A Good Kind of Busy: 

Within the last 9 days, it has been decently busy.  Not an overwhelming busy, but a healthy and exciting busy. 

Last Tuesday:

I signed up to participate in Moot Court.  In some ways it is very similar to policy debate, but it is more professional.  Moot Court mimics real court.  This year we are debating a case about abortion laws.  You are only allowed to use the cases and evidence cited within the Moot Court binder that the Moot Court association has compiled.  The binder is over 600 pages!!  This year the case is about whether it is constitutional or not to require any woman wishing to procure an abortion to have an ultrasound and require her to see and hear the baby.  She must also be informed of the risks of abortion through the state's pamphlet.  I am debating whether the "due process" clause of the 14th Amendment is violated because of Proposition 417.  I have to prepare a 8-10 minute mostly memorized speech for both sides, petitioner and respondent.  My partner is debating the 1st Amendment.  Under Proposition 417, the doctor is not permitted to answer any questions the woman has or refer her elsewhere for answers.  Lately, I have been working on the Petitioner side.  It has been difficult for our whole club to compile good points without compromising our pro-life stance.  Last Monday, while observing the advanced teams practicing I had a revelation.  Before the woman undergoes the ultrasound the physician provides a copy of the state's pamphlet.  After reading the pamphlet she is to certify in writing that she had understood the risks.  I am not allowed to use an outside dictionary, but according to the Oxford English Dictionary, understand is defined as, "thoroughly acquainted or familiar with."  Since the physician cannot provide answers if the woman were to inquire further about the risks, she cannot reasonably sign off that she has understood the risks.  That is my main argument why Proposition 417 is unconstitutional.  

Later that day my partner and I ran through our arguments with our coach.  He told me that he liked my argument and hasn't heard another team run that argument!!  That sure put a smile on my face!  

Thursday: 

Our whole wing, especially Sara, Hannah, and I had a blast planning a surprise party for our RA.  Our RA doesn't like to publicly celebrate her birthday, but we did it anyways.  Sara, Hannah, and I went to Walmart and purchased a huge card (probably 12x24in) streamers, balloons, and a mini disco ball for our dorm. :)  We also walked to the local grocery store and selected an Oreo ice cream cake and flowers.  As we were walking back we were constantly on the lookout for her.  Thankfully we made it safely to our room.  Our RA was in her room studying so it was difficult to plan a surprise party. We decorated our wing as quietly and quickly as possible.  We also inflated several balloons, probably around 40.  The whole floor was covered in balloons. :)  Then we knocked on her door and surprised her!! Afterwards we filled a sheet full of balloons and dumped them over the balcony and sang "Happy Birthday."  Then we had to decide how remove all the balloons.  Rather than carrying them all back upstairs, we took the balloons outside and proceeded to pop them.  It was awesome!!! 

  

Friday:

It was one of the best days of the week.  It was the Freshman Dance.  The dance began at 7 and was held at a local church.  Sara, Hannah, and I had a blast getting ready.  Sara styled all of our hair.  The Freshmen dance is low key and most girls wear knee length dresses and most guys wear jeans.  Usually whenever I attend a dance, I always kick off my shoes.  That night I wore heels and wore them the whole night.  My feet were not super sore, with the exception of a blister on the top of my toe.  For three hours, I danced most of that evening's songs.  Some of the songs we danced to included the; YMCA, I Feel Good, and You Don't Know You're Beautiful.  After a blissful night of swing dancing and some pictures we went out to IHOP.  I've never been to IHOP before.  Around 11:30 p.m. we ordered breakfast.  :)  I was delicious.  Other fellow students were also there. Although my feet were tired and we were stayed out till 12:30, we all had a blast.  

Saturday & Sunday: 

Most of the weekend was spent studying for the dreaded U.S. History test.  Sara and I were quizzing each over various facts.  Some of the upperclassmen bought snacks for the studious Freshmen.  After we got some snacks we were finishing studying around 11-12 p.m.  While we were studying we had great laughter over some of our silly answers.  At some points I almost cried from laughing.  

Monday: 

Test day!  U.S. History is my second class of the morning after Western Civilization.  The first portion of the test was a 50 question multiple choice.  These questions are not your typical 4 possible answers.  When taking this test you have to read the questions extremely carefully because there are 6 or 7 possible answers.  Thankfully, it only took me less than an hour to complete this portion of the test.  After lunch, it was 1 p.m., and we had 45 minutes to run through all our essay outlines. Students can complete the essay whenever and have as many hours as necessary.  Sara and I had decided to begin the essay at 2.  During the precious 45 minutes, Sara and I ran through all the potential 7 essay questions.  Once we arrived at class, I spun the "wheel of misfortune," to see which essay I would write.  My essay question was describing the Spanish, French, and British motives, colonies, and who had the most successful policy.  The essay can be as long as you want.  Previously, I did not think it possible to write long essays.  I ended up writing a 12 page answer to that question.  I could tell I had several people praying for me because I was not nervous and had no difficultly writing my response.  It took me 90 minutes to write my essay.  I feel like I did pretty well on my exam.  The difficult part is waiting for my score.  Thank you to everyone who prayed!! 

On a side note, in Logic we have been reading a book called, Love Your God with All Your Mind, by J.P. Moreland.  Every week we have to read a chapter and write a blog post about it.  If you are interested in a good read, read it!  Moreland talks about how the church is losing focus on the importance of the intellectual mind.  He discusses the various problems and solutions to those problems.  In the most recent chapter I read, he talked about the "empty-self."  Society has become increasingly focused on itself and has resulted in minds that are not able to think, reason, and tackle apologetics.  This has been my favorite book we have read so far. 

Next Monday, we have exam in Western Civilization.  It is also multiple choice with 5 potential essay questions.  Thankfully, the essay questions are not on the same day, so our brain has a chance to refresh!  We also have a Logic test next Wednesday.  We have to memorize 49 fallacies.  I don't feel stressed about the Logic test.  The West Civ. worries me a bit more because I have never enjoyed Western Civ.  Despite my lack of enthusiasm, West Civ has not been uninteresting.     

Cheers and love to everyone back home!!

Another Good Ole Week:

Last week wasn't super eventful, but here are some of my highlights.

Thursday:
Once a month, beginning September, is Gray Glove.  Before students leave for Christmas and in May, there is the rigorous cleaning inspection called White Glove.  Every inch of your dorm has to be spotless and if it doesn't pass inspection then you are fined.  In order to prepare the students for White Glove they have Gray Glove.  I am so grateful that I only have Theology on Tuesday and Thursday for an hour and a half, so I could spend the day cleaning.  It was 10:30 by the time Theology and our wing Bible study was over.  Immediately after that Sara and I got to work.  We worked until 1:30 and then we had lunch. After lunch were hurried to finish.  The inspector was expected to arrive between 3 and 5.  The thoroughness required was military style.  The air conditioner filters, the white grilles on the windows, the top of the doors/frames, the slats under the top bunk, and the top of the drawers underneath the bottom bunk all had to be spotless. The inspector is extremely thorough and last year most of the rooms did not pass the first time.  Sara and I had a goal of passing the first time. I'm proud to announce that we did pass our first Gray Glove on the first attempt!! Yea!!  Later that evening we decided to celebrate with a movie.  We eventually chose Megamind.  I wasn't too keen on watching it, but afterwards I really enjoyed it.  I was like the Incredibles but with a twist.

Friday:
We had no classes on because it was Faith & Reason day.  Since there was no classes we got to sleep an additional whole hour! :)  Everyone is required to attend Faith and Reason.  The dorm wings get really dressed up and coordinate their outfits.  Our theme was autumn colors.

That was the dress I wore along with my hair pinned up in a beautiful braid, black heels, large silver earrings and a pendant with my initial on it.  

The lecture was an hour and half.  Afterwards our group went to lunch and then to discuss the lecture.  During discussion time it is our job to compose a question to ask the panel.  By the time all that was said and done, we returned to the hall with the whole study body to listen to our questions being answered.  Unfortunately, there were several questions and ours never got answered.  The lecture was interesting.  The goal of Faith and Reason is to demonstrate how faith and reason and not opposing, but rather work together.  After the question time ended at 2:30, it was time for the annual study body picture.  The camera man stood on top of the second story roof.  It was difficult to look up into the camera and smile when the sun was shining in your face.  Thinking we were done with pictures I returned to my dorm.  I had only begun to kick off my shoes before I was informed of another photo shoot with just our wing.  These pictures were more enjoyable because we used old books as props.  When all the festivities had finally concluded it was around 4 p.m.  

One other highlight of the day was that I received 2 care packages in the mail.  The mail room sends you an email when you have a package.  I was surprised to find 2 packages.  Thank you so much to the senders!!!

After a long day of sitting we had to sit even more for our extra credit history movie.  We watched the PBS documentary, Into the Deep.  It was about the U.S. whaling industry and about how Herman Melville's experiences lead him to write Moby Dick. 

Saturday:

Sara had her sister over for the day.  I spent the morning taking notes on U.S. History.  Then I went to lunch with Sara and her sister.  After lunch, Sara and her sister went to the mall and I stayed behind to study.  Hannah and I studied for an additional 3 hours before heading out shopping.  We went to a local Goodwill and then went to Walmart.  I was in the market for a new phone, because my current one does not have enough storage.  Although we didn't have much on our shopping list we were out for quite a few hours.  Since we had missed dinner we stopped at Five Guys.  The double stacked bacon cheeseburger was extremely delectable.  :)  Mmmm.  We left campus around 3:30 and returned around 8.  I did stay up late that night till 1 a.m. to finish my history lecture.  

Sunday: 

Sunday was the usual routine of homework after church.  All my homework for the this week is completed. Yeah!

I am excited for this Friday because the first dance of the semester is rapidly approaching.  I can't wait.  

Monday: 

Today was a go-go-go day.  First, was Western Civilization where we learned about Ancient Greece. Then on to U.S. History for a non-counting quiz about the differences between Christian and Enlightenment views.  After a good chapel, it was onto Logic to discuss the Diversion Fallacies. After lunch I had to finish an online Library scavenger hunt.  Then it was onto Moot Court where I observed and took notes on the some of the advanced teams.  While I was listening I had a great idea for a new argument in our case!! :)  Moot Court ended at 5:30 which only left 25 minutes before Research & Writing.  I barely had enough time to shove down 2 mini tacos and 2 slices of watermelon before my last class.  Usually Research & Writing is my last class on Monday except tonight.  Our history professor offered an extra credit discussion on Worldly Saints: The Puritans as They Really Were by Leland Ryken.  

This coming week is going to be decently busy.  Next Monday is my first U.S. History test with several multiple choice questions with a mystery essay.  We don't know which essay we will be given.  So we have to write 7 outlines before hand and write only one when we get in class.  That day I also have a full Moot Court round.  I have to perfect my speech and work on polishing my memorization of all the related cases.  We also have an essay due about the 1st Amendment in two weeks and the professor wants all of us to have a session with the tutor to help us fix any weaknesses. Even though this coming week is going to get busier, at this point I really don't mind because I enjoy a busy schedule.  

Sending love to everyone!! I miss you!  

      

It's the Weekend!

You can begin to tell when fall/winter is approaching, because classmates/roommates begin getting sick.  :(  The top floor of one dorm is already sick.  Yuck.  Not much happened over the weekend, but here are a few highlights.

Thursday:
On Thursday, Sara woke up not feeling well.  Hannah soon followed with a cold on Sunday morning. Later that night, Hannah and I went to the local grocery store across the street.  It felt really good to get out after studying for a couple hours straight.
It felt awesome not to have to stress about any homework due this week because it was all done!!

Friday:
Sara went home for the weekend.  I had no excuse not to accomplish all my work.

Saturday:
I love the weekends, not because I have no class, but because I can sleep late (9:30 ish.)  That afternoon, Hannah and I went out shopping.  We visited the local antique stores and a couple thrift shops.  At one store they had a Medieval dress handmade from the tabs of soda cans.  It said it weighed 8 pounds and the asking price was $1,500.  That dress was awesome!  After exploring for 2 hours, we began our walk home.  The trails nearby are gorgeously lined with lush trees.  I stayed up after midnight to finish Theology before hitting the pillow.

Sunday:
Usually the rails on the top bunks are pretty sturdy, but I have not been so successful with mine. Within the last three weeks I have knocked off the rail at least 4 times.  Two other times I have popped out the pegs.  The rail is secured by a metal peg which allows the rail to slip over it like the cap of a marker.  It seems that the peg is not wide enough to hold the rail.  I shall hunt down a wider peg this week.  Thankfully, I have not fallen out of bed yet, although there was a student who had previously fallen out of the top bunk.
The freshmen dance is approaching withing the next 2 weeks!  Tonight there was a dance class for swing.  I have never done swing before, but I loved it.
I finally finished all my ice cream cake.  It was delectable!
Sara is back and is feeling better!!  Yeah!

Here's a joke I found.
Student: "Would you punish me for something I didn't do?"
Teacher: "No, of course not."
Student: "Good, because I didn't do my homework."

Thankfully I don't have to worry, because after I finish reading the Iliad I don't have anymore homework due this week!!!!!

It's My Birthday!!!  :)

It's my most favorite time of year besides Christmas.  Today is my birthday!  Today I had the pleasure of sleeping in till 6:45ish versus the normal 6:20.  Sara had a breakfast engagement so I decided to take a quick jog around Lake Bob which is right behind the dorms.  For class I wore my favorite white dress with black flowers from Kohls, black heel sandals and I put waves in my hair. After a quick breakfast of vanilla yogurt, pineapple, and watermelon, I headed off to class.  In Western Civilization we discussed the Jews and how their God differs from any other class of people's god.  Western Civilization was succeeded by U.S. History where we discussed whether the colonies were established for provide religious freedom for all.  After both history classes was chapel.  A local pastor spoke about giving God every second of every day.  Lately we have been reading from the book of Hosea.  Right before lunch we have Logic.  Once my classes were over I headed to the mail room.  I ordered a birthday gift for myself. 

These are my new dresses which I adore!

Thank you to everyone who sent me a card!!

I am pleased to announce that I completed every assignment due for this whole week on Labor day!!!  :)  Since I have no homework due this week I took a nap after opening my cards.  Right before Sara and I sat down for dinner, she announced to the whole dinning room that it was my birthday.  Everyone in the hall sang to me.  After dinner we had one last class from 6-7.  When the class was over, I couldn't decide what to do, so I told Sara and my RA to surprise me.  

Sara surprised me with a gorgeous bouquet!  :) 

My surprise party consisted of watching The Princess Bride, shortcake cups with raspberries and blueberries, and an Oreo ice cream cake.  The cake was delicious!! 

Thank you so much to everyone for all your thoughtful cards and texts. 

HAPPY BIRTHDAY to ME!! :)