Disc Golf and Other Things

Have YOU ever heard of disc golf? Well, I didn't know about it until Sunday afternoon. 

Three of my new friends here in Illinois asked me whether I wanted to join them in a game of disc golf. I didn't understand what game they wanted me to play - mainly because I thought the were saying diskov, which isn't a word in the English language - but I went anyways. When we arrived at the field, I saw a sign that read "Disc Golf." It wasn't until then that I knew the actual name of the game. We drew sticks to pick teams fairly and began. My teammate and I ended up losing horribly. By the time the game was halfway over, we were so far behind that it would have been nearly impossible to catch up. I did get to see a toad though‼ Since I've never seen a toad before, it kind of delayed the game for a few minutes. Overall, I learned a lot about the sport, and I figured out why I've never drawn sticks or straws before. Rock, paper, scissors is much better‼‼

Here's a small list of a few other things that I learned this week: 

• Google+ is great‼ The hangout feature on this site is utterly amazing‼
• I really enjoy both of the jobs that I have right now.
• I'm excited to begin law school next month. I'm even more excited to write case briefs, which is a bit weird.
• I really, really, really like grapefruits. I think that it may be because they remind me of my grandmother. She used to eat occasionally when I was a little girl.
• The month of July is whizzing by rather quickly.
• Trying to understand the motives of another person is the equivalent of trying to fly a hot air balloon with cold air. It's useless and will most likely be a big waste of time. It's usually better to simply be open and hope that that particular person will tell you the truth.
• I should take my own advice more often‼‼‼

What Happened to June?

"IT'S JULY‼‼??‼?‼??‼"

That's the first thing that came to my mind when I woke up earlier today. Panic ensued shortly afterward.

I have yet to make plans for the Fourth of July. Training for my second job will begin next week! My first business trip is less than two weeks away‼ The first bills I've ever paid will be due this month!!!! LAW SCHOOL WILL BEGIN NEXT MONTH‼‼‼‼‼‼‼ AAAAAHHHHHHHHHHHHH‼‼‼‼‼‼‼‼‼‼‼‼‼‼

Can someone please tell me what happened to June? Did two or three weeks of the month of June somehow get misplaced? Will July speed by in a similar fashion? Will I have enough time to read all of the books on my book list before the summer ends? Will I be well-rested by the time classes begin?

I most certainly don't have the answer to all of these questions, but there is one question that I can do my very best to answer affirmatively. I can try my hardest to be well-rested by the time August 17, 2011 rolls around. I think that I may even start a new goal - to get at least fifty-five hours of sleep each week until orientation begins. I know what it's like to start the semester off on the wrong foot. Once you're behind, you're always behind... or at least it seems that way‼ Sleep is more important than most people think. It's also one of those things that many of us take for granted. Science tells us that getting an adequate amount of rest reduces stress, improves memory, reduces the chance of diabetes, and helps one to maintain a healthy cardiovascular system - all of which could benefit me in both the long term and short term. Therefore, this new goal of mine will take effect immediately‼‼ In other words, goodnight everyone‼‼‼

HAPPY BIRTHDAY TO ME!

My birthday was earlier this week! That's right! My birthday! Not to mention, it was my first birthday in Illinois. I initially expected to spend my celebration of birth alone in my apartment watching movies and being bored, but my new friends here saw to it that I enjoyed every moment of my big day! By the end of the night, I was crying tears of joy simply because they all cared so much about this new stranger from Virginia. (There aren't many Virginians around  here.) 

If you're curious, here's how my birthday turned out. I woke up bright and early after getting a birthday phone call from one of my sisters. After talking with her for a little while, I decided to stay awake and get dressed for the day. It came as such a surprise that one of my cherished Oberlin friends contacted me from Europe only a few moments later. He wished me a happy birthday and told me that I'd be receiving a postcard in the mail really soon. Since I hadn't spoken to him since mid-January, the simple gesture helped me to be a bit more optimistic about my birthday. 

It just so happened that a new friend of mine joined me for lunch. I ate a tasty stir-fry meal with rice, broccoli, carrots, pineapples, green beans, a dozen other yummy foods. Shortly after lunch, I went to work, which was also surprisingly fun. Every since the summer of my ninth grade year in high school, I have been so blessed to work at the most wonderful places with the most fun-loving people. Spending the day at work on my birthday wasn't any different. Actually, being with my co-workers ended up being one of the highlights of my day. Once our work was complete, many of us went to sing karaoke as a way of celebrating my birthday and bonding outside of the office. I can proudly say that I have no voice today after performing, encouraging others, and singing for nearly three hours. Three songs were dedicated to me - the birthday girl - even from complete strangers. I ended up singing Respect by Aretha Franklin and Ain't No Mountain High Enough. All in all, we had so much fun that we may make karaoke night a summertime tradition, but only time will tell. 

A Blog Post Inside of A Blog Post

If you have visited my blog before this morning, then you've probably noticed quite a few changes. In other words, I've become addicted to widgets‼ It seems like there's a widget for everything. It's pretty exciting for blogger like myself. Here are a few of my favorite additions:

• A poll for all of my visitors
• I personally think everyone should be apart of this big decision that I have to make - putting my Oreo song on Youtube.
• A lovely bookshelf widget
• Please don't forget to leave me book recommendations‼‼
• A couple of Twitter widgets
• Yes, I've rejoined Twitter. Now that summer is in full swing, I have a bit more time on my hands. Leisure reading and social networking are two fun ways for me to spend my free time. Well, those things as well as catching up with friends and family... Wait a minute, that's social networking too, isn't it? In any event, if you're worried that everything I do revolves around reading words on a page or screen, fear not‼‼ With the other free time that I have I also sleep, cook, jog, and socialize with the wonderful new friends that I've made here. A great example is the neighborhood ice cream social that I went to the other day. It was surprisingly pleasant‼ Initially, I thought that the event would be rained out, but it wasn't, which was fantastic. While at the social I had the chance to meet many of my neighbors, none of which I had known beforehand. I just thought I'd share that... Now, back to the topic of discussion. If you have a Twitter, then you should most certainly follow me, especially if you were one of my followers four scores and ten years ago.

P.S. I love lists‼

The Good, The Bad, and The Best

What a day I've had! Let's see.... today I've been chipper, extremely sad, overburdened, overjoyed, overwhelmed, super Southern (if such an adjective exists), confused, annoyed, hopeless, satisfied, hurried, prayerful, worried, embarrassed, giggly, talkative, scared, determined, helpful, etc... I could go on, but I think you get the picture. Overall, the good outweighed the bad. Today was a fantastic day, although it didn't start out that way. 

My job hunt went terribly today. I guess you could say that it was so bad, that I don't even want to talk about, let alone blog about it. Speaking of jobs, another thing that really upset me today was my visit to an institution that shall remain nameless (simply because I think that's good etiquette). I wanted to open up an account near campus today so that could set up direct deposit in the near future. That didn't go so well. After wasting about thirty minutes, six branches of a tree, and quite a bit of ink, I left the building in the same state that I arrived in - without any type of account set up here. My day quickly turned around though.

A new friend of mine - that I randomly met last week - invited me to eat dinner with her and her friends tonight. I accepted my invitation and was asked to bring delicious bread for dipping! Once I made my way to the correct address and stepped through the threshold, I knew from that moment on that I was going to have a great evening. A wave of spices in the form of a tasty aroma floated in my direction! The entire first floor must have smelled so rich and savory! One of my new friend's friends was in the kitchen stirring a pot of southern stew flavored with Mexican pork. He turned around, waved me inside and the evening of laughter, stories and deliciousness began. Long story short, I intended to eat dinner with only three new friends, but I ended up making six more my the time I left! The best part of this story is that I'll get to enjoy their company again tomorrow! We have an entire schedule of things all mapped out, but I don't want to spoil the surprise, so I'll tell you all about it tomorrow.

Words of Encouragement: Many of my days remind me of the phrase used to describe the month of March - they come in like a lion and go out like a lamb. Whenever you feel like your day can't get any worse, do your best to stay positive. Your day can most certainly get worse, but it can also become a whole lot better, especially if you work toward making it a better day. Could you imagine what would have happened if I would my invitation to dinner tonight simply because I was in a bad mood? 

When life give you lemons, grab a little sugar, a few quarts of water and mix up a pitcher of lemonade! Make the best of what may seem like the worse, and remember, someone would love to have your bad days!

So Exactly What Are You Doing Right Now?

That seems to be the magic question for me now-a-days‼ Graduating from one college and immediately moving to another college twelve hours later isn't exactly something that students do regularly; so I can understand why some of my friends and family members may be a bit perplexed. Hopefully, this post will shed a bit of light into those gray areas.

I am pretty sure that surviving my first year of law school will be no easy task‼ Completing my first year of law school while balancing grades, a part-time job, and participation in a few organizations will prove to be even more difficult. That being said, when I was trying to decide what to do this summer, I knew that I didn't want to do something that would be strenuous or stressful in any respect. I am pleased to announce that my plan is working‼ I've been fairly relaxed for the past week.

I have two jobs here on campus doing things that I love to do - meeting new people and communicating with constituents via the telephone. When I'm not at work, I'm able to continue to do things that I love - explore the neighboring cities, watch films on Netflix, and sleep‼ Being able to take unexpected naps in the middle of the day is one of many blessing that this summer has offered me‼

In a way, I'm kind of hibernating right now. For the remainder of the summer I hope to conserve my energy and brain power as I recuperate from the past four years of intense essay writing, sleepless nights, and final exams. By orientation I should be refreshed, well-rested, and ready to take another step closer to the real world.