Two Very Good Reasons to be Happy:

I can't believe it is finally here!  Today was the last day of classes!  Although I have greatly enjoyed our class discussions and learning new things, I am thrilled that the year is almost complete.  Only one more week to go!  Next Monday through Wednesday is finals week.  I'm tired just thinking about the seven essay outlines I have to write, nine lectures to memorize, two blue books and six tests due within a timeframe of 60 hours.  Besides that enormous black cloud, I am on cloud nine because I get to sleep in, wear jeans instead of business casual and no more classes.  (In case it hasn't come through, I'm overjoyed about the end of the semester.  :)

Another reason that I am excited is because I got published this week!  I got an article printed in one of our school's newspapers.  I wrote an article about the importance of farm subsidies.  The new edition came out yesterday.  You can only imagine my happiness!  I even had a friend tell me that the article convinced her of the significance of farm subsidies.  Yeah!

  

The finish line is so near.  I can taste victory.  :) 

So Busy Yet So Much Fun. . .Dancing: 

On February 20th we had another dance the Sadie Hawkins.  Unlike the Christmas and Liberty Ball where the guy asks the girl, this time the girl asks the guy.  While some girls have elaborate plans for asking, mine was simple.  The first guy I asked did not work out, but that is okay.  I decided to ask a senior I did not know.  The only thing I knew about him was that he was occupied the same barracks as Hannah's brother.  My strategy for asking was quite simple.  I knew that he liked anime.  Since Sara and I had just finished watching a Japanese anime show, I printed off a picture from that show with some of the characters at a dance.  Along the frame of the picture I wrote 'would you go to the dance with me.'  Since my blind date and I had different schedules I had my roommate Hannah deliver it.  He said yes.  

The day before the dance Hannah, Sara and I went dress shopping.  I already had my dress but Sara needed a new one.  When dancing swing, one must make sure their dress does not spin too high.  Unfortunately, Sara's dress had too much swing so we headed for the outlet mall.  You would not think that shopping for a cute knee length dress would be that difficult.  However, achieving our goal proved more challenging than previously thought.  After about five hours of shopping we finally found a dress and decided to treat ourselves to dinner.  We stopped at Friday's and enjoyed fabulous burgers and some lobster.  I've never had lobster before and actually it was pretty good. :) 

After classes on Friday was the dance.  While some couples go to dinner before the dance we had decided to eat afterwards.  The theme of the dance was Candy Land.  The dessert table was filled with every imaginable candy.  Yum.  :)

I think it is safe to say that out of all the dances I've attended I danced the most at the Sadies.  My date and I had a wonderful time chatting and dancing for almost three straight hours.  At most dances I always kick off my shoes like most of the other girls.  This dance was no different.  About half way through the evening I noticed that it felt like there was an air pocket under my right foot.  Upon further examination I noticed that I had incurred three large blisters.  Directly in the middle of my foot I had managed to scrape a thick layer of skin partially lose.  It looked like someone had taken a knife and sliced off part of an apple peel but left it hanging.  Despite my limp, the inflammation and the raw skin I continued to dance the night away.  

Afterwards, Sara, Hannah and I took our dates to The Greene Turtle.  At the Sadies it is customary that the girl treats the guy.  We all had a lovely time laughing and joking.  While choosing my dinner I decided to be adventurous and select the PB&J burger.  I know that sounds disgusting but it was delicious.  Strawberry jam and melting peanut butter on a burger was one of the tastiest things I have ever eaten. 

Although I suffered a limp for three days after the dance, I had a wonderful time. 

The Liberty Ball:

Last weekend was the most formal dance of the whole year the Liberty Ball.  This dance is held at a country club in a gated community with a live band.  

Although I had planned on attending this dance for a while, I almost didn't go.  The week of the dance Hannah came down with the flu.  While I avoided the deadly pathogens for most of the week, they eventually caught up to me on the day before the dance. :(  On the morning of the dance Hannah and I had to run some errands.  Upon our return I felt terrible and had firmly decided against going.  With my plans cancelled I settled down for a long nap.  When I awoke I did feel much better but still wasn't sure whether to go.  Hannah was all glitzed and ready to go and encouraged me to come but later with her brother.  Then and there I decided to go.  I had less than two hours before our departure.  Yikes!

The venue included a beautiful dance hall, a terrace overlooking the pool and golf fields and a chocolate fountain.  :)  There were so many lovely ladies decked out in diamonds.  One of my favorite parts of the evening was the live band with their talented vocalists and the upbeat waltzes and swings.  About halfway through the evening Hannah and I took a stroll around the lovely grounds.  I had a blast chatting with old and new friends.  I also had an amazing time dancing doing many spins, twists and dips. :)  

The evening continued late and by the time we arrived back at campus it was after midnight.  After we were back on campus, Hannah and I decided to get some ice cream at the local grocery store all while in our elegant gowns.  Despite the fact that the day started out on a low note being sick, it ended on a high note.  

Absolutely a wonderful evening!   

     

Crawfish, Oysters and Alligator:

Since the semester began there has been a fair amount of new and interesting stories.  When I returned for the semester in mid January, one would expect to see a fair amount of snow; however the ground was bare.  It wasn't until the end of January that we first began to have snow.

On the first Friday in February, our Model United Nations team hosted the Swiss Miss Sock Hop dance as a fundraiser.  Everyone was encouraged to sport the craziest socks they could find.  We had a wonderful evening of dancing swing and traditional 50's songs.  After the dance was over, my roommates and I along with another friend discovered a new restaurant, The Greene Turtle.  I tried a crab pizza which was wonderfully delicious.  :)
  

The day following the dance Sara and I prepared an elaborate breakfast for our wing.  We spent the morning cooking in a friend's apartment.  By far the smallest kitchen I have ever worked in, especially for two people.  Within two hours and with limited counter space, we had cooked strawberry french toast, two pounds of bacon, chocolate covered strawberries, strawberry scones, mocha punch and yogurt parfaits.  We even had the table decorated with rose petals.  By noon our whole wing and some extra friends had arrived for a grant total of 17.  Brunch was delectable. :)

Valentine's Day was quite an adventure.  In the late afternoon Sara and I decided to go to a spa.  We had a lovely time getting our nails done.  Early that evening it started to snow heavily, but thankfully it wasn't too bad.  For dinner we decided to try something new (at least for me) authentic Cajun.  Between dinner and appetizers I had tried Crawfish, fried oysters and fried alligator.  It was amazing!!  This particular restaurant was located in a historic house, probably from the Civil War.  Truly a neat experience.  After dinner went shopping at my favorite place, White House | Black Market.  Despite having a lazy morning, the rest of our day was fabulous.

Two weeks later on a Wednesday, Sara and I and a couple of friends played Poker Hide n' Seek.  Sara is in the Strategic Intelligence intro class.  As part of an exercise, the class was divided into three teams.  The teams were responsible for recruiting additional team members.  I was recruited along with some friends.  Late that evening in one of the main buildings the three teams each had a dozen poker chips for which they had to hide anywhere except the workout room.  Over the course of thirty minutes, I was searched three floors from top to bottom.  During my search I found 5 chips.  They were anywhere such as underneath door stops, behind posters on the bulletin board and in the soil of fake flower pots.  Since I was not in the SI class, I could only find the chips.  Once you found a chip you had to text a member of your group who could retrieve it.  Besides seeing who could find the most chips this was an exercise in looking for secret information in a spy like manner.  Last week I found out that our group won the exercise! :)
I've had many exciting adventures which have expanded my horizons.  :)
  

Federal Bureau of Investigations:

Can anything be more exciting than a field trip to the FBI?  I don't think so. :) 

Yesterday (Thursday), a small group of potential Strategic Intelligence students awoke before the sun even dared to open its eyes.  Because I am not in the SI track, I did not officially make the list.  I was an alternate.  Even on the morning of, I was still not sure if I would get to go.  So I decided to take my chances that someone had forgotten to set their alarm and woke up at 5:30.  Fortunately, three people did not show up and I was admitted.

While at the FBI headquarters we got to listen and question some agents, analysts and the deputy of the Counter Intelligence division.  I even got to shake the deputy's hand.  :) Awesome.  After the discussion time, we got to see live demonstrations of past and present firearms in the indoor range.  Then we had time to mosey around the 9/11 and other related operations of the FBI in their own museum.  There was an abundance of cool artifacts and gifts from their various investigations.  

Before the bus headed back to campus, our group went searching for potential restaurants for lunch.  Sara and I settled on the Hard Rock Cafe.  It was a quaint place.  We got a table next to the window.  I ordered a hickory and bacon cheeseburger.  The most amazing burger ever!  

While I loved exploring the various aspects of the FBI and meeting wonderful people, this is not a job for me.  I am so grateful for the sacrificial men and women we have protecting us.