Just a Few Letters :)

If you know me well, you probably know that I love writing letters.  It's one of my favorite things to do.  Sometimes I just write letters in my free time!  So here are a few letters that seem to fit the current occasion.

Dear Iowa,

We've spent almost two and a half months together, and it sure has been quite the adventure so far!  I've seen your highs and lows, your darkness and your light, the best and worst of your people.  

Despite what I was previously told about you, you do not only smell bad two days out of the entire year.  In fact, the whole town stinks about twice a week.  (Today is one of those days.)  I wish I could say they warned me...but "they" didn't.

That being said, however, I really do appreciate you for all that you are.  You've welcomed me with open arms, and you have a small town feel that I've never been able to experience before.  And that's absolutely priceless.

I'm leaving you tomorrow, because we all have to go home sometimes.  I'm sure you'll understand.  But have no fear, I'll be back on Sunday!  You and I are in it to win it until graduation.

Much love,

One of your newest inhabitants

Dear Minnesota,

I've heard that you never know what you've got until it's gone.  Isn't that true?  I never really realized how awesome you are until I left you.  It's been over two months now, and you can't even fathom how much I miss you!  I miss your malls, your zoos, your countless lakes, your abundance of coffee shops and so much more.  And never again will I take a Holiday station for granted!  

It is with great pleasure that I inform you that I'll be coming home to you tomorrow.  I hope you're as excited as I am!  I'll only be able to stay for a few days, but don't worry, this won't be the last you'll see of me.  For as long as I live, no matter where I go, I'll always come back to you.

To quote one of my mom's favorite artists, Bon Jovi, "You can take the home from the boy, but not the boy from his home."  Well said, Jon.

I'll see you soon.  Stay classy.  :)

Love forever and ever,

Your daughter

Dear Nebraska,

Over the past couple months, my eyes have been opened to your existence!  I really don't know you all that well, but I didn't want to leave you out of this whole letter-writing thing.  

So congratulations on making it into Lady GaGa's latest hit!

Sincerely, 

Your neighbor

In case you haven't figured it out by now, my fall break starts tomorrow after my classes.  I'll blog more when I get back!  As always, stay tuned.  :)

Don't Call Me, I'll Call You!

My friends and family from back home probably remember the solid nine months I spent at my previous job.  Let me just say: I love my new job so much more!!!!!  Every Sunday and Wednesday evening, I spend a few hours calling alumni and friends of my school and asking them to donate money so I can continue funding my college education through scholarships.

At first, most of the people I called were friendly and receptive of my little speech!  However, now that we've begun calling a group of people we like to call "non-donors," the friendliness has dwindled to that of Ebenezer Scrooge on Christmas morning.  In honor of my love for bullet-pointed lists, here are some of the things the lovely alumni have said to me:

• No, you can't speak to Ms. _______!  It's dinner time!

Oh I'm sorry, we don't have your dinner time recorded in our files.  

• Ma'am, it's a Sunday night.  Please don't call me at night.

No worries, I'll just call you Monday morning.  During my biology class.

• I'm an alum.  But I'm not a friend.  Those were four years I'll never get back.

Really.  How am I supposed to respond to that?!

• You're not my mother!  I don't even know how you got here!  Please hang up now and let me talk to my mother.

No, I am not your mother.  I guess I can't argue with that.

• *Silence* Eeeeeeeep!  Eeeep?  Eeeeeeeeeeeeeeep!  Wahhhhh!!!!!

Wow.  I'm speechless.

Luckily, the rejections I receive aren't nearly as painful as they could be, because the rest of my team is going through the same thing at the exact same time.  Whenever we hang up, we relay our latest call to the rest of the room, inserting clever comments that we didn't (but should've) used in the conversation.

After over a month at my job, I've learned one very important thing: Never again will I rudely hang up on a telemarketer.

I should mention that not all calls are bad.  I've had several great conversations with really nice people, and I really enjoy talking to the people who care enough to talk to me.

Shout-out to my supervisor, who let me interview her for a paper I'm writing, will be studying in the Netherlands next semester, passionately enjoys recycling, and is just all-around awesome.  :)

Cardboard and Cupcakes :)

It's been quite a lovely weekend here in Sioux City, my friends!  Even though I've been stuck on campus because my mobile friends left town, I've thoroughly enjoyed the past few days.  Here's a day-by-day synopsis of the most exciting (and relaxing) things I did this weekend.

Friday
After I received and rehearsed the newest songs for my pep band (we're doing a pop show next weekend!), I had some time to wind down and just chill with a few of my friends.  Later that evening, we went to the Homeless Hangout, which was sponsored by our school's volunteer group.  I think we were supposed to learn facts about homelessness there...but that really didn't happen.  Instead, we built a house out of cardboard boxes and reverted back to the good old days when playing house was a daily activity.  But have no fear, I learned all about homelessness from my junior and senior year religion teacher!

Saturday
For the first Saturday in a long time, I woke up at a reasonable hour!  After watching a couple episodes of Man vs. Food with my neighbor (new guilty pleasure?), I headed off to brunch with a couple friends, where I had one of Chef Jerry's delicious omelets.  They're to die for!
That afternoon, I headed over to the fine arts building to be supportive of my friend who needed to finish her still life drawing in that building.  Surprisingly, it was really relaxing just sitting in there, listening to my iPod and studying for my mid-term on Monday.  I felt so productive!
When we got back to the dorm, it was cupcake time!  We sat in the kitchen while the cupcakes baked, listening to a medley of Train songs.  I'm no pro, but I got to help decorate the cupcakes!  My frosting and sprinkling skills never fail.  :)
By the way...baking ice cream into your cupcakes makes them delicious!!!

Sunday
Deciding what classes to take next semester quickly turned into planning out the next four years of my life.  Nothing's set in stone yet, but it's looking like my future is bright.  :)

So there you have it!  If you have questions, comments, or just want to know more about my exciting and exotic life...you know where to find me.  :)

A Day in My Life

Aloha, readers!  For the past few days, I've been struggling to come up with something clever to write about in this post.  Most of my days lately have been pretty typical, since I have a solid routine each day now.  So...why not tell you what my days are like?
Without further ado, here is what a normal day in my life looks like:

6:20 AM: My alarm goes off.  I stumble out of bed to turn it off, and then stumble back into bed.
6:30 AM: My roommate's alarm goes off.  Upset at the fact that I decided to take 8:00 AM classes, I crawl out of bed for the final time and start getting ready for my day.
7:15 AM: My roommate and I head off to breakfast with one or two of our neighbors.  While in the cafeteria, one of our neighbors never fails to ask if eating a pastry will make her seem fat.
8:00 AM: Class #1.  I find it very difficult to stay awake in this class, so sometimes I write letters to friends back home...or to my roommate.  :)
9:05 AM: I head back to my room to finish sleeping.
10:30 AM: Biology time!!!  I enjoy chatting with my lab partner and occasionally checking up on our decomposing cockroach.
11:45 AM: I begin the process of sitting through my Spanish class.  (I have suggested an Enrique Iglesias playlist to spice up the class.)
12:35 PM: I eat lunch with a friend from my Spanish class.  I almost always get a roast beef sandwich!
1:45 PM: Class #4.  Nothing much to say about this one!
3:00 PM: It's finally time for band!  I never get tired of playing my trumpet.
5:00ish PM: My neighbors and I decide that this is probably a good time to wander over to the cafeteria for dinner.
7:00 or 8:00 PM: There's probably a good TV show on right about now.
8:30 or 9:00 PM: I get to take a shower!  This is a good sign that the end of the day is near.
10:30 PM: Still upset about my 8:00 AM class, I hop into bed.  Goodnight, Sioux City!

Throw in some homework during all my free time, and you've got a day in my life.
Life is good here in the Cornfields of Opportunity!  Many thanks to my mom and dad, who came to visit me this weekend for Homecoming.  :)

Getting Dirty in the Dunes

This morning my school held its annual Into the Streets, a day when hundreds of students go out into the community and volunteer.  We had over 800 students participate this year, and a large portion of us were sent to Dakota Dunes, South Dakota, to clean up sandbags out of the residents' yards.
Once we arrived in Dakota Dunes, we headed off to the house we would be working on.  I was lucky enough to chat with Ellen, the homeowner, for a few minutes.  She said that her neighborhood was hit the hardest during the flooding in the Siouxland area a few months ago.  This didn't surprise me.  Everything is dry now, but it was obvious how much damage the water had done.  There were water lines on houses and playgrounds.  Ellen said that they had six days to pack up their houses and evacuate.  Her family, however, had had completely pack in one day.  All that was left to do was pile up sandbags around the house.
Since the flooding is over, my fellow students and I had the job of taking all those sandbags out of Ellen's yard today.  We set up a line to pass all the bags down, and within two hours, we were able to clear all the bags out of Ellen's yard, as well as the yard next door.  And what an experience it was!  My muscles were aching, the sun was completely melting, and I was covered in dirt from head to toe.  But you know what?  It was completely worth it!  We helped Ellen out a lot, probably made it into the evening news, had a blast.  We even sang a little bit while we were hauling those sandbags!
It really is amazing how much of a difference you can make if you grab a few friends and get out into the community.  For someone like Ellen, whose world was turned upside down by circumstances that were out of her control, today was a pretty big deal.  This morning, Into the Streets had a huge impact on the Siouxland area.  And I can't wait for next year.  :)

Paper Dolls: A Lost (Cheap) Art

Sometimes in college, you just have to take a break from doing anything productive.  When you're on a budget of approximately $0, you find some pretty creative ways to have fun!  Most recently, my neighbor and I rediscovered the art of paper dolls.  In fact, we realized that you can have a pretty good time making up stories for paper people!  So let me share with you five steps to making an awesome 2-dimensional adventure.

1. Grab a few issues of your favorite magazine, or even a catalog!  Even if it's a pet supply catalog...that could be fun.  :)
2. Cut out characters for your story.  Be sure to cut carefully!  You wouldn't want to snip off any vital limbs or scarves.
3. Also cut out scenery and props.  This will really spice up your story.
4. Name your characters.  This gives you a sense of commitment to the task at hand.
5. Let your story play out!  Got drama in your life?  Work it out with your paper dolls.

If your neighbors are as exhausted from work as you are, they'll gladly join in!
This is just  one way I've found to have fun in a creative and unconventional way here in Sioux City.  There are plenty more exciting (and not so exciting) activities to be done, and I'll be sure to tell you all about them!  So keep checking back. 

Happy homecoming week!  Mustang pride!  :)