceremony. I was one of 464 students who graduated from the science and allied health college. Now off into the real world. Today I had orientation at Mayo for my .5 FTE clinical assistant position in general internal medicine. Not what I had planned on doing after getting a degree, but it has benefits and pay I can survive off of. The first 6-8 are full time but after that my schedule is pretty sweet. I work one week full time and then have a week off... it is a "Mayo" week though so it starts on Wednesday and ends on a Tuesday. I suppose I can't do that forever, but now it sounds pretty nice :) I am thinking I will be heading off to grad school in the near future, but I don't know what I should get my masters in. Any suggestions?? It needs to be health related if I want to get assistance from Mayo though so keep that in mind. Crazy to think so many of us are going to be done with school... at least for a little while. Congrats to all of you. Hope to see you Rochester people soon!

2007-11-30T06:13:00.000-08:00

I am still alive and kicking!! Sorry about the lack of updating in the past 2 months...opps. So, the big news here is that I didn't get the internship at the Healthy Living Center for next semestion, but I am instead doing it at the Olmsted County Health Department. I was a little disappointed after all the effort I put it trying to get it at the Healthly Living Center, but I guess I am just happy that I got a place in Rochester. It wasn't looking too good a few weeks ago :(

On a more happy note, it snowed last night and it looks beautiful. I love the way snow looks outside my window, but once I get outside where it is cold and slippery I am not as fond of it. Tomorrow my mom's side of the family is suppose to gather in Hokah, MN for our annual "Thanksmas", combo of Thanksgiving and Christmas, but with the storm that is supposedly coming I don't know if it is going to happen. It is probably my mom favorite gathering with family and it will be really disappointing if they cancel it.

My Thanksgiving break was super last week. I had 3 gathering and all of them were fun. I also got to see Susan and Lizard, which was great. I hadn't seen anyone since the summer so it made me very happy. Plus, we got to play a great game of Clue and of course Rummikub (my favorite game). It was Mrs. White with the wrench in the billiard room!

Happy finals prep to all!

2007-09-26T18:42:00.000-07:00

Nothing much happening in my life. I'm living with three other girls in the campus appartments this semester. So far it has been working out well. I really like having my own room. My roommates are nice... a lot more "out going" than me, but that is probably a good thing. My classes are ok too. I basically have tons of big projects and papers. I prefer tests to papers, but I guess I better get used to it since my job is going to be projects 24/7.

Even though I don't live with Sara anymore we try to get together 1 or 2 times per week. I think she is a little lonely in her appartment because Phil, her husband, is student teaching and working full time. I am glad we are able to do stuff still even if it is only for a couple of hours and I think she appreciates getting out of the appartment.

I am trying to get my spring preceptorship set up. The process is really slow and frusterating. My advisor who is in charge of setting up the interview with my site, the Mayo Healthly Living Center, is really draggin' his feet. It is getting very annoying, but I am hanging in there. He is probably getting a little annoyed with me too since I have been e-mailing/calling him almost every day. I don't think it will get done if I don't do that though.

Sewing Up the Summer

2007-08-29T11:02:00.000-07:00

Today it finally hit me... the summer is over and its back school. I am a bit excited about heading back for the fact that I get to see people. The idea of homework, projects, and exams do not interest me though. I think I have lost my drive for education. There is no "thirst for knowledge" within me. Oh well.... I am almost finished.

This week I have been getting ready to head back and finishing things up around the house. Yesterday I sewed a few curtains for my Aunt's front door and hemmed a couple of uniforms for my mom. I also cleaned the basement bathroom, something I loath doing. Today I vacuumed out my car and packed it. I barely fit everything, but its all in there. Hopefully it isn't too heavy for the car... I have a feeling the gas mileage is going to suck. This afternoon I think I will mow the lawn because the weather is absolutely beautiful!

Tomorrow I am taking most of my things down to La Crosse to my on-campus apartment. I don't plan on staying down there until Sunday because of a wedding on Saturday. Since I am getting my haircut down there though, I thought I would move stuff in on a day that isn't as popular for moving in. My mom and I are going to stay overnight at my Grandma and Grandpa's and then we are going to help do flood cleanup in the area. Hokah, my mom's hometown, had some major damage from the flood/mudslides. Luckily my grandparents are fine but the town looks pretty tough from what we have heard and seen in the newspapers.

Good luck with the start of a another year of school. When you think about how long we have been in school it is unreal... this will be year 17! I hope after this year I will get a little break from it all.

Ireland

2007-06-19T00:08:00.000-07:00

I can't believe I have been here for 16 days already! It is weird how it seems like it has been forever, but not really... its too hard to explain. Anyway my stay in Ireland has been amazing. The first week was absolutely beautiful! The temperature was around 70 degrees and it was sunny every day! This past week and this week have been pretty nasty out with cold and rain. But I guess that is what Ireland is really suppose to be like.

We have taken several day trips on Wednesdays and this weekend we are staying in Dublin for the Pride Parade. Apparently Bono is going to be there so it gets really busy and crazy with tourists trying to see him. Not that I am a big fan of his, but it would be cool to see him. The parade should be an interesting experience too. I guess there is some wild costumes to be seen :) On our Wednesday trips we have gone and will go to Kylemore Abbey, Connamara, the Aran Islands, and the Cliffs of Moher. Actually I have been to them all because one of Lisa's friends (girl I am staying with), visited us the first week so we went to the Cliffs with her. That is our trip for tomorrow now. Anyway I am so glad we went then because the weather was perfect and tomorrow's looks much less than perfect. Thunderstorms all day so it will be a little more difficult to see the Cliffs in their full glory!

I can't believe how expensive things are here! The exchange rate is $1.43 per euro :( Makes me sad... going out to dinner for just a sandwich ends us costing $9! A bit of a rip off in my opinion. If you go to the grocery store it isn't as bad, but it still burns a hole in your pocket. I am a little envious of Lizard's situation in China where everything was super cheap. I love a good bargain!

Hmm... there isn't a whole lot else new. I can't wait to get all my pictures developed and show you guys where I have been! I would upload them onto Facebook, but I don't have a computer here so that is kind of impossible. I miss my computer a little :(

Be back in the states in 10 days!

Here I Go Again...

2007-05-24T06:17:00.000-07:00

I can hardly believe it... I leave for Ireland in 9 days! I have already packed most of my luggage and everything fits with some room to spare for souvenirs. I leave June 2nd and fly out of Chicago. Luckily at orientation I found a girl that is driving from La Crosse who can give me a ride because I know there is no way my mom would ever consider driving me there. She won't even drive in the cities :o( Anyway, I am pretty excited but with work it hasn't quite set in as reality.

Speaking of work, I started back at W15 in the clinic on May 16th. Nothing much has changed there which is nice because it didn't take too long to get use to things again. Most the patients have been very pleasant. Can't wait to have my first cranky person who chucks things at me... haha. Always a fun story to tell even if it sucks while it is happening.

I don't think I have shared my most exciting news with you all yet. Well, on Mother's Day I took my Mom to Treasure Island Casino with my Aunt and two cousins for a fun day of gambling. I am really cheap when it comes to gambling so I didn't spend any money, but I did enter in a drawing that was held throughout the day. At 1, 2, 3, and 4 pm they would call names for $500, $750, $1000, and $3900. When I was returning from the bathroom after drinking my weight in complimentary diet Pepsi I heard my name called over the loud speaker at 3 pm!!! I won $1000!!!!!! I must have had the craziest looks on my face, but I wasn't with anyone so know one saw my expression :( Anyway, now I have some extra spending money for my Ireland trip! :o)

2007-04-14T17:05:00.000-07:00

I had a uneventful Birthday on the 3rd. Class went from 8 am- 8:30 pm, so I didn't do anything fun. The day before and after I was able to celebrate a little though :) I got a really awesome pan, which was my favorite gift... a close second was a very "comprehensive" cookbook. I swear that thing has over 1000 recipes. It is pretty cool!

Easter weekend was super busy. I went to celebrations on both my Mom and Dad's side of the family. My Mom's side had the annual Easter Egg Hunt, which was super fun!! I found a lot of eggs... fell in the mud... and got some jellybeans! It was my only source of candy since the "Easter Bunny" thought I was too old to get a basket at the age of 21 :( On my Dad's side most of my family wasn't there because they all "fly south"... they are those old people you hear about down in Florida and Arizona who live in little communities who have potlucks every other night! ahaha

Today I had my orientation for traveling to Ireland. We got our course books and readings today too. I think I am going to get a head start on the readings so I can actually enjoy my travel. I think it should be really cool. If any of you experienced travelers have tips regarding communication back home, money exchange, etc. I would appreciate your advise! I feel a little overwhelmed with all the information. I think they were trying to scare us or something because I would bet half the time they kept talking about getting stuff stolen.

Well... there you have it...

Exciting News

2007-03-23T15:31:00.001-07:00

I had a pretty good spring break last week. Didn't do too much out of the ordinary. On Monday I went to Treasure Island with my mom and Grandma for the day. We took the bus, which included only people over the age of 90 except for my mom and I. It was super hot on it too, which I believe is because old people can regulate their internal temperature as well, so the bus drive hiked the heat up. We got there and got in line for free pull-tabs, which I made a whole dollar on!! hahaha Then we went to the buffet, which was super good. I ate a lot of shrimp, and I did feel guilty while doing it. They are sooo good though! My mom and I stuck together and played on a one machine basically the whole time and I didn't lose... or win. But to those casino goers out there that is basically winning in the end :)

Other than that the only other exciting thing I did was make dinner for my Mom and Chelsi's birthday. I had planned on doing it earlier in February, but it was cancelled because of one of the big snow storms. We had a lovely evening with glazed salmon and a delicious cheesecake :) Sadly we never got to play any games, but hopefully the next time we get together we can whip out Apples to Apples or some kind of card game. I think playing games is most definitely my favorite thing to do. Oh Oh... or Rummikub!! I love that game :)

I guess the last bit of news is that YES... I am going to Ireland this June! Woohoo! For awhile it was going back and forth whether we had enough people and other conflicts, but now I can say that I feel 100% sure that I will be flying off to the beautiful Emerald Isle! On top of that great news, I also was informed over break that I got my job back at Mayo even though I will be asking for an entire month off! They must have really liked to me still consider me knowing that I would be gone for all of June! Makes me very happy! Only bad thing is I will have very little free time to hand out with folks who make it back to Rochester for the summer. But I still hope to make it for the annual camping trip for bean hole days!

The weather is beautiful here, so I think I will go bask in the warmth... but lack of sunshine. Have a great weekend!

Exciting News

2007-03-23T15:31:00.000-07:00

Spring Break

2007-03-08T06:42:00.000-08:00

Spring Break starts at 6:30 today!!! Woohoo! I am very excited about the up coming freedom and lounging around the house in my PJs. I had two exams this week, which makes the time off all the more sweeter. Yesterday, I went to dinner with my fall roommates. I didn't know two of them, but all three seem very nice and relaxed folks. I think it should be a good experience. Plus, we were talking about the Reuter Hall Suites that we will be living in and those of us who have been in them think they sound pretty sweet. Apparently, once a week a house cleaner comes and cleans your "appartment" for you. Isn't that just nifty?!?!

On another exciting note it sounds like it is pretty much a go for the Ireland trip!!!! I am so pumped about it... I didn't encounter some difficulties with the application process, but now every thing is set. Lisa, a girl that is going with me... also a roommate for next semester, is super excited too and I think we will have a lot of fun going on the trip together. Another girl who is in my major, an Abby, is going too. She is pretty wild, but maybe Lisa and I will loosen up with her around.

This coming Monday I am going on a Trip to Treasure Island Casino with my Grandma Larson. It sounds so funny saying you are going to a casino with your grandma :) I love going with her though because we play together and I don't have to lose any money. It is unbelievable how fast the machines can gooble up your money. I lost $5 in a matter of a couple minutes. It gets me all flustered when that happens.

Hope spring comes soon! I want sunny days with a nice warm breeze... and thunderstorms! Let me know if you will be in town this week!

Snow

2007-03-01T06:48:00.000-08:00

I went home this weekend to celebrate my Mom and friend Chelsi's birthdays... but because of the snow the party got cancelled :( I was disappointed that we didn't have it, but over spring break I plan and have the little dinner. Rochester got about 14-15 inches, but when I got back to LaCrosse I was greeted with a wopping 22 inches!! There was so much snow in the parking lot and I couldn't find a parking place that wasn't completely full of snow (4 ft. in most places because of plows). Luckily, I have family in the area where I could leave my car until the parking lots get cleared out.

Today we are suppose to have another winter storm, but it really isn't doing much here except for being really windy. I doubt LaCrosse will get much if any snow... more sleet and rain. Rochester got a snow day finally though!! Yeah for them! Apparently they cancelled last night. Thats the first time they were proactive rather than waiting until the storm hits and then the kids are already at school so they decide they can just stick it out. Stupid people! I will college students got snow days too, but I guess I shouldn't complain since I only have classes on Tuesday and Thursday this semester! :)

Only one more week before my spring break!!! Woohoo! When is does everyone else have their spring break? Next week seems to be a popular time. And guess what!?! Only a month until my 21st Birthday!! Not that I am really excited about the new "responsibilities" that I will have, but it is a big milestone! I have a full day of classes on my Birthday though, so I will definitely not be doing any silly activity.

Hope those of you who are getting snow enjoy the fluffy white stuff. I have a real urge to go our and make a snow fort. When I was little the neighborhood kids and I would make some mighty fine snow forts. Some even had roofs! How cool is that?!?! :)

Bored... (twiddling my fingers)

2007-02-18T10:12:00.000-08:00

This is kind of a nasty color... looks like a poopy brown. I had the room all to myself this weekend. I looked forward to it all week, but once it was actually the weekend I got kind of lonely. I need something or someone to keep me occupied. Otherwise I get bored all by myself and start to look for entertainment when there is none. I think I may go to the library and start working on a couple projects that are not due for another couple months. Maybe study some for an exam that is in a couple weeks. This is so screwed up considering its a weekend. Maybe I will go exercise... haven't done that yet today. Next weekend I am going home :) At least that is something exciting to look forward to. I am going to make a chocolate cake for my Mom and Chelsi's birthday! Yeah!

NO Cucumbers!!!!

2007-01-30T06:34:00.000-08:00

Well, I am back to school... been here a week. It is going pretty well. I like all my classes for the most part. Basically all health classes so at least I find them interesting. Only shock about being back is having to walk out in the freezing cold to class. It is absolutely frigid out... I think the high for this weekend is suppose to be around 5... the low who knows. Brrrr....

This weekend I finally had Sara come home with me. I have been to her house three times so it was about time I got her back to Rochester. We didn't do a whole lot. Walked around downtown, went shopping, played games and watched a movie. Overall, a pleasant but uneventful few days. The best part may have been my mom's enchiladas :) Nothing like some real food that didn't come out of a box and sit out for hours.

I finally finished up my application stuff for Ireland. Now all I have to do is wait patiently. I also applied for my preceptorship, which I will be doing next spring. I applied for the Mayo healthy Living Center, Mayo Patient Education, and Healthy Inspirations Health Club in La Crosse. I'm not that interested in the last option but I think I pretty much guaranteed one of the first two. Or at least I hope I am!

Just one last funny thing that happened in my sexuality class. Our professor was telling us all the projects that we have over the semester and one of them is an anatomical model of both the male and female. But the funny thing about it is we are suppose to bring kitchen utensils and office supplies to make this model! How weird is that? It is suppose to be proportional too so the example she used to emphasize this is no extra big cucumbers. I don't think there will be a serious face the whole class period when we are assembling these models! hahahaha

Sleeping by the Fire

2007-01-17T06:48:00.000-08:00

Yesterday I took a nap by the fire over at a friends house. I haven't taken a nap in so long and had forgotten the simple pleasure of going unconscious in the middle of the day! I must admit that sleeping on a hardwood floor lacks a bit in comfort however. Lately I have been really lazy about getting any thing important done. I guess I was a little productive yesterday when I took a trip to the courthouse to get my application for a passport. It really surprised me how much it cost, so I better get to go to Ireland this summer! Tomorrow my Grandma is coming to visit, and we are going to take her to a movie and lunch. I think we are going to see The Pursuit of Happyness. I heard it was good so I hope it lives up to the praise. I haven't seen a good movie in the theater in awhile. I guess if the movie isn't good it is still a good thing that we took Grandma out for an outing. I am getting a little excited about going back to school. I think all my classes should be fun and interesting. However, I am getting nervous, which I came to realize after I awoke from a school nightmare this morning. I am sure you can all relate to a dream where you are late for all your classes on the first day of school and for some reason you seem to moving in slow motion while every thing around you is moving twice as fast as you. I hate those dreams! On Monday night I went to my much older cousins house to play games with her family. She has two kids who are in elementary school. We played charades and also DDR which I had never done in my life. I am really bad at it... no coordination what so ever. It was embarrassing losing to a first grader. Oh well. I will say that I was a bit better at charades. When I was playing I had a flash back to the first annual camping trip with Su and Betsi when we played charades. I started laughing out loud when I thought of Betsi's evil suggestion of Moby Dick, which I acted out in the most embarrassing way... in the middle of a campsite where the wildlife could laugh at me. Especially the friendly squirrel! :) So I return to school on Sunday. It is crazy how fast time flies but I guess I am excited to go back. I might as well be. So anyway... happy spring semester!

Merry Christmas!!

2006-12-21T06:47:00.000-08:00

Merry Christmas!! Christmas is almost here!! Yippy! Today I am in Green Bay, WI because I am going to the Packer/Viking game tonight. I am super excited. I may not be the biggest football fan ever, but the atmosphere at the game is amazing and makes you a fan for a few hours :) I have a been super busy since I have been home from school. Saturday and Sunday I did some Christmas shopping and baking. This year I made my Aunt Bertha's sugar cookies, gingerbread cookies, chocolate covered cherries, fudge, dipped pretzels, and coconut chocolate balls... like a mounds bar. Tuesday I went over to my friend Chelsi's and helped paint her kitch in her new house! It is a really deep red color. We weren't able to get it finished, but I think she was going to try and do that today. I can't wait to see the finished product. When I finally get my own house I am definitely going to paint the walls... and my kitchen is going to be this color! What do you think of that? :) Well, I suppose that is all I have to share for now. See you all soon!

I'm going for Waffles! Yum...

2006-12-10T05:56:00.000-08:00

This morning I am going to a church Waffle breakfast over in LaCresent with my Grandpa, Aunt and cousins. I'm excited because they have multiple toppings... like blueberries and strawberries... yummm. I should go to church too, but their church is super early, well only 8 am, but Megan who I am picking up will definitely not be up to going then. Can you believe how close it is to the end of the semester??? I leave in 6 days! I will be done with this crazy semester, which I did not especially enjoy the classes. I have 3 finals on Friday, but only one is cumulative and there is only one that I am slightly concerned about. Its my literature exam, and I can't really study for that in reality. Susan is going to be home the day after I get home!!! I am so excited to see her and all her weird Scottish habits :) I noticed in her blog she typed colour instead of color... what's up with that Sue? hehehe! I think I am going to bake some cookies or make candy on Sunday or Monday so if there are any people longing to get their hands in some heavy duty baking let me know. On a new subject... I am doing the relay for life this winter on February 9th and 10th so if any one wants to donate towards a great cause to cure cancer contact me! Your contributions will be greatly appreciated! My mom did it a couple of summers ago and said it was an amazing experience so I am really looking forward to it. Not much else new here... good luck with finals! Season's Greetings to you all!

2006-11-29T10:35:00.000-08:00

My Thanksgiving was super great for the most part. I went to my Uncle and Aunt's in Byron and had a late lunch. The food was pretty good, with the exception that we had ham instead of turkey :( This weekend I am getting together with my Mom's side of the family though and there should be turkey served there. Over break I also put up our Christmas Tree and our North Pole Village! I love decorating for the holidays. This week back has been pretty busy with extra little things to worry about. My Grandma is having knee replacement surgery today so I really hope that goes well. I think she will have to stay in the hospital for a few days, but hopefullly it will be a relatively quick recovery. Sadly, she is going to miss our get together this weekend because of it. Not much else new. See those of you who are returning to Rochester in a few weeks! :)

Lefse and Passing Out

2006-11-20T06:41:00.000-08:00

Well, I had a very interesting weekend! I went home Thursday night after work. The drive was pretty quiet... but really dark for not being that late. I am not a big fan of night driving but luckily I didn't come upon any deer or other wild animals :) Earlier in the week I had made an appointment to get some vaccines, the flu and HPV shot, and when I got there they suggested I also get the Tetnus/Pertussis/Diptheria shot. Since I was there I thought I might as well just get them all done. A tiny mistake in my judgement. I got my first two without much pain or worry, but the third and final one hurt quite a bit more and seemed to make me a little more anxious so of course I passed out :( Just for a few seconds, but still long enough to feel like crap and worry the nurse. So, since I drove myself they didn't think I should drive for awhile and I ended up just waiting around for a long time. Saturday I had much more fun things to do. I had a lefse and krumkaka lesson. Both of these things are desserts from Norway! In the morning my mom and I peeled 20 lbs of potatos! That is a whole lot of spuds! Then around noon our "teachers" came and we made all the lefse and krumkaka. We weren't finished until 5pm but it turned out great! It was so much fun and I hope we make it an annual event. For those of you who don't know what lefse it is, it is basically potato pancakes. It requires a big griddle and a special rolling pin and stick thing to pick it up. The krumkaka is like a cookie you make on an iron and roll around a dowl right after you get them off the iron so they are in a tube shape. I am going to bring some of each to Thanksgiving because we are going to my Dad's side which is the side that is Norwegian. I am sure they will be excited! Well, I had better be going. Have a great Thanksgiving too!

What should I do next year?

2006-11-10T06:27:00.000-08:00

So lately I have been pondering my future. That is a dangerous place to go! I am telling you it causes so much stress to try and figure out what you should do once one chapter in life is finished. Ok... so here is the deal... next year I will have one semester of classes and one semester of preceptorship (or like an internship). Now, I first have to figure out where I will live fall semester. I really want to get off campus but since I would only be living in LaCrosse for 3 months I would have to sublease an apartment in the spring. This would make me super nervous since who ever I sub-leased to could totally trash the place and leave me to pay :( So, then I thought, I could try and live with one of my family members that live down this way. My grandparents, an Aunt and Uncle, and my mom's cousin all live down here, but I kind of wonder if they would be annoyed if I stayed with them. Then the last option I thought of was staying in Rochester and commuting. Next semester, spring, I will only have classes on Tuesday and Thursday, and if I could pull that off for next year it wouldn't be bad to drive down here just two days a week. Then, I would try to find an apartment in Rochester because I plan on doing my preceptorship at Mayo in the Spring. However, it really wouldn't be expanding my experiences in life. But then again, I would be going to Ireland in the Summer which would be a good step towards independence. I don't know... it is all so confusing. If I talk to people my own age they say get away from Rochester and push yourself. But, when I talk to most adults about this situation they say it is ok to stay close to home and keep in touch with family. My Grandma Larson made it especially clear that she wants me to stay in the area. Which I can understand since all of her grandkids are pretty far away... and a couple of them don't keep in touch which makes her a bit "testy". Any suggestions or opinions would be greatly appreciated and taken into consideration. I really do love my family a lot and want to keep in touch, but I don't want to be the person who didn't reach her potential because she wanted to stay with what is comfortable. Ahhh... getting old stinks! I hate being responsible!

2006-10-26T06:24:00.000-07:00

Happy Thanksgiving! I mean Halloween. No no... 4th of July! Or maybe Easter? Christmas? The stores are completely confused on what season it is. I went to JC Penney's this weekend with my cousin and the Christmas stuff was out. Trees, stockings, ornaments... the whole lot. I love Christmas as a rule, I even break out the christmas music early, but I really think it is sad how in general we rarely enjoy the spirit of different holidays on the actual holiday... after 2 months leading up to the holiday I begin to get tired of it. Now, this is a break through for me :) This stupid thing never lets me make paragraphs. In my Mental and Emotional Health Class we are watching the movie Prozac Nation. Talk about depressing... and really hard to watch. In my violence prevention class we watched part of the movie Elephant... another super depressing and scary movie... it is about a school shooting. All of my classes are depressing it seems... and discouraging. Anyone doing anything for Halloween? I have no plans what-so-ever. Halloween just doesn't excite me anymore. Maybe if I could still go trick-or-treating ;) Well, I had better be going. Have a great Halloween for those of you who have the spirit!

Chilly

2006-10-14T09:40:00.000-07:00

Freezing! It has been so darn cold... but I kind of like it to tell you the truth. The only stinky thing is that my coat zipper broke so I get a little cold without being able to zip it up outside. I did ok on my English exam! Got an AB on it so I was happy enough with that. I hate it so getting a B in it would make me content. I have been relatively busy the last week or two. Last weekend I went to Wausau with Sara to get my bridesmaid dress fitted. It is really beautiful and I like it a lot. Its strapless and floor length... harvest gold. Very pretty. When we were there we went to her highschools football game Friday night and then a band competition that her cousin/bridesmaid was in. It was pretty cool and it made me nostalgic for the good ol' marching band days in highschool. We also made cookies and pies which I loved :) Not mention the home cooked meals were amazing! We had salmon one night that was delicious! This week I have been keeping busy with homework and volunteering. Wednesday night I volunteered at a local assisted living complex and helped decorate for Halloween. Sara, Phil, and I are going to try and help out 1 or 2 times per month. Next time we hope to play some games and actually interact with the residents there. Later that night I went to a presentation about Iraq where I man spoke about his experience there and he showed his own documentary. A lot of the stuff made me really angry, but I won't get into that... it is to depressing and it would take forever to explain it all. This morning I took a trip to the grocery store all by myself. I went at 8am and there was hardly anyone around. It was pretty enjoyable actually. Lots of old people! :) Well, must be going now. Adios!

Whoop-de-doo

2006-09-30T14:44:00.000-07:00

So I work this weekend, and so far it has been pretty dull. The last two nights I got to run the cash register though, which is by far my most favorite duty! Scanning things is so much fun :) Yesterday morning I was super productive and wrote a 7 page paper in 2 1/2 hours! And it isn't due for another month! Yeah for getting things done super early. This morning I worked a Lit. study guide for a test I have next week. I really don't quite know how to study for a lit. exam. I have read the books and gone through questions asked in class, but what else can you do??? Any suggestions for you englishy people? Or don't you study at all for those types of exams? This weekend is Oktoberfest in LaCrosse so things are probably going to be pretty crazy in the dorms tonight. All I ever hear people talking about while working is going out to drink at the festivities. I have yet to even go to the fest grounds for the past 3 years of living here. Maybe next year I will check it out. Well, I have to be going now. Have a splendid weekend!

Bratwurst and sauerkraut Pizza

2006-09-24T06:20:00.000-07:00

Twenty-one varieties of pizza and 7 different dessert pizzas! Bet you all didn't know there were that many out there!! Last night I went to the Pizza Doctor with my family who came down to visit me and my cousin Megan who goes to school in La Crosse too! She goes to Viterbo though. Anyway, we went to this restaurant for supper and it was pretty cool. I will name off a couple of the crazy flavors: The Doc Holiday (turkey, stuffing, gravy and cheddar cheese), The Doctor Mac (Thousand Island dressing, beef, pickles, onions, mozzarella and cheddar cheese), The Doctor Potato Head (Gravy, baked potatoes, bacon bits, mozzarella and cheddar cheese), and The Doctor Zorba (seasoned lamb and beef, onions, and tomatoes) just to name a few! It was really cute too, because the doctor theme was all over. The silverware was labeled tongue depressors and scalpel. You should all come and visit me and we could go there! Other than that, not much going on. Studying all the time or class or working. Life is pretty "exciting"!

They Used to Call Me the Big Dipper

2006-09-05T06:45:00.000-07:00

I have a really cute I Love Lucy sign in my dorm room. It has a scene from the episode where Ethel and Lucy get a job in a Chocolate factory. In the show she says "They used to call me the big dipper" ... Hence my title! The sign makes my desk much prettier. So... I moved into the dorms for the third time on Saturday. I can't believe this is my third year of college and my third year in Trowbridge hall. Can you all believe how old we are? Ugh! Heck... We got people turning 21 now! My roomie is 21 and getting married... Susan is going to be 21 soon. Some of us will be graduating in a couple of years and starting the long years of full time work. Time just goes by much to quickly. Today I start classes at 9:25. I begin with my Mental and Emotional health class. A timely class, since the beginning of the school year can always be a bit trying. I think most of my classes should be decent... or at least I hope so. I am also working and tutoring this semester, which makes me a little nervous. I really hope it isn't too much for me to handle. I don't have any evenings free because of work or volunteering at the humane society. I think after a couple of weeks I may have to ask to have fewer hours working. I hope my boss is understanding if I choose to do that. I hope my week and yours goes well! I especially hope Mara's week goes better than the last! Sounded like a week from hell to me! Driving in cities traffic and having the hood of your car pop up while driving does not sound like a fun thing to me. I would probably refuse to drive again... or at least for a few weeks.

No bathtub fights today... could have fought with a stool though :)

2006-08-11T08:55:00.000-07:00

It is my life long goal to make a big ol' fool of myself! Today I was going to participate in a research study at work where you get skin allergy test on your forearm. Basically they do a couple of small injections and some skin pricks. Now, I never really have like needles, but I thought $50 sounded pretty good. So, I got the first round of pricks and injections, and it wasn't that bad. Got up and went back to resume my position back at the reception desk, and then it hit me. I wan't feeling real stable so I went to sit down in back of the desk area. Apparently I was really pasty... and I think I would have passed out if I hadn't sat down on the floor. It was very embarrassing, and I didn't finish the test. The nurse who was doing it didn't think it was such a good idea... especially if they wanted me to work the whole day : ) I don't understand why I get so freaked out by needles... when I actually see them it doesn't bother me at all, but my brain must do something subconsciously or something. Anyway, that was my excitement for the day. Everyone at work was really nice though, got me applejuice and popcorn to snack on : ) I love the people I work with!!

Attempt Number Two

2006-08-04T06:31:00.000-07:00

Yesterday I spent a good chunk of my morning updating this thing, and then when I am finally finished it disappeared. So here I go again... I doubt it will have the same tone and enthusiasm, but I blame that on the dumb computer.

I don't think I have been completely fair with how I portray the patients I serve. Most of the time they are very patient, sincere, and very thankful. Yesterday a really cute woman brought me a couple cookies from the hotel she was staying at. I had helped her earlier in the week to get in earlier than she was scheduled... and luckily I had the same luck yesterday getting her in early. She whipped out the photos of her grandchildren and insisted I looked just like one of her 17 year old grandkids. Last week we were able to get a man in early too, and his family the following day brought Becky and I a giftcard to Caribou Coffee. Getting a simple thank you or being told you are a really sweat girl is just as rewarding too. So, like I said, most of the time patients really are wonderful and thoughtful. Just a few "bad eggs" out there.

Last weekend I was a busy little beaver! Friday night I attempted to help my aunt setup her computer and connect it to the internet. Always thought I was good with computers, but I was wrong. I had no luck what so ever in getting that blasted thing to connect wirelessly. Let me know if you guys have any crazy computer skills that I am not aware of. I could use the help :)

Saturday my Aunt Jennifer took the girl cousins up to MOA for out annual before school shopping extravaganza. I didn't find much, only a shirt, but I had lots of fun. The best part of the whole trip was the ride up. Listening to some good tunes and chatting :)

Sunday I sprayed insecticide around the house, which was really exciting! Not so much actually. I had goggles and clothing up to yingyang, so I wouldn't spray the stuff on me. It was so hot that day, so it wasn't very pleasant. I also went to my cousins to watch a movie... The 40 Year Old Virgin. I didn't appreciate the humor very much. Not that great of a movie.

This weekend I will be pretty busy too. Tonight I am baking a pumpkin cake with cream cheese frosting for a birthday party I am going to tomorrow in the the afternoon. My dad's side of the family is getting together to celebrate all of the August birthdays, which account for like half the people on that side. Otherwise the rest are all in October... including the other side of the family and everyone else on God's green earth.

Sunday I am going to a Honker's baseball game because my uncle won a box seat where they serve Outback food! There is going to be cheesecake!!! I am so pumped for the CHEESECAKE! The one time I will splurge for some cheese. Otherwise you all know what it does to me ;)

Next week is the week of friends returning home :) Laura comes back to visit on the 10th!! I really hope I will have some free time to do stuff with her. And... Chelsi is finally coming home for good. Her dad is flying out on the 9th to help drive her stuff back. She is also bringing her boyfriend Joe back with her. I think they are going to stay at her parents house until they can find a house of their own. I am so excited to have her back. :)

2006-08-03T07:50:00.000-07:00

I don't have a good title

2006-07-12T08:12:00.000-07:00

Hmm... I don't really know what to say. Same old things are happening with me. I guess there is some small news... I, Abby, went out on a blind date last Friday night! *gasp* I know it is amazing... Almost shocking. At 9:00 I went on a double date at a bowling alley :) A woman I work with set me up with her nephew Adam, and she and her husband joined us bowling. It was a little awkward at first, but it went surprisingly well. Adam is 25 and a farmer, so we didn't have much in common to talk about though, so Sandy (the woman I work with) and I did most of the talking. We could always resort to talking about work. Anyway, I thought that might amuse you all.

Sunday I got to game with Lizard, Mara, Sue, and Betsi. It was good to see them a lots of fun :) We had to fight some shrubs and a couple of goat people :) Pretty exciting stuff!!

Unfortunately the camping event has been rescheduled to Monday the 17th so I won't be able to go :( That might be an ok thing though because this weekend is suppose to be unbareably hot. I don't think we would want to even have a campfire with that type of heat... and sitting around the open flames is my favorite part of the whole camping experience! I think it is suppose to be really hot the beginning of next week too, so that may not be very pleasant for those able to go camping. I hope it cools down for their sake.

Next Thursday I am going up to our cabin in WI with my mom and cousins! I get Friday off too... it is like a mini vacation!! yeah! Never thought one day off from work would be so exciting!! Anyway, we are leaving Thursday night after I get off from work. I am sure we will toodle around the area, maybe go to Hayward where they have the greatest candy store ever! Then on Friday evening, I am going to drive over to Wausau to see Sara for her and Phil's engagement party. Staying over night... and then getting up early to go Bridesmaid dress shopping. Saturday afternoon I am going to drive back to the cabin to spend a little more time with the cousins. It is going to be a very busy weekend... not as relaxing as I would like it to be.

Monday night I saw Pirates with the neighbor girl's and one of their friends. I thought it was pretty good, but I like the first movie a little better. The story line wasn't as good as the first, but I thought it had a little more humor in it. And of course Johnny Depp looked great in his make-up!! hahhaha I don't know what it is about him in Pirate attire, but man he looks good :) hehehe I was also disgusted with some of the "kissing" going on if you know what I mean?!?! (for those of you who have seen it)

While I write this I am at work, and guess what!?!?! I am over half done! Yeah! Sadly that also means summer is also half gone. At least I have a couple weeks at the end of August to pretend it is summer. Have great day!

This is not summer!

2006-06-19T16:50:00.000-07:00

You lucky part time workers! I am getting dang tired of working 40 hours a week!! Do you know how depressing it is when you only have 4 hours a night to say, "gee, I don't have to work now, but dang I will be getting up at 5:15 to do it all over again." IT SUCKS!!! And I don't use that word lightly folks. So, I work 40 hours last week, and then on Saturday I clean the house, pick strawberries, and make a pie and jam. Now, I do love to be in the kitchen, but it was basically working from 8 am to 6 pm on Saturday. Thank goodness I had Sunday to relax for a little while. My mom has even said that I have it pretty rough this summer... Which is really something since she isn't one to sympathize when it comes to working. Hell, I figure I do 12 hour days since I have to get up at the butt crack of dawn to get taken to work when my mom goes, where I work out and then shower and walk straight to work. I am sorry people if I don't always feel like doing stuff, but I basically go 5am to 5pm most days. 12 times 5... its like 60 hours a week! Kill me now... I have 8 more weeks to go I think. Ahh!!! Sorry for the complaining. Have a wonderful week all those who have time to relax and have fun!

A very odd thing

2006-06-01T09:31:00.000-07:00

Ok... so I guess I am considered shy by most people... Maybe you all don't see me that way, but apparently to the outside observer I am. This is going some where if you are wondering. Today while I was working, being my usual cheerful self, I checked in a guy who was really shy and hard to hear (he spoke at a whisper and I had to ask a bunch of times what his last name was). Anyway, I told him to have a seat in the lobby and they would call him in soon. So time went by and he still hadn't been called in so he came up and asked me about how much longer it would be. I answered with a quick "1/2 hour or so" and thought that would be the end of our conversation. It is important to note that he is not some old duffer, but a younger guy in his twenties. The next thing out of his mouth was "are you single?" Well, that throws me off a little since I have a line of other patients waiting for me.
"Yeah... I am single... Why?"
"Oh, well I am married but I have a friend who works here at Mayo and he would like to meet you I am sure. He is really shy and quiet. Would you like his phone number"
"Ummm... sure I guess."
"Well, his name is Jesse, and his number is......"
Ok, how odd is that. Who asks someone out for a friend, especially if he doesn't even know you? I mean the guy was nice and all, but his friend may be some psychopathic killer. I feel kind of bad saying "yes" to getting his phone number, and then never calling back though.

THE BIG QUESTION:
Could you all let me know your opinion on the matter? Would it be crazy to call this guy? Would it be rude not to call him? I guess my first instinct is to not call him, but I don't know really what to do. Let me know! Thanks!

Working on the West Side

2006-05-19T05:07:00.000-07:00

I have worked a total of two days at Mayo on West 15. The department is Spine, Alergy, and Infectious Disease. So far, it is going pretty well. I am a "receptionist" or in fancy terms a "patient service representative". Basically I am the person at the front desk that checks people in. Working 8-5 too, big shock from my short little 3-5 hour shifts I used to do at school. Anyway, I have to go to work speaking of work so got to go.

Time can't move any slower!

2006-05-10T09:03:00.000-07:00

A minute takes an hour to pass. An hour takes a day! It seems so sad that at the end of the school year I just kind of wish away the time. That whole story about living the moment and enjoying the "now" is a lot more difficult to follow than people let on. How many of us glory in the time of embarrassment or betrayal. Or during a 2 hour exam that is kicking your rear end? I mean I want to be like those easy going people that don't have a care in the world, but I guess I am just not made out to be that way :(

Tomorrow I get to go home for the summer at 11:00 am... exactly 23 hours and 53 min. for now! I am really excited about the whole idea, but I will definitely miss my peoples, especially Sara, who is leaving this afternoon. I am sure I will go and visit her this summer though, so it won't be so long. She is going to have a little "wedding party" get together that I will definitely be going to.

I have 2 more exams left, stats and small group communications. Stats is this afternoon, and I am not too worried about it. And then tomorrow morning at 7:45 I have my other final which should be "easy as pie" or "a piece of cake"! I think I will be baking when I get home ... hehehe! After that I am packing up and hitting the road.

I can't remember if I put this in my last entry, and I am too lazy to check, but I have a car!!! I get the "old lady buick" and my mom is getting a new Honda Civic, which I will get in a couple of years when the insurance goes down. I can't believe how much car insurance really is. It is crazy! Anyway the new car is going to be so cool! It is atomic blue and the EX model! It has a moon roof!!! That was the most exciting feature of the whole car in my opinion :)

Anyone going on any big summer vacations? I doubt I will be vacationing. Since I am working at Mayo, they don't give vacation for summer workers, but at least I will always have the weekend and evenings :) It makes me a little sad because this summer isn't going to be as relaxing as summers before, but I will be making some money.

Recently, I have been trying to switch my meal plan for next year. I am living in the dorms again, and it is policy that if you live in the dorms you must have some form of a meal plan. They have meal plans where you can get 10, 14, or 19 meals per week, or a block plan where you buy 50 meals for the whole semester. I want to get a block plan because you can eat any place on campus at any time, where as meal plans have many limits that stink! So, last week I went in to sign a waiver to be on block plan. Now, it is important to understand that for the past few years there are certain requirements for block plan participants. You must be either a junior, living off campus, married, or 21. Well, I am going to be a junior so I thought every thing would be good to go. Not the case! Since UWL built a dorm/suite/apartment they decided everyone must be on a meal plan unless you are in this new building! I am so mad!!! A meal plan costs $1000 a semester while a block plan only costs $250. I don't even eat all my meals now, and I figured out that because I don't eat all my meals I am paying $9 per meal! $9 for a nasty old sub?!?! I don't think so! Any way, that is enough of that!

See you all in a day or so! Good luck on finals!

Would you like Mayo or the tangy zip of Miracle Whip?

2006-05-05T06:27:00.000-07:00

Isn't that the most clever title ever? You probably think I am some kind of nut. Well, the title is actually very clever because I have big news about Mayo, and not the sandwich condiment or the school. So, here is the big story... I had an interview at Kohl's probably a month ago, and was informed last week that I would have a job there this summer. I was super happy about it because this year I actually had some one call me back upon receiving my application. So yeah, I was suppose to start on the 16th, until (suspense to mounting) I got a call yesterday by Mayo Clinic to work there!!!!!!!!!! I was so pumped when I heard the word "Mayo" float into my external auditory meatus. Even better, I was informed it would be a clerical job that is full time! No weekends!! Eight dollars and hour!! And I can get a membership to the health living center!!! Plus, the work is from 7am-4pm. The perfect hours in my opinion. So yeah, I am super happy about that. On more exciting news, I had my training at the Sub Shop for next semester, and I really like it. A friend from the major classes works there too, so I have lots of fun chatting with her as we work:) In a couple more min. I will be heading to my last class ever of this semester. I am so gitty right now I could pop. I suppose I should try to contain myself, since I still need to study for finals, but it is so hard. Do any of you have summer jobs yet??? Specifically asking Sue :) Hope you have some luck with that... maybe Savers so I can come visit you and Betsi! You all could get arthritis and come and visit me if you like. I will be working on the unit that concentrates on Rhumatology. Well, have to run to speech now. See you all soon!

Getting sooooooo Close to the Finish Line

2006-05-01T09:42:00.000-07:00

The sun hangs up in the sky looking down on me laughing. Why??? Because I am stuck indoors all the time working on dumb ol' final stuff. And then, just to spite me, Mr. Sunny boy hides behind the clouds all weekend, when I was home ready to bask in his beauty. Oh well, glad I decided to not go into meteorology... people are always angry with the forecast! This weekend I had a fun time at home. My cousins Jana and Angie had their birthdays in the last couple of weeks, so we threw little birthday party for them. I made a delicious cake for the occasion on Friday. Completely homemade. Exquisite in flavor and texture :) I must tell a cute story that led up to this cake baking expedition. I needed some ingredients for the cake, so I went to the local Cub Foods store for some yogurt, milk, eggs, etc. When I was standing at the cashier line there was a little boy (not really little though... maybe 13 or 14 years old). In his hands he was holding 2 pink candles, a pink bag, and a pink card. The cashier woman had been having a rough time from the previous customer, but instantly had a smile on her face when she saw the young boy. She asked him who the gifts were for and he answered that they were for him Mom... a Mother's Day gift!! :) The cashier and I squealed with delight and giggled. It was so cute!! We both told him how sweet he was and he looked pretty embarrassed, but I am telling you it made my day. To think a little boy would go out on his own and buy his mom a gift with his own money. Most kids just have their dad get the gift and card and maybe sign their name. Like I said, it was just so darn sweet :) After that I went home to make the cake as a very optimistic and happy gal. Today I give 2 speeches... my last presentations of the year!!n Yippy! If I get through this day all I have to worry about are my finals. I'm not very worried about those either. I got a job at Kohl's for this summer if any of you are interested. You should all come and visit me... Apparently I will be working at "the point of sales", in other words I will be a cashier. And, I also got a job for next semester on campus. I will be working at the Sub Shop building your personalized sub sandwich! Woohoo! :) Phil (my roommates fiance), is always complaining about how they don't ever put enough meat on and the vegetables are always clumped together, so hopefully I will be able to improve the customer's "overall sub eating experience"! HAHAHA Other than that... no much else new around here. Only 10 more days until I get to go home for the summer. It is amazing how fast time flies. I think I will be both happy and sad to leave. Of course, having to no longer worry about tests and papers will be great, but I will definitely miss my friends, especially since quite a few of the ones that currently live in the dorm will be leaving next year, and I still be hanging in the dorms. But I have Sara so everything will be fine I am sure. Good luck on all your finals exams and see you in the near future!

Spellbound

2006-04-23T06:20:00.000-07:00

Anyone like to watch Alfred Hitchcock movies??? Well, my roomie had to do an analysis of the classic "Spellbound". She had to diagnose the main character with some type of mental illness for her abnormal psychology class. It was a really interesting movie... based completely on Fraudian theory. I always thought Fraud was kind of a quack. I mean to think that people have all these poop obsessions seems a little weird to me. Anyway Dr. Anthony Edwards (aka John Valentine), was diagnosed as having Dissociative Fuedism. Basically he became someone else and then thought he killed the man he became. Interesting huh??? On a more depressing note... infact super depressing! My cousin's (13 yrs. old) best friend committed suicide. How sad is that? A 13 year old :( It is so weird. In the last 3 months 3 people I knew (though not very well) committed suicide. Is there like an epidemic of depression in our society now? This past year has been abnormally bad. I feel so bad for his family. I can't imagine having to deal with that. I send my love to them.

Blowing off some steam... do you hear the kettle on the stove whistling?

2006-04-09T06:07:00.000-07:00

I have a question... why do families not communicate? Why do people refuse to acknowledge the problems of their relationships? My family is the most disfunctional family I know!! But, that could be because you really never know how disfunctional other families are. No one like to talk about their own crazy family with friends. Who wants to hear about the problems of others when they have so many of their own? I know I don't. I like to sulk in my own worries and think I am the worst one off in the world. Why you may ask??... to tell you the truth I don't really know why. Anyway, just to make you all annoyed I am going to tell you my problem. I have an aunt who has totally removed herself from the family. Lets say she and her sisters got into a big fight over years of problems, and now refuses to communicate with the other sisters. My mom is one of those sisters, and it is completely destroying her and the family. We are having Easter at our house this Sunday, and the sister who has removed herself from the family is not coming :( It is sad to lose someone because of a fight. I must agree with my mom though, the reason for the disagreement needs to be addressed and not just pushed under the rug. Too many things have accumilated underneath our families shaggy, dusty rug. It needs to be hung outside and beated until all the dust and dirt flies out! So, now it has been at least 7 months since they have all talked, and I have a feeling that time will only get longer. My life seems to repeat it self. Something similar to this happened 5 years ago. A "marriage" or relationship split, and I haven't seen the other loved one for 5 years now. All because the two in the relationship refused to work things out, or at least make the situation less hostile. Instead they fought, shredded pictures of good times, changed locks, cursed the other, never spoke of them again, blamed the other for all their problems, and just to make life suck even more, pulled the kids of the family into her heart and then tossed them aside like useless rags. Ripped their hearts out and left them on the side of the road. Why couldn't she just accept the situation and still continue to love. She seems to have no ability to care for another or show she is sorry for her actions. She just keeps running from the problems in her life. Leaving her loved ones to catch the tears she sheds, but never express thanks for what we do. I am sorry that it has come to this. I still love her though! I won't stop being her niece or friend (if she stills wants me). Ok, well thats it. Thanks for tuning into 103.3 CRY Live.

Where is spring?

2006-03-23T08:09:00.000-08:00

Spring Break was great! I had a pretty relaxing break, and I never looked at any homework! There is nothing better than knowing you don't have do any homework, or that matter any type of not enjoyable work. On Wednesday I drove with Becca to Holland MI to pick up Sue from college. It was a super long drive, but it actually wasn't as bad as I thought it would be. I even drove for 3 hrs there and back to MN. A pretty good accomplishment for myself. Once we got to HOPE we got a tour of campus and were privileged to enjoy a lovely meal at the cafeteria. What a treat ;) We hung out with Sue's friends that night and played Killer Bunnies!! I was super fun and every one was really nice, crazy but nice. I like crazy though! hehehe On Thursday we went to Lake Michigan and watched movies. Sarah (roomie) and I ran at the seagulls, but they flew off before we could get very close to them :( I wanted them to fly up in a big flock right around us! Other than that trip to the lake shore it was a pretty quiet visit, which was nice since I like being low key and relaxed. The rest of my break was good. Saturday I got to see the New York folks, and it sounds like they had a great time. They were especially excited about seeing a building burn in Brooklyn I think it was. Laura sounded good for the most part, however I guess she was sick :( Hmm... Well that is all the spring break news. School is the same old here. I don't have much to worry about in tests and projects for a couple weeks. I was really excited about it being spring officially now, and I wore sandals today. I don't think that was one of my smartest ideas though, it was snowing when I left Stats this morning. Oh, and I don't I told everyone yet that Sara (my roomy) asked me to be a bridesmaid in her wedding. The big day is August 4th, 2007. I am really excited! We have been chatting about dresses and decorations. It is a lot of fun helping plan a wedding. I am sure Ashley is having a great time figuring all that fun stuff out too :) I hope to wear a "bronze" colored dress as of now. Sara is thinking bronze with an accent of some type of pink. I am sure it will be beautiful. Lifes great isn't it?!?!?! So many things to look forward to. This is my rare optimistic side, that I hope begins to dominate my thoughts! Love ya all!

What has the world come to?

2006-03-03T05:40:00.000-08:00

Well, I am watching the "Today" show this morning and something very interesting was on, and to me a little disturbing. Apparently the owner of Dominos Pizza is planning on building a town in Florida that is going to be "Catholic". Ok, I am Catholic and this whole idea is terrifying. I believe a lot in my religion, but I also disagree with all the different intolerances it expresses. This town apparently will discourage contraceptives, same sex relationships, premarital relationships... And on and on. Don't you think that kind of totally disregards the constitution?? I mean... Are only Catholic going to be allowed into the town? Isn't that considered discrimination? Well, Gov. Jeb?? Bush is all in favor of it. He is a Catholic... Surprise surprise. Anyway, I thought it was necessary for you all to be aware of what is happening in our own country. I guess the town will be finished in late 2007. Life has been decent otherwise. Last week was really bad though. I had a terrible test on Wed. In Epidemiology and then that night a boy 3 floors up in my dorm committed suicide in his room :( It was really sad... And really affected the dorm atmosphere and for good reason. It brings so much from the past back to the memory... Which is never a pleasant experience. This week however was much better. I got my exam back that I thought I did terrible and found out I got an "A", that made the rest of my week wonderful. I went to a wedding over the weekend too. It was an outdoor wedding and beautiful... Even though it was a little chilly. The food and cake at the reception was amazing. I am always excited about food :) There were at least 3 different flavors of cake. I tried two and they just melted in your mouth. I am really excited about Spring Break because Becca and I are going to Hope to pick Sue up for her Spring Break. I can't wait. The drive is going to pretty long though... 9 hours I guess. Hopefully Chicago isn't to crazy to drive through. I hope Becca is planning on driving through there! Well, I am going to get some pancakes :) I always have pancakes on Friday to celebrate the weekend! hehehe

Love is in the air

2006-02-14T17:35:00.000-08:00

Valentine's Day is just like any other day... There is no more love than before. I think the meaning of Valentine's Day should change. Rather than focusing only on couples, it should focus on the love between close friends and family. It seems that most people seem bitter about the day and its implications. Lost love comes back to haunt the survivors, and those who have not experienced it are ironically haunted by the lack of its existence. It make me want to hurl. But, now I think I have learned that the day is only what you make of it, and I have decided to ignore it (except for the cute little conversation hearts candy that I love to eat!) On a more chipper note, I was able to go home last weekend to surprise my mom on her weekend before she turns 50 party. I made a really good coconut cake... And it was completely from scratch. I also decorated the house before she came home from work and cleaned it to boot. She seemed pretty surprised, which was amazing since I almost let it slip that I coming home a few times while on the phone the week before. Another exciting event.... Take a guess.... I have learned how Medicaid and Medicare work in one of my classes. Talk about "exciting". Now if any of you have questions pertaining to Medicare or Medicaid be sure to let me know because I can help :) hehehe I tell ya... Whoever made up the system must have been participating in some illegal activity concerning inhalant when they came up with this stuff. Well, I suppose I should do something a little more productive than complaining. Adios!

Sorry About the Wait

2006-01-30T05:22:00.000-08:00

Ok... I forgot to update. Lets just say I was lost in the swirl of no snow! That didn't really make sense. Anyway, classes started last week and they went just fine. I think I will like most of them. Maybe not Biometry... not a great professor and a little too much math and technical junk. Yesterday, I started my new job which is catering on campus. I worked 6 hours and it was darn hard work at times. We served 300 people... at a Girl Scouts awards thingy :) ehehe. They were all really old. I was expecting a bunch of 7-12 year olds or something, but they were actually 16 or older I think. It was basically like watressing, and you know what they say about waitressing right? The hardest work ever. I liked it for the most part though. I will have great biceps by the end of the year ;) Well, other than that there isn't much new. I have Stats at 7:45 so I better be going.

Sizzling Cinnamon or just regular cinnamon?

2005-12-10T07:05:00.000-08:00

Ok... the big question is what is the difference in sizzling cinnamon and just cinnamon when talking about Jelly Belly jellybeans? Whenever I eat these two "different" jellybeans I can't tell the difference, except in what they look like (sizzling cinnamon has pretty yellow speckles). What is your favorite Jelly Belly jellybean... and buttered popcorn is not an option because it is just wrong! It tastes super nasty in my opinion.

On to bigger and better things. I get to go home in one week!!! Yeah! I am so excited about break... I can hardly contain myself. I only have 4 finals and none of them are cummulative so I am not very worried about them. Only one I was scared of was my Anatomy Lab final, and I took that last Thursday so I don't have to study for that anymore! I think I am all done with the cadavers now. It kind of makes me sad. It is really interesting to see what humans look like in the inside... its a little gross too :)

Next week I have to do all my Christmas preparations. My number one goal is baking goodies! I am making chocolate covered cherries, baking cutout cookies and frosting them, dipping pretzels, making fudge, and maybe making my Great Aunt Bertha's famous sugar cookies... which have a cup of butter and a cup of oil in them. I can't eat those cookies knowing that :(

Then of course I must do some Christmas shopping, which drives me crazy because I never know what to get people. Every time I ask people what they want they tell me they want nothing, which may be the nice thing to say but makes things much more difficult for me. People should just tell me what they want so they don't end up with some useless gift like a tool box or a pair of socks ;)

Well, I should probably do a little final studying today, so I better get to it :) Have a great week and good luck on finals to all you college people! See you soon I hope!

Do the Abbinator's Quiz!

2005-11-17T06:52:00.000-08:00

http://www.quizyourfriends.com/yourquiz.php?quizname=051117095138-257201

Thanksgiving is almost here!

2005-11-15T10:16:00.000-08:00

Well, life has been exciting the last couple weeks, and that is my excuse for not posting in such a long time. I even have a better excuse for not posting the past 5 days... bacterial tonsilitis. However, now that I am well and rather chipper I thought I better say a few words. Yesterday I did my last test before Thanksgiving break, so now I am in that mood where I just want to dance around my room and sing Christmas music. In fact thats what I am doing now, not dancing though. I am watching to guys smoke outside of my room window. They are both wearing black... ok enough of that. Anyway, I am super excited because I am going to be doing a bunch of baking this coming week. Cookies, pies, dipping pretzels, and baking a new sweet potato recipe. Yahoo! Hmm... not a whole lots of other stuff happening... next Monday I am playing at the Packer/Viking game in Green Bay for band. That should be pretty exciting. I hope it isn't too cold. Last night it was so cold during band practice I thought my finger were going to fall off. Well, got class in a few min. so I should go. See you all over Thanksgiving I hope!

Weeee

2005-10-04T06:11:00.000-07:00

I saw the cadaver last Thursday, and I didn't even feel a little faint. It was a bit disturbing to look at the fingernails and toenails, but other than that you couldn't really identify it as human... that sounds kind of bad. Well, anyway I have 3 other people I study with in that class, and one of them commented that I was freaking them out because I kept walking by the room with the cadavers and staring at it. She said I was "obsessed" with it. I don't think that is the case... I was just amazed that I didn't get weird feeling. So yeah... I am relieved to know that I won't faint in Anat. lab.

On a different topic, this week is super crazy! I have 4 exams (tues, wed, thurs, fri). There should be a rule that professors are not allowed to synchronize their test schedules... it is driving me nuts! I hope everything goes well :)

Lizard tagged me so I thought I would respond for once :)

Post five things you enjoy, even when no one around you wants to go out and play. What lowers your stress/bloodpressure/anxiety level? Post it in your journal, and then tag 5 friends and ask them to post there's.

1. Watching the Food Network! I love to watch shows on the food network, and pretend to cook/bake with them. Often times I make up meal plans as I watch, with the intention to actually make the recipes... it makes me happy.

2. Color in Coloring books. I don't know anyone who doesn't like to color. For some reason it makes you relaxed. When I went home the first weekend from College I brought back my coloring books, and now I try to color in them when I get stressed.

3. Read if I have a good book.

4. Exercise. Adrenaline makes me feel good. It is a little like taking a healthy drug :)

5. Laying on the floor and thinking about fun stuff coming up. Relaxing basically. Right now I am looking forward to going home this weekend and making a pumpkin pie ;)

Martha is BACK!!!

2005-09-27T14:21:00.000-07:00

All you Martha fans out there... I proud to announce that Martha Stewart is back on the air :) Today I watched her day time show for the first time, and I must say it was outstanding! Now she has a live show with guests, and it was surprised me how relaxed and friendly she was. On her other show whenever she had guests she seemed very cold, but maybe her prison experience made her a little more of a people person :) Anyway, I was so excited to see her again, and I will be a loyal viewer I am sure!

Today I learned about the vertebral column and ribs! The anatomy of the body is really pretty cool, though the idea of looking at a cadavar still really scares me. After my recent fainting episode the idea of a dead person makes me all the more nervous of fainting. I always think of the idea of fainting onto the cadavar.... ewww... makes me shudder just thinking about it. We haven't actually looked at it yet, but I will let you all know how it goes.

This weekend the band is playing in the Oktoberfest parade and at a football game... Saturday is going to be crazy! The weather looks like it will be really nice though, so at least it won't be a miserable experience. I have a feeling are games later on in the season will be pretty cold. I remember some games from last year that were unbearable! At Mayo we wouldn't have had to play because the temperature was too cold but apparently there are no rules here :( Oh well.

Trying to get a car sometime in the near future. My mom agrees with me, which will make the whole ordeal a little easier. I really want to get a car with good gas milage so if any of you car owners have suggestions let me know. I figure it is about time I get a car so I can get a decent job next semester, and for sure next summer.

Well, other than that... not much new. Miss you all!

Back to Coal Mines

2005-08-30T11:00:00.000-07:00

Well, life back at LaCrosse isn't so bad. I still wish it was summer, but I will make do with the situation and try to be happy about it. Band camp has been as busy as ever. I am really tired already, and we still have 3 days. My roomy, Sara, is coming on Friday, which excites me. It is a little lonely being alone. I like having some company. Hopefully we will do something fun this weekend before we start classes on Tuesday. Well, not much else new... thought I should update this a little though. Have a great start of school. See you all soon I hope :)

I fought with the tub and lost

2005-06-10T08:42:00.000-07:00

Well, I had an embarrassing and painful moment yesterday. You know how they say Elvis died on the toilet?!? Well, I acted that seen out too. I was sitting on the toilet... got faint... put my head between my legs in hopes of preventing fainting. Then I wake up in the bathtub. How I got in the bathtub I have know idea. It was so weird. It was like I was dreaming and then woke up and expected to be in my bed. When I finally figured out what happened I got up and noticed that there was a puddle of blood in the bathtub. I freaked out and touched the back of my head and realized I must of hit my head. I was home alone so I called the neighbor lady I know really well and she came over and took care of me and called my mom to come home. I went to the ER and only had to get one staple in my head. I am just fine now. Feel healthy as a horse... but it was really really really scary when it happened. Well, that is all the news I know. Hope all is well. Don't faint on the toilet!!!

Walk through the woods

2005-06-03T10:46:00.000-07:00

Well, took me long enough to write on this thing again. I have a good excuse :) I did write a post a couple of weeks ago, but my stupid computer ate it and didn't burp out any remains :( This morning I went on a 7 mile walk with my mommy on the Pinewood trail and then came home down 11th Ave. We left bright and early, around 6:45! I saw some birdies and a woodchuck... I think that is what it was. Last night I went to my cousins 8th grade graduation at St. Francis school in town. Why don't public schools have 8th grade graduation. I went to my neighbors 8th grade graduations earlier this week too. I am telling you these "private" schools really do things up for just graduating from 8th grade... or maybe I am just jealous that I didn't get to have a graduation from Willow. Then again, maybe not ;) Other than attending graduations and bowling I haven't been doing much. I have worked out in the yard the last 5 days and today I cleaned the house and even mopped the floors. I love to have a clean house :) It smells so fresh and happy. Today I am going to go to a movie with my cousins.... The Sisterhood of the Traveling Pants. I hope it is good on account that it costs me money! I bet it might be a little cheesy but have a good lesson at the end ... hehehe. Well, I should go now. Have a great weekend people, and we need to plan something for next week!

24 hours!

2005-05-10T10:59:00.000-07:00

Guten Tag!!! Only 24 hours until I am out of here! I have a chem. test in an hour and my EFN test tomorrow morning. I am so excited to almost be done. I have most of my things packed... just need to throw some clothes and my computer stuff in a box :) Last night, Sara, Phil and I went to Fiesta Mexicana in LaCrosse. I had a Veggie enchiladas, which was really good and a huge step up from nasty Whitney food. I am a little sad about leaving, but I am really excited about seeing my friends and family. Bitter sweet. I heard talk of a camping trip this summer, and I think we should do it. I am a little wary about going some place far far away though... I would prefer within 2 hours at the most. Of course, if everyone else wants to travel off into the distance my vote loses and I will go with the flow. Any one find a job yet? I am having a very difficult time, and I applied to a bunch of places (like 8 places I think). Let me know if you hear of places hiring. Well, I suppose I should go get pumped for my Chem. final. Wish me luck ;)

The sounds of Copland are like nails on a chalkboard :(

2005-05-01T06:21:00.000-07:00

Yola y'all! ONLY 11 MORE DAYS UNTIL SCHOOL IS DONE FOR ME!! I am so excited and happy!! Yesterday was an eventful Saturday. My mommy came up in the morning and picked up some of my junk in my room because a week before we leave we have to return our lofts and we have no place to put our stuff then. After that we went to my Grandma and Grandpa's for lunch! It was soooo good! I usually don't like "hotdishes" ;) very much, but when it is your Grandma's you can't complain! Later in the afternoon I had my last band concert of the year and my family came! I felt so special... hehehe. The concert was really bad though. We played "A Tribute to Copland" and some one forgot to play their solo and I played a solo right after them so I didn't really know when to come in... but I think I did ok in the end. Even though we sounded pretty rotten I had a lot of fun :) This week is the last week of classes and of course papers and last exams come along with it. I have all papers finished and have studied for the exams so I hope they all go smoothly. I am looking most foward to having no more Chem. Lab! I really hate chem. lab because I don't always do so hot on the quizzes, and I don't understand why. I always do pretty well on the lecture exams, but for some reason I don't do well in lab. I suppose not wanting to do any of the "dangerous" stuff may hold me back a bit. Luckly I have a lab partner that likes to play with fire and chemicals so I don't have to. I really stink at the card game hearts... I should just give it up.

Schedule for Fall Semester

2005-04-21T15:52:00.000-07:00

http://pak06.pictures.aol.com/NASApp/ygp/Login?event=ViewFilm&filmId=48214.767.1114448318486.1&locale=en_US Check this link out for some nifty pictures :) Computer went wacko and it didn't save my entry :( Anyway, I registered yesterday for next semester, and I will be taking the following classes: Geography 200, Anantomy, Human Ecology, Intro. to Community health, Theater Apprec., Sociology, and marching band probably. 17 credits total. I swear I had make up my schedule atleast 4 or 5 times because every time I checked to see if the classes I wanted were filled up they were :( I didn't even want to take geography, but I wanted all my credits to count towards something, so it was my only choice really. Oh well. If you have read Lizards blog you probably read that I was going to go up to the U of M and meet her to go to an Everclear concert, but my ride fell through. I am really really sad because Everclear is my favorite band plus I could have seen Lizard and Kelsey. Sadness :( This weekend my cousin came to stay with me at school for a night. We went out to dinner with my other cousin, Angie, because it was her birthday. We had lots of fun and it was so weird... I saw Sarah, the Bassoon player from Mayo, at the restuarant. Later, we came back to my room and watched Supersize Me... about the guy who eats McDonalds for 30 days and gets sick. It was really gross... never going to eat there again... I guess I really don't eat there anyway but never again! Well, have to run... see you all hopefully in a few weeks. Study for those finals :) hehehe

La-de-da

2005-03-27T18:05:00.000-08:00

Well, I got home this weekend for Easter. I got a ride home with my Aunt on Friday, and it was her birthday so we went out to dinner and visited my Great Aunt Irene and her daughter Mary. It was a pretty fun day. Irene is 80 something and likes to tell lots of storie that begin with "Back when I was your age I..." She is so nice :) She also likes to try to send home things home with you like mustard and only once worn pants... hehehe. During my visit with them I also was informed that at a Wendy's restaurant a lady had a bowl of chili with a finger in it... apparently it came from someone in the meat packing plant because no one at the restaurant was missing a finger! Never going to Wendy's again! Saturday I dyed eggs and made cut-out easter cookies with my cousin in the morning and in the afternoon I got to see Susan and Betsi! Betsi brought some old MacGuiver dvds and we watched those. I must say I actually was ammused by MacGuiver and wouldn't mind watching a few more. Today I went to my Grandma and Grandpa's in Hokah and ate a lot for lunch and then some more for snack and more and more and more.... I feel like a piggy! This week could be a little crazy, but not impossible. Friday I am going home again because it is my birthday on Sunday!! :) I am going to get my hair cut too... shortish again I think. Well, I hope everyone had a good Easter who celebrates it! Yep... well... I guess... bye bye...

Sandy Carpet

2005-03-07T08:42:00.000-08:00

This morning I took a nice warm shower and felt refreshed and happy. It still felt pretty warm outside when I walked to and from the REC, which made me feel a little spring feverish. Until.... I walked into my room and took off my sandals and a layer of sand was plastered to my feet! I was clean as a whistle and then the stupid sand invaded my whistly feeling :( Stupid sand! Well, this weekend was really nice. I got to see my Grandma and Grandpa Sat. and then I stayed overnight at their house. Saturday they picked me up and we went to confession (for you none Catholics that is when you go to a priest and confess your sins and then he gives you penance to do to make up for your sins) and he informed me that purgatory still exists! Big news to me because I thought purgatory disappeared a long time ago :) Anyway, we went to dinner after that and then back to their house and watched Mrs. Doubtfire!!! That has to be in the top 5 movies in my opinion. On Sunday I got to enjoy a delicious home cooked dinner. There is nothing like home cooking :) Today I have a midterm in my EFN (understanding human differences) class and I feel like I know the stuff, but my teacher on Thursday scared to crap out of me. She made it sound like the test was impossible to pass, so who knows if I really am ready. I am going to try and not worry about it though. I only have a few more days until spring break!!! Yippy! I am really excited to just go home and not worry about anything. All my professors said we won't have anything to work on over break. Aren't they a nice bunch of folks?!?! Martha is out of prison!!! Wooohoooo! And Jellybean season is coming upon us! Life is good!

Snow

2005-02-21T18:17:00.000-08:00

It snowed this weekend, but not that much in La Crosse. My mommy said it snowed in Rochester, and they got 8 inches! I wish we would have gotten that much, but I will get to see it this weekend because I am going home!! :) Yippy! I can't wait to go home. Classes have been going well, but I want a break so I can bake and cook! I want real food! For anyone that it may interest, I will be home for spring break during the week of the 14th! I won't be doing much so let me know if you will be around too to do something. And now a lesson for Lucy... "Misery loves company". That was from the book The I love Lucy Guide to Life. I don't remember if I already mentioned this in my Blog, but Martha Stewart gets out of prison in early March!! I am so excited!! She is going to have two new shows in the next year! I will be a loyal viewer! You must all watch and support her!!! Its a good thing!

BLAHHHH

2005-02-03T05:23:00.000-08:00

Cats sure can be crazy! Every Tuesday I am working at the Humane society and playing with the cats for 2 hours :c) This Tuesday was my first day and it was certainly very eventful. All of them were pretty nice, but we had one black cat that was nutty! He was darting around the room... Bouncing off the walls and saliva just spilling out of his mouth. We didn't notice his craziness until we got into the play room and by that time we were scared that he might bite us or something. Sara (roommate) went and got a animal handling lady and she had to take him back into the back room. I felt kind of bad for him. All my classes so far have been pretty cool... Except the whole going to class at 7:45 4 out of the 5 days. Not that I wasn't up but I never have time to eat breakfast :( Which is my favorite meal of the day. Well, I have to go to a Chem. discussion group. Have a great weekend!

Back Again

2005-01-23T17:55:00.000-08:00

Fun snow storm this Friday! Rochester got 9.3 inches of snow! It was soooo pretty and fluffy. LaCrosse got a lot of snow too. I was going to come back on Saturday but because of the snow I didn't come back until today. It seems really weird to be back... almost like a fuzzy dream. I went and got my books, which consist of 7 for 4 classes that require books. I think this semester should go will. Hopefully a little less stressful and better teachers. I have high hopes. I got back to school around 10 this morning and unpacked, and then my mom and I went to see my Grandma and Grandpa for lunch and to celebrate Grandma's b-day. I made her a snickerdoodle cake that tasted darn good. We chatted some. It was interesting really. Lots of talk about church finances. Very interesting :c) I am unbelievably tired and I don't know why. It isn't even that late and I fell like I could go to bed right now. Maybe it is just the changing environment. I don't know what to do now... maybe I will go to bed really early and get well rested for the big day back.

Freezing

2005-01-13T17:40:00.000-08:00

Well, another day has gone by. People seem so insignificant sometime. What really is the purpose of our lives. Today I woke up and told myself that I was going to get some important things done today. Specifically clean the house. Doesn't it seem we waste time on things that really don't make a difference. I mean going to college. Sure it is enlightening and an experience, but will I really use it in my career. It think that to succeed in a job it is more important to have experience. And on the point of making a difference... Meaning of the jobs people have don't bring peace to the world but cause more problems. They're not commendable. High School too... I mean grades are so silly. They tell nothing about your abilities in most cases. I would say they are more telling of your work ethic, or at least in my experience. Ok and working for a letter is so stupid. The history teacher I had, and hated, made a really good point. She said "it seems these days that grading doesn't really judge one's knowledge and ability anymore." She also made the point that what you take away from the class is more important than the grade you receive. Why do students get so stressed out about grades? I must admit that I am such a perfectionist, and it is killing me. Sorry for rambling. I better stop now.

Friday Night Movies

2005-01-07T08:44:00.000-08:00

There will be a movie night at my house at 6 pm. First movie at 6 and second at 8. It won't be real late because I have to get up early. You should come! There will be snacks and chocolate chip cookies! Bring some good movies if you can. Video is better. DVD's will probably have to be watched on my laptop. Tiny screen. If you have any questions on how to get to my house call me :c)

Happy New YEAR!

2005-01-05T07:53:00.000-08:00

I have really tiny fingernails. My fingers are really long and then the nails are so tiny... they look out of proportion! Ok... enough about that. I have had a wonderful break so far. I have seen lots of people, which has made me sooooo happy. I missed everyone so much. The last four days I have been helping our new neighbors (Anne and Steve Igel if you know them) move into their new house across the street. I have even done a little painting, which is really fun! I could so be an interior designer! This winter storm we were suppose to have has been a big flop. I was hoping for a snow day! I know it is a bit silly being that I wouldn't get out of school, but the excitement in the air just makes me giddy! That there ice we had was sure a doozy! Yesterday I went out looking for salt to put on our driveway before the snow came, but Rochester seems to be out of salt. Anyone able to find some? Let me know where you found salt if you got some. I am actually kind of looking foward to going back to school. Now that I know I can get through history I figure I can get through any class if I "apply" myself. hehehe That really sounded like my mom. Well, I have to go. Sue... let me know when we are meeting on Thursday! Thanks :c)

I am finally home!!!

2004-12-21T09:22:00.000-08:00

I am soooo happy!!! It snowed... I'm home... everything is perfect! I got home yesterday in the early afternoon. It was kind of a dangerous drive. Our windshield was covered with ice. Very scary, but we got home thank goodness. I was so excited when I got picked up yesterday because Chelsi Igel came home on Saturday and she tagged along to pick me up. I hadn't seen her in 6 months! She was doing pretty good and is glad to be home for a couple of weeks. I think all my finals went well so that makes me happy. I won't know my final grades until January 3rd, but a lot of my teachers post our final exam grades online, and the ones I have seen look pretty good :c) Well, we must get together soon!! I have lots going until after Dec. 28th. After that, pretty much home free. Let me know if there is a good time when we can all do something!! Happy Holidays!!!

Less than 48 Hours!

2004-12-18T13:52:00.000-08:00

I will be home in 33 hours!! That took me a really long time to add up... it seems that in math you can remember the hard stuff but not what you learned in elementary school. Adding being one of them :c( My academic life has somewhat improved. I only have one final that is in class left to do. My history final is a paper, which I finished writing, and my music appreciation final is a take home. I don't get that until tomorrow though. I had my biology final on Friday and I think it went very well. Hope it truly did! Well, here is the BIGGEST, EXCITING, CRAZY event of my college life so far, and it has nothing to do with a party because as you all know I am a hermit. I went to go get my history paper back last night because Dr. Buffton hadn't finished correcting them before class was done. Actually I have been going to check if it was corrected for the past 3 days, but last night it was there. As you all know my first paper killed me with a D. But guess what!?!?!! I got an "AAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAA" on my second paper. I was so so so happy I started to cry and ran back to my dorm... Literally... and burst in and had a huge grin on my face and told Sara, who was probably getting tired of me complaining about that class. If I get an A on the final I can get a B in the class... I think even if I get a B on the final I have a chance of getting a B in the class. Not betting on it though... it might have just been luck with my last paper. Anyway I am very happy now. I am getting kind of bored now because I really don't have to study anymore but my roommate does so I don't know what to do to entertain myself. Any suggestions?? Today I returned books with Kristi and then we played Sequence. Lots of fun and broke up the long day. But really, I would appreciate any suggestions to get me through the next day. Well, I suppose I should go and call my Grandma. I will see you all very very very soon I hope!

My Window is Sweating!

2004-12-14T05:30:00.000-08:00

Good Morning! Well, it is really sad... my window is so cold it is hot and is sweating now. My little pictures I drew on it are melting away now :c( Stupid window! Well, this is my second to last day of actual classes... 6 days from today it will all be over and I can totally kick back! So, I have a question... is it ok to not get all A's? I don't think I will this semester and it has put me in a bad mood. In all my classes I have 90% or better but two of them you have to have 94% or better to get an A and anything below 94% but still in the 90s is an "AB". Who ever made AB's is dumb! Of course I don't have that in history, but history is just poopy and I would be excited if I got a C! I really really want a C! hehehe It is sad to hear me say that. These past couple days I have studied so much that my brain has gone to mush and is ozzing out of my nose! Not even out of my ears but nose. Talk about gross. I have a cold :c( I think I have gone in to ultra stress mode because every night I wake up atleast 4-5 times... look at my alarm clock and then roll over and try to sleep some more. This has become a lost cause. Well, thank goodness I only have to endure these conditions for another 6 days :c) Well, I better go... going to eat and watch something other that sponge bob :c) and then start studying again :c(

11 DAYS!

2004-12-09T05:28:00.000-08:00

Hey y'all! Only 11 more days and I will be home sweet home. Guess what I am watching now?!?! Sponge Bob Square Pants! Talk about a really weird show. I don't start class until 12:40 today so I plan on getting a lot of studying done for finals and practicing my speech that I give on Monday. I just can't wait to get done with all these finals, speeeches, papers... they're never ending! This weekend is going to be a long one. My roomie is going home, so I will be all alone :c( I keep telling myself that it will give me lots of time to work on stuff, but I don't think I can do that for 48 hours. I might go crazy and eat cheeeeeesee! Wouldn't that be terrible!?! Well, I am going to go eat a harty breakfast and watch Sponge Bob. I will talk to you all later and see you in less than two weeks!!! YIPPY!

Only a couple of weeks

2004-12-03T07:38:00.000-08:00

Guten Tag ! Hope everyone is doing well and had a great break! I had a super-de-duper break :c) I had registration yesterday and let me tell you after all that I was about to scream. Talk about frusterating. I got through it though... not with a great schedule mind you, but there was little that I could do. Every day except for Thursday I have to get up for a 7:45 chemistry class. I will be dead by the end of the year. Not to mention it is the "difficult" chemistry so this might be a recipe for disaster! Enjoy the weekend!

THANKSGIVING!!! yIpPy!

2004-11-23T12:54:00.000-08:00

HAPPY THANKSGIVING!!!!! So... how has everyone been doing? I had a fantastic day filled with much joy! I only had one class today, Biology. We had an exam on our third unit, and it was easy! Yippy... nothing like a good easy exam to make you think you are on top of things. Unfortunately I have two classes tomorrow, the other two were canceled, in the morning so I won't be leaving for home until 12:30. That isn't really that bad though. Tonight I am going to splurge and get good food for dinner because I am just so giddy. I think I will get a chicken fajita thingy. Yummm :c) Tomorrow I will be baking up a storm if all goes as planned... we are talking cookies, chocolate covered pretzels and cherries, russian tea cakes, and fudge! Doesn't it all just sound too good to be true. I doubt I will actually get all of that done but it is worth a try. On Thanksgiving I am going to my Aunt and Uncle's on my Dad's side to celebrate Thanksgiving and Christmas... they are leaving for Arizona in early December so that is why the we are celebrating x-mas so early. It should be lots of fun, but sadly I will not be able to attend the movie night if it happens Thursday night. My relatives live out of town and we are eating dinner there, so it would be pushing it to try and get back. On Friday I am going to be the crazy nut out at 5:30 a.m. to do some big time shopping. I am going to try and get all my shopping done that morning. It might be a really difficult job though because I have no idea what to get people... especially my grandparents. Does anyone have a suggestion??? :c) I am also going to try and but up our christmas village on Friday afternoon. Super busy!! On Saturday I am going to decorate for christmas with our fake little tree and other decor. I love the season. I just can't wait... jingle bells... jingle bells... jingle all the way! Well, got to run. Have a wonderful break to all those college students out there! Miss you!

What am I to do?

2004-11-11T14:04:00.000-08:00

So... the big question in life... what do I want to do when I am out on my own? Do I want to live in a box, or should I strive for something a little bigger?? Sara and I have been talking about this a lot. I have 4 years of school and she has 5-6 years. We are talking about going through high school again (time wise)! I don't know if I really want to do this anymore. Not to mention majoring in something I really am not sure if I want to major in. I still enterain the thought of having my own bakery or working in an awesome restaurant... not Perkins! In suggestions on what direction I should go because I am at a total loss! Anyway other than this burning question everything has been going pretty good. Tomorrow I am meeting with my History Prof. (evil woman) to have her look over my paper that is due in a month again. She told me what to change in it already so I did that and now I will see if she likes it or if she will bash it some more :c( I hope she says "Gee Abby, that was a great paper! You will surely get an "A"!" That might be wishful thinking though. Well, I have to run to Bio. Lab! Talk to y'all later!

"If Life Gives You Lemons, Make a Lemon Souffle"

2004-11-03T13:06:00.000-08:00

My life has been a heck of a ride the last couple weeks, and this is my excuse for not updating in a very long time. First I will begin with my "hell" week, which was last week. It all began on Wednesday (actually Monday and Tuesday were great days) at my first class in history. Well, I heard John Edwards was going to have a rally on Friday during my history class so I asked my history teacher if it would be ok if I went to the rally and got notes for a friend in class. She did not answer with yes but rather looked at me with a blank stare that said "Abby, you better not do that or I will bite your head off... or at least drop your grade." So, I tell her that I will think about it and that I am not sure if I will go to the rally. Well, 50 min. later the class is about to end and she says she is going to hand back our first of three papers for the semester. It is important to know that basically we are only graded on these three papers. Well, I along with many of my classmates were shocked with a BIG OL' "D" or "F"... I felt pretty lucky with my "D". I am not kidding when I say the entire class got grades like this. I did know one person with a "C". So, I am all stressed out and I tell myself "You better drop this class". Sadly I only have 2 days (until Friday) to drop a class so I go and get the drop form and talk to my RA. She told me that she would drop the class if she were me. So my next hurdle is to get the drop form signed by my professor (Dr. Buffton). Her office hours are only M,W,F 1-2 and I have a speech class during all the times... so I didn't know how I was going to meet with her. Luckily that day I got out of speech early so I do get to see her. I run to her office and stand in a long line of other students, who are all getting their drop form signed. I get it signed but tell her that I don't want to drop the course and that I am not sure if I will hand in the form yet. Wednesday night I call my mom... Crying... And I tell her the whole ordeal. I express lots of anger because I have already done all the work for the class... Including writing my other paper that is due in a month. Well, my mom gives some wise advise and tells me to turn in the paper and have her look over it to see if she thinks if it has potential. So I jump through more hoops to get her to read my paper... And in the end she does... Tells me she was impressed I wrote it this early and that I have ample time to rewrite parts... so I stay in the class. My life was a living "h***" but I am still alive. Sadly, things are sad again with the election news and now I am going to go cry in a corner. Hope you all are doing better than me... though that isn't saying much. Hugs to all the sad Kerry supporters.

Big Question??

2004-10-26T14:42:00.000-07:00

More political junk to clog your mind with. I need advise. This Friday John Edwards is coming to our campus in the morning for a rally around 8 a.m. ish. I really really want to go but I have a stupid history class, that I hate, during that time. Should I or shouldn't I skip class to go see John? I really like John Edwards and voted for him in the primary too :c) Let me know what you think!!

Booo!!

2004-10-24T06:32:00.000-07:00

Guten Tag! I have had an extremely busy week. During the week I was studying like a mad woman for midterms, and this weekend was nuts because of homecoming. Yesterday was the "big" game and we won 42-14, which was exciting. However the weather was really crappy and cold, so it wasn't as much fun as it could have been. During the game we also had some on expected entertainment by a couple of streakers... only one of whom was caught by the police. It was gross but funny sort of. Today I have to go to two concerts for my music appreciation class but I am excited because the first one is a clarinet recital :c) It should pretty nifty. This coming weekend (Halloween) I am going home to celebrate this little girl next door's birthday. She is just so darn cute :c) I am thinking of taking her to Color Me Mine or something fun like that. Well, I better be off now... got Church in a 15 min. Talk to you all later and have a great week.

Get Out and VOTE!!!!

2004-10-13T13:12:00.000-07:00

Hello all my fine feathered friends! How has the week been going for you all? Well, I have lots of political news so if you hate politics and are tired of hearing all this stop reading :c) Ok... here I go. So last night in the basement of my hall one of the RAs put a program on ... and it was a debate between two very educated democratic students and two educated republican students. Anyway both parties spoke very diligently about their party and candidate for president. Well, I was probably not going in with the possibility of having my mind changed by this, so of course I was still on the side of the democrats and I thought they debated very well... and came on strong. Here comes the exciting part... I was sitting with one of my fellow clarinets, and she had told me earlier this semester that she would be voting for G. Bush. I didn't say anything about how I was for Kerry thinking that I don't want to get in a political brawl. But, last night after the debate she said that it actually changed her mind!!!! OH my GOODNESS!!! Debates really do make a difference :c) I was so excited last night that I didn't fall asleep until midnight or later. I was just elated to know that voicing your opinion really does make a difference. My political stories go on to today. I was told during my speech class at 1 p.m. that there was going to be a Kerry rally on campus and the theme was going to be environmental issues. The catch was that it was during my speech class, but our speech teacher was so cool and said that if the whole class went then we could go... well, no matter what side you are on... Bush or Kerry... every kid wants to get out of class so the class agreed to go. The line to get in was huge... and a big part of the reason was that Leonardo DiCaprio was going to be the last main speaker of the rally! Obviously this probably brought a lot of people, not just Kerry supporters, and it also brought a huge population of girls!! I am not kidding a guy was probably 1 in 10 of the crowd. The rally was great and got most of the crowd really pumped-up and excited. I had an awesome time and got a Kerry Edwards sign to put up in a window.... an extra little bonus! hehehe Well, I have been so distracted today that I haven't gotten much homework done so I should work on that. Tonight is the last debate so I encourage you all to watch it!! Oh yeah... and don't forget to vote!

Arggg!

2004-10-10T07:06:00.000-07:00

Guten Morgen! Wie gehts? My week was very busy and crazy. I had tons of homework and things to go to in the evenings. Tired.... zzzzz zzzz zzz. Anyway, yesterday was my day to do no homework, but I was still very productive. In the early afternoon I went to my cousin's house in LaCresent, which is 10 min. away. We did laundry together because she is in college now too and she came home from Winona. After that we went to her old Catholic school in Hokah, MN. This is where my mom went to school too along with my grandparents. It is really tiny. Every two grades combines, and each grade has less than 10 kids in it. Anyway... they were having a roast beef dinner to raise money for the school and you wouldn't believe how much food they had. I was a waitress and sat people down and served beverages. There must have been at least 3000 people that came. The dinner started at 4 and went to 8 but we ran out of beef at 7 so we had to start to turn away people. Those people were not happy campers. I also met some of my cousin Angie's friends and one girl is going to college in Iowa to become a court reporter. I thought, "who in the world thinks of becoming a court reporter?!?!?" She seems to really like it though and she brought the little machine she types on and it is so weird. I can't even explain it... there are only like 20 keys and when ever she types she does it phonetically. It looks confusing but she claims it is really easy.

This week I had so much homework I could have hurled!! My evil history teacher was as mean as ever. She had an optional mid-term on Friday... I didn't take it because I knew it would be impossible and thought why stress myself out. There really wasn't an incentive to take the mid-term anyway. On Thursday morning I wrote a 6 page paper for history and a short 2 page paper for speech. When I was done I was so excited I vacuumed my room :c) hehehee Don't know why I thought that would be the best way to celebrate but what the hey.

Friday I went to see Spiderman 2 with Sara (roommate) and her boyfriend Phil. It was pretty good I thought and we had pizza because the theater we went to serves everything and the movies are really cheap!!! Only $3!! The actual theater is in kind of rough shape. The seats are ripped but I can handle that if it is ONLY $3!

Today my mom and Grandma Larson are coming to have brunch with me because it is Family Weekend. After brunch I think we will probably play games or something. My Grandma loves to play cards... so I am sure she will love that idea. I hope we can go buy milk too because if you buy milk on campus it is really expensive. I am soooo cheap!

Well, I suppose I should spruce up the room a little bit... make the bed basically, so when they come to see me they see a clean dorm. My mom told me she would always expect a clean and tidy room when she came to visit :c) Doesn't that sound just like a mom. I hope you all are doing ok... in fact great. Talk to you all soon I hope! :c)

A Wild Weekend

2004-10-04T04:58:00.000-07:00

Guten Morgen! Well, this weekend had some interesting things happen. On Saturday, Kristi, Larissa, Brian, and I went up to the cities to a Gopher's Game to see the band. We were also going to pick up a girl in the northern suburbs named Brittany. She went to Willow in our younger years and then moved. Anyway, we left around 4 to go pick her up and then go to the game in time to see pre-game. This did not happen though :c( Ok... soo.... we were suppose to go on 494 most of the way to her house, but of course there was road construction. Brittany called us and told us about it before we got to the construction and gave us new directions. However, that didn't matter because we still managed to get lost. Well, we got Brittany around 6:50 and she gave us directions to the dome, so the ride there wasn't bad. But we still got to the game late... around 7:20. Well, we saw everyone in the band and half-time. It was cool and really nice to see everyone. We left before the end of the game so we could get out and went to Applebees near Brittany's house. We had tasty appetizers. Then we dropped off Brittany, and that is when I fell asleep in the car. 1/2 hour later I woke up and Brian was looking at a map draped over the entire back seat... we were lost again. Only really really lost... in residential areas. Apparently Brian thought since we got lost coming; we might as well take a new way. BIG MISTAKE! Well, I said we should just try and get on any highway once we found one, because it was a major road and easier to see on the map. Eventually we got on a highway... 94 I think... And then luckily we ran into South 52 and got on it. In the end we were lost for probably an hour. It was very frustrating... especially for Kristi who was driving. She kept her cool though... thank goodness. I got home around 2:15 Sun. morning and then woke up at 7 for church so I was really tired, and I still am. Anyway, it was a night to remember. We had fun :c) Well, I better eat breakfast. Talk to you all later!

Yahoo!

2004-10-01T12:22:00.000-07:00

Howdy y'all! Well, I had success at the art room. I got my pear pot back along with Susan's rat pot and Sarah's bell! They were all in fine condition. Ms. Baker was doing good... she and Kristi chatted for a long time :c) I went into the band room but no one was there because they were marching around the school before the pepfest. There was one person however, with the name Dylan, and he had been kicked out of the festivities for the afternoon because he decided not to show up for band class. Well, he said he was only helping set up for Homecoming but didn't think he needed to tell Mrs. Jarvis his plans. Some dorks never change :c( Anyway... it was weird being back in Mayo... sorta sad in a way. I miss the simplicity of high school. Well, still feels like Christmas... I guess here in Rochester the low is suppose to be 29 tonight. Brrrr... I don't think I will be staying for the entire game. I thought the debates went well and Kerry whipped Bush's behind. I had to evaluate each candidate's performance for speech, and Bush didn't have very good presentation skill. He leaned on the table thingy through the entire night!!!! tisk tisk Mr. Bush. Well, I have to go now. Have a wonderful weekend and talk to you all soon! Love ya!

Christmas in September!

2004-09-30T07:39:00.000-07:00

Ok... so my Christmas mood has already set in. Actually its a new record... Usually I start feeling like this in August. I waited a whole 2 months! Right now I am listening to my CD of old Christmas classics. Truly puts me in the festive spirit. Today I have my big Biology test and I have been studying continuously, but sadly I don't know why because I feel I know it all really well. I think I feel guilty if I don't study. Tonight is the big night ... The DEBATE!!! YEAH! I am so excited and am going to watch it and enjoy tasty cookies and snacks during it. It is going to be a regular party by myself :c( It seems everyone in my dorm is republican and I don't want to get into any fights so I will be viewing it alone. The recent poll numbers are really making me nervous. All of them put Bush ahead by like 10%. What is with people these days? Yesterday I got an e-mail that was saying that Bush planned to establish the draft next spring if he is elected president again. Do you think this is a crock or true? It also said that being in college would not exempt people. This really scares me if it is true... I think I would get physically sick if this happened. This weekend I am going home again, but with Kristi so it should be lots of fun. We are going to go see Ms. Baker and I am going to try and get my clay piece back. I will try to get Susan and Sarah's too if she lets me and has them there actually. I am also going to go to the parade and the game... but it is suppose to be really cold and rainy so I might leave early after the band plays at the game. Then I am going to go see the Gophers play and see the band on Saturday night!!!! I am really really excited... I will get to see Lizard, Kelsey, Meg (maybe), Chris M., and Nick M. Yippy! Well, now I feel guilty for not studying for Bio. so I should probably go. I will talk to you all soon! Love ya!

Good Golly am I tired!

2004-09-24T08:55:00.000-07:00

Hola! How is everyone doing? I am really really tired. I just got done running the 1.5 mile for "Gym" class. I was pretty proud because there were catagories that you could get into for the time it took to run, and I got into the "good" catagory. Only 1/2 a min. away from the excellent. Not bad for almost dying :c) Tomorrow is the day from heck in band. We have Oktoberfest and our activities start at 6:20 in the morning :c( I am going to bed really early tonight! Well, I better go and eat lunch before my big scary Music Appreciation class. Hahahah... just kidding. Slack class! Bye Bye and have a great weekend!

Sadness :c(

2004-09-22T13:21:00.000-07:00

On Monday I didn't have speech because my professor was sick. Today I had that class again and found out that he had actually had a heart attack and was having heart surgery as we were sitting there. He was my best professor and it makes me super sad. Our new teacher seems nice and sincere about helping us go through a smooth transition, but it will be hard. Today I made use of the writing center. A nice student named Erin read over my History paper I wrote Monday and gave me a few pointers and checked for grammar. My paper is bleeding red, but hopefully in the end the result will be an A :c) Well, I have to go correct the paper now... talk to y'all later!

Good Morning!

2004-09-21T05:12:00.000-07:00

This morning I pulled myself out of bed at 6 a.m. to go to the REC to exercise. I walk out into the cold, harsh environment and even the squirrels are hiding (which is a rare event). I trek towards the REC center and everyone is outside the doors standing there... Freezing in the elements. No one was there to open it up! It made me very upset... Anyway I stood there waiting for a half hour freezing my buns off and finally decided to forget it and went back to my dorm. Now, I would have been more patient and waited but I set up a breakfast date with my uncle at 7:45 so I had better things to do. Anyway the rest of my week has been super... Consider I have only gotten through Monday :c) I wrote a history paper yesterday afternoon when I heard that my speech class was canceled. Good use of time and got it done 3 weeks in advance :c) Just like the old day of high school! I even got my homework high! Hmmm... this afternoon Kristi and I are going to bake brownies. They are going to be chocolate with a layer of tasty caramel! Doesn't that sound good?? Any thing but cafeteria food sounds really good these days. Well, I better go. Tchuss!

Howdy Ho!

2004-09-15T17:58:00.000-07:00

Another exciting day here at LaCrosse. It really rained a lot last night but I guess it can't compare to good ol' Rochester. I heard there was a little flooding going on. "Not a good thing" as Martha would say. Speaking of Martha (my hero ;c) sounds like she wants to get her jail sentence under her belt. I think it is the best idea. Why wait around and bring more attention to yourself?!?!?! Well, today was pretty uneventful. I had history right off in the morning, health, and speech. Didn't really learn anything except that each pound of muscle in your body burns 50 calories at rest in 24 hours. Isn't that a fun fact. Ummm... I had band too and we are playing Pirates of the Caribbean for our halftime show. I can't remember if I told you all that. It is super cool :c) We are also playing Bend Me, Carry On, and Hey Baby. This evening I went to dinner with my mentor for Link Crew. We had spaghetti and it was pretty fun. Well, I have to go to a study group for a Bio. test tomorrow. I'm not to worried about it. Have a great night and great weekend if I don't get on to up date.

Arg! Its Monday :c(

2004-09-13T20:01:00.000-07:00

Hola! I hope everyone had a great weekend. I had a pretty good one. I went to my Grandma and Grandmpa's on Sat. before I went home. We had a late breakfast that was really really good. She made me cinnamon rolls (the best thing ever!) and even served applesauce because I love her applesauce. I love going to Gma and Gpa's :c) When I got home a gave Chloey (cat) a huge hug! and then got to work ... in other words laundry. Yippy! Only 3 loads for 2 weeks... I didn't think that was too bad. On Sunday I went to church and then a walk at Quarry Hill. It was lots of fun and really nice out. I also made a pie. A coconut cream pie... sorry to disappoint you all. Maybe for homecoming I could make a pie and we could all get together and eat it if you come back. I am going to try and come back Friday afternoon so I can see the parade. Let me know if you will be returning for homecoming because I want to see you! Well... I must go do homework.

YEA! Its the Weekend!

2004-09-11T05:02:00.000-07:00

Well, it was a productive week at school. All my classes seem like they will be ok. I think my favorite class will be speech! *Gasp* Can you believe that. I have a really nice teacher who wants to make it fun so yea for that. I am only worried about one class... My history class. My teacher was rated very poorly on Ratemyprofessor.com :c( That might not mean anything though. I went to the college democrats on Thursday, which was interesting. They kept trying to get me to volunteer to go door and call people and ask them who they are going to vote for and stuff. I would if I didn't might confronting people, but that really isn't my idea of a good time. This weekend I am going home to visit and make a pie hopefully. Not sure what kind yet... Maybe pumpkin or apple. Well, I have to go take a shower. Hope everyone is doing well and happy birthday Sue! Love you all!

Hmmmm....

2004-09-06T09:04:00.000-07:00

Guten Morgen! It has been a very busy weekend. On Saturday my Aunt, Uncle, and cousin Megan came to visit me. We went out to eat at this cheap but really tasty restaurant, and I had this mushroom and onion omelet. Mmmm... Mmmm good. Then we went to Barnes and Noble for a while and I checked out the cookbooks, which is the best section in the store :c) After that I met up with Kristi and some other clarinets and we played cards. I learned a new game called pogo. It was pretty fun but it made me dizzy. After that we ordered a pizza and watched a movie in the other Kristi's (clarinet) room. We watched 13 Going On 30 which was ok... kind of dumb though. Oh yeah... and on Sat. night they had free mocktails that were really good. There were to flavors... Strawberry Strippers and Safe Sex on the Beach. How dorky is that?!?! Well... on Sunday I went to church in the morning at 11:15, and it was suprisingly fun. Much more energetic than at home. After that I went to lunch with Kristi J. and this link crew meeting for freshman. That was a little cheesy but my mentor is really nice and is going to give tours of campus today to help us find all our classes. Kristi went home after that so I did stuff with my roomy and some other people I met at the link crew thing. The food isn't that great... especially if your vegetarian but what can you do. We played games afterwards and watched movies... and then at 8 I went back and chatted with my mom and watched a little TV and read. Today my cousin from LaCresent is visiting and we are going to do something and I have a picnic at 11:30 with a neighboring dorm. It should be a good day. Tomorrow classes start so wish me luck :c) Have a great Labor Day!

Saturday

2004-09-04T09:11:00.000-07:00

Guten Morgen! How is everyone doing? I am doing pretty well. I am excited because my cousins, aunt, and uncle are coming to visit me today! It will be fun to see them all. It is the kick off of freshmen oreintation so I am sure there will be lots of things to do... but who knows how much of it I will actually do. Not big into those things if you know what I mean. I will try to make it to some of the stuff though because I know it is good for me as my mother would say. I have been feeling pretty good... not too homesick. I am ok with being alone sometimes so it hasn't been too hard. Yesterday I had my first band "performance". It wasn't that big of a deal. We played for the freshmen welcome assembly... only 4 songs and guess what?!?!? Two of them we played at Mayo! Smoke on the Water and Hey Baby. It was exciting to know how to play the songs :c) Well, there isn't too much else new. Talk to you all soon. Have a great weekend!

Band Camp

2004-09-02T13:05:00.000-07:00

Hey everyone!!!! Hope you all are doing well. I have had a few long hard days of band camp but it has been lots of fun. You wouldn't believe how hot it is... actually you probably can recall band camps from the past. All the clarinets are really nice and friendly and our section leaders are really cool. They aren't grumpy and pushy :c) Ummm... I just to let everyone know also that I would perfer you all to send e-mail to my weatherorknot@aol.com address rather than my school one because I check it more often. Thanks a bunch. Well, I have to go get ready for sectionals. Talk to you all soon and try not to dream about a millions of shoes like I did last night because it was really scary and woke me up. I don't get it either.

College AHHH!

2004-08-26T16:08:00.000-07:00

I am so tired of worrying about college. I hope it just gets here and everything goes smoothly. Today I worked and mowed the lawn... not very exciting :c( Now I must pack ... I will try to write more in the future.