Hello all.
As I am beginning my fourth month as a sophomore at the University of Northern Iowa, I have found myself feeling more and more at home in Cedar Falls. Last week, my three soon-to-be roommates and I signed a lease for a house that we will be living in next school year. It's scary to think that I, a person who doesn't even have a savings account and can barely save her money, will have to pay rent each month. This means it is time to kick it into adult mode and realize that I will have expenses and I cannot blow my money on fast food and new clothes whenever I please. I have also noticed this year that I have been doing better with my schoolwork (homework, tests, and quizzes) and the improvement is much needed. I feel more adjusted to college and that I can accomplish more than I thought I could last year. I have new friends, an awesome roommate (oh, I forgot to tell you all. I'm rooming with Melissa), and I still love my job. Things are looking bright. Except for my migraines, they aren't so bright.
Now to a less serious note.
I CAN'T WAIT TO GO TO IRELAND IN FOUR MONTHS! GAH!
With every passing month, time creeps a little closer to the Women's Chorus Ireland Tour. I am so darn excited, and I can't thank my parents and all the wonderful people who have donated money towards this trip enough. I really appreciate everything you all have done for me and I cannot wait to upload pictures to Facebook during the trip so you can see what your cold, hard cash is being used for.
I also cannot wait to spend a week and some odd days at home for Thanksgiving Break. Sometimes you just miss your Pomeranian. And maybe your parents too, but more so the dog. Just kidding. I'm looking forward to sleeping in my own bed and talking non-stop about pointless things to my mother as she tells me to cool it and go do something productive.
Although this post was short, I really do not have any juicy gossip to add to it, so I will leave it at that. I hope you all have a wonderful week and two weeks from now plus two days, a Happy Thanksgiving.
Tuesday, November 10, 2015
Monday, July 20, 2015
One Crazy Summer
Hello readers of this utterly bland blog of mine. Let me just start by saying that I hope you are having a tremendously fun summer, and spending it with friends and family doing the activities that you love to do.
I have been spending my summer balancing two online college classes. I am taking Western Civilization 3 and Social Problems through Hawkeye Community College to satisfy two required liberal arts classes at UNI (six credits). Due to not wanting to read during the summer, my mother has been taking my Western Civ tests with me. We have straight B- scores on each test, so apparently neither of us are really informed. The other class has been a breeze, and I am just glad that this is the last week of the class, with my final exams being due Monday the 27th.
As for work, my options dwindled out as fast as the small amount of money in my checking account. I had started the summer thinking I would have a full-time (or at least a few times a week) babysitting job in Elkader. To this very day, I am not sure why that fell through, but I babysat twice and was never contacted again. I didn't do anything wrong, so who really knows. I tried to get some hours at my previous hometown job, but to no avail. So I have been skating through the summer thanks to generous contributions from my parents (i.e. my mother has been giving me cash every time I need some). I have also been pulling weeds with Jessica for Lorna Christeleit, so that has become what you could call "a steady income". A reminder: if anyone needs any work done in their yard, home, or whatever you can think of, Jessica and I are still working towards donations for our trip to Ireland next spring. If you don't need both of us, contact one or the other. We're eager beavers.
Now to the playing. I have went many places this summer, but haven't knocked many things off my summer bucket list. I've went to numerous movies (Max, Magic Mike XXL, The Gallows, Spy, Jurassic World, Inside Out, the list goes on and on), spent some time creeping around Elkader with the "squad", and taken some trips outside of town too. Keaton, Tara and I went to Dubuque a few weeks ago for shopping and leisure, and had palm readings done downtown. We also rode the Fenelon Place Elevator, and I got a new pair of Van's (which I probably didn't need, but I am a girl, so the more shoes, the merrier).
I went to Lost Island Waterpark in Waterloo with Charlie, and I have went down to UNI twice this summer to work the choir booth at the orientation fair. I did Black Hawk County Relay for Life with Melissa Curtis, a grand friend, in honor of my aunt Sandra Shippy. I paid $5 to throw a softball at UNI President Bill Ruud in the dunk tank, but missed. Thankfully, he has no reason to expel me.
Another one of my favorite summer memories would have to be the addition of Janice the Snail to
our Elkader Squad:
Janice was an art project created by Megan Rochleau, and she was made of fabric, what I am assuming was cardboard, and other objects. She was discarded at the school dumpster and had apparently sat there for a few weeks before I seized the opportunity I saw with her. She became known as "Janice" after Janis on Friends, and we took numerous photos of her around Elkader. My mother decided to call her skanky since she lived by the dumpster, and would not allowed me to bring her in our house, so she took up residence in the hatch of my car. She fell apart, I put her back together with a new disguise, and then we accidentally left her out in the rain in early July. She was thrown away and is now resting peacefully in a landfill somewhere, courtesy of Hawkeye Sanitation.
I had an amazing Fourth of July spent camping out at my house with just a handful of my awesome friends, genuinely having a good time. It was a very memorable night. We were definitely a mess. A few days later, Tara and I ventured on out to Holstein Dip to see what all the long-talked fuss was about, and sure enough, it is a beautiful location. I'm a sucker for old bridges, creeks, and natural waterfalls. Tara dropped her socks in the water, and scared the crap out of me because it very well could've been her car keys or iPhone. A close call there.
A few weeks ago Jessica, Keaton, and I decided to venture on over to McGregor for a Friday night cruise on the Maiden Voyage, listening to some lovely singing by Sophia Landis, as she was accompanied by the Big Blue Sky Band. Even though 90% of the people on the boat were our parents friends and people we've grown up around (which made it a little awksauce) we definitely had a good time and I was just glad to get out on the river and listen to Sophia sing (she has a beautiful voice). If you haven't heard her sing, here's a link to a website where she has some songs! https://sophialandis.bandcamp.com/
The only really upsetting thing that has happened this summer was supposed to occur on July 14th at 7:30 p.m. There was a Nickelback concert scheduled to happen at the Wells Fargo Arena in Des Moines. I am a die-hard, obsessed Nickelback fan, and I was so so so excited that I would finally get to see them live! But of course, no job = no money and I couldn't afford tickets to go. When I finally convinced my mother to buy them, I went online to see that there were no tickets left! I immediately started crying because it was just my luck. But, I found an article online saying they had to cancel all their remaining tour dates because lead singer Chad Kroeger had a cyst on his vocal cords and he needed to have surgery. That made it a lot better and makes it promising that they will probably return to the area in the near future.
I hope that this blog post wasn't incredibly boring/long, and that you've enjoyed reading about my wild and crazy summer. This weekend is Sweet Corn Days, so I'm sure some rowdy photo will surface on the internet. Only a few short weeks until I return to Cedar Falls and investigate into my second year of criminology. :)
I have been spending my summer balancing two online college classes. I am taking Western Civilization 3 and Social Problems through Hawkeye Community College to satisfy two required liberal arts classes at UNI (six credits). Due to not wanting to read during the summer, my mother has been taking my Western Civ tests with me. We have straight B- scores on each test, so apparently neither of us are really informed. The other class has been a breeze, and I am just glad that this is the last week of the class, with my final exams being due Monday the 27th.
As for work, my options dwindled out as fast as the small amount of money in my checking account. I had started the summer thinking I would have a full-time (or at least a few times a week) babysitting job in Elkader. To this very day, I am not sure why that fell through, but I babysat twice and was never contacted again. I didn't do anything wrong, so who really knows. I tried to get some hours at my previous hometown job, but to no avail. So I have been skating through the summer thanks to generous contributions from my parents (i.e. my mother has been giving me cash every time I need some). I have also been pulling weeds with Jessica for Lorna Christeleit, so that has become what you could call "a steady income". A reminder: if anyone needs any work done in their yard, home, or whatever you can think of, Jessica and I are still working towards donations for our trip to Ireland next spring. If you don't need both of us, contact one or the other. We're eager beavers.
Now to the playing. I have went many places this summer, but haven't knocked many things off my summer bucket list. I've went to numerous movies (Max, Magic Mike XXL, The Gallows, Spy, Jurassic World, Inside Out, the list goes on and on), spent some time creeping around Elkader with the "squad", and taken some trips outside of town too. Keaton, Tara and I went to Dubuque a few weeks ago for shopping and leisure, and had palm readings done downtown. We also rode the Fenelon Place Elevator, and I got a new pair of Van's (which I probably didn't need, but I am a girl, so the more shoes, the merrier).
 |
| Keaton, Tara and I at the top of the Fenelon Place Elevator in Dubuque, Iowa |
 |
| One cool cat named Melissa, my cousin Avery, and yours truly. |
our Elkader Squad:
 |
| Janice with a fan. |
I had an amazing Fourth of July spent camping out at my house with just a handful of my awesome friends, genuinely having a good time. It was a very memorable night. We were definitely a mess. A few days later, Tara and I ventured on out to Holstein Dip to see what all the long-talked fuss was about, and sure enough, it is a beautiful location. I'm a sucker for old bridges, creeks, and natural waterfalls. Tara dropped her socks in the water, and scared the crap out of me because it very well could've been her car keys or iPhone. A close call there.
 |
| Holstein Dip (plus Tara) |
 |
| One side of the Maiden Voyager during our trip (photo courtesy of Daryl Bruxvoort) |
I hope that this blog post wasn't incredibly boring/long, and that you've enjoyed reading about my wild and crazy summer. This weekend is Sweet Corn Days, so I'm sure some rowdy photo will surface on the internet. Only a few short weeks until I return to Cedar Falls and investigate into my second year of criminology. :)
Friday, May 8, 2015
Tips for College
Now that I have finished my freshman year of college at UNI, I would like to pass some tips on to incoming freshman (going to any school) that I have learned/experienced in my first year of being at my home-away-from-home. Some are serious, some are silly, and some are odd. But either way, they're all practical somehow.
1. You can open a can of Swanson Chicken with a screwdriver. Just stab the side of it multiple times and be patient.
2. It is very much possible to survive your entire freshman year without going to a party, the bars, or in the case of Cedar Falls, The Hill. I never went to any of those three places the entire year, and I survived. I got invited to go to The Hill a few times, but I politely declined. I'm not into that sort of thing.
3. Naps and Netflix will most likely become a problem. And that's okay most of the time. Just don't let them become a reason you decide to skip class.
4. Some on-campus jobs are really cool, and you might not even know they exist! I got hired by UNI Public Safety back in March and let me tell you, I love it. I've met some awesome people too!
5. Be prepared for constant wind (Cedar Falls), rain, and any other natural weather conditions. The weather is unpredictable.
6. Buy a scooter. Trust me.
7. Don't use "I'm in a city with so many restaurant choices!" as a excuse to blow all your money and not use your meal plan. It's hard not to do it, but in the long run, it's worth not going out to eat.
8. You can make a long distance relationship work.
9. Be prepared for your roommate to tell you they need you to leave the room because they want to have sex. It does happen.
10. If you're planning on having sex, buy condoms and get on the pill. There are way too many pregnancy scares in college. Social media proves it.
11. Respect other people: clean up after yourself and use your inside voice.
12. Your neighbors WILL play their music so loud your floor rattles. Feel free to play yours back louder.
13. Buy Cards Against Humanity. People will love you.
14. Do not pack your entire bedroom. You will run out of space, have excessive junk you don't need, and then have to take three carloads home in May.
15. Study more than you think you need to. Your professors will not tell you all the information that is on the test.
16. It is 100% okay to sleep with stuffed animals.
17. Wean yourself off of traveling home on the weekends. After a while, you'll be well adjusted to college life.
18. Befriend the people who live around you. I was really anti-social towards the people on my floor 1st Semester, but then I lightened up, started talking, and now I'm pretty chill with Melissa, so who's winning at life?
19. Do not put photos of the campanile (if you have one) on Instagram. Everyone does.
20. Accept every appropriate opportunity to get out of your dorm room. You'll regret not going.
21. 3:00 a.m. fire alarms are real.
22. DO NOT, and I repeat, DO NOT SWITCH SEATS IN THE MIDDLE OF THE SEMESTER! People will kill you for sitting in their seat, even though they aren't assigned.
23. Take a workout class if you want to get fit but aren't motivated enough!
24. Get to know where you live. Cruise around town and find places that interest you (i.e. a lake, park, restaurant, etc.)
25. Don't make skipping class a habit. I understand if you have a doctors appointment, family death, or just need a day to relax and get yourself together. If you think you're going to make it to graduate school with a 2.3 GPA, you're sadly mistaken. Attending class benefits you AND your professors AND your peers. Go Go Go!!!!
26. Have fun at college and live your life how you want it to be!
I hope my tips seemed at least a little useful. If anyone reading this is scared about attending college this year, or even the year after, feel free to message me and we can talk about it :)
1. You can open a can of Swanson Chicken with a screwdriver. Just stab the side of it multiple times and be patient.
2. It is very much possible to survive your entire freshman year without going to a party, the bars, or in the case of Cedar Falls, The Hill. I never went to any of those three places the entire year, and I survived. I got invited to go to The Hill a few times, but I politely declined. I'm not into that sort of thing.
3. Naps and Netflix will most likely become a problem. And that's okay most of the time. Just don't let them become a reason you decide to skip class.
4. Some on-campus jobs are really cool, and you might not even know they exist! I got hired by UNI Public Safety back in March and let me tell you, I love it. I've met some awesome people too!
5. Be prepared for constant wind (Cedar Falls), rain, and any other natural weather conditions. The weather is unpredictable.
6. Buy a scooter. Trust me.
7. Don't use "I'm in a city with so many restaurant choices!" as a excuse to blow all your money and not use your meal plan. It's hard not to do it, but in the long run, it's worth not going out to eat.
8. You can make a long distance relationship work.
9. Be prepared for your roommate to tell you they need you to leave the room because they want to have sex. It does happen.
10. If you're planning on having sex, buy condoms and get on the pill. There are way too many pregnancy scares in college. Social media proves it.
11. Respect other people: clean up after yourself and use your inside voice.
12. Your neighbors WILL play their music so loud your floor rattles. Feel free to play yours back louder.
13. Buy Cards Against Humanity. People will love you.
14. Do not pack your entire bedroom. You will run out of space, have excessive junk you don't need, and then have to take three carloads home in May.
15. Study more than you think you need to. Your professors will not tell you all the information that is on the test.
16. It is 100% okay to sleep with stuffed animals.
17. Wean yourself off of traveling home on the weekends. After a while, you'll be well adjusted to college life.
18. Befriend the people who live around you. I was really anti-social towards the people on my floor 1st Semester, but then I lightened up, started talking, and now I'm pretty chill with Melissa, so who's winning at life?
19. Do not put photos of the campanile (if you have one) on Instagram. Everyone does.
20. Accept every appropriate opportunity to get out of your dorm room. You'll regret not going.
21. 3:00 a.m. fire alarms are real.
22. DO NOT, and I repeat, DO NOT SWITCH SEATS IN THE MIDDLE OF THE SEMESTER! People will kill you for sitting in their seat, even though they aren't assigned.
23. Take a workout class if you want to get fit but aren't motivated enough!
24. Get to know where you live. Cruise around town and find places that interest you (i.e. a lake, park, restaurant, etc.)
25. Don't make skipping class a habit. I understand if you have a doctors appointment, family death, or just need a day to relax and get yourself together. If you think you're going to make it to graduate school with a 2.3 GPA, you're sadly mistaken. Attending class benefits you AND your professors AND your peers. Go Go Go!!!!
26. Have fun at college and live your life how you want it to be!
I hope my tips seemed at least a little useful. If anyone reading this is scared about attending college this year, or even the year after, feel free to message me and we can talk about it :)
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)