Good Bye, Fare Well

Alright, well being that today is May 1st already and that graduation is only two days away, this will be my last posting on this blog. I want to thank each of you who have followed my blog throughout the course of this past year. Although I am graduating, I am still wanting to answer your questions that you have about Bluffton. Please continue emailing me your questions! :)

As I get ready for graduation, I am remembering back to my move-in day as a first year student and all of the relationships and memories that were formed between then and now. I am forever grateful for Bluffton University and the academic, social, and spiritual guidance and growth that it provided for me.

As I am about to participate in the activities of this bitter-sweet weekend, I am thankful that I will be able to see many family members that I haven't seen in awhile. My family will be coming tomorrow for May Day. May Day is a very nice day for alumni and current students to interact with each other. My favorite part of May Day is watching fourteen first-year students dance around the May Pole. Now while this may sound dorky, it is actually an honor to be a May Pole dancer (can you tell that I was one :) ). Then of course my family will be here for graduation on Sunday. I am hoping that the weather is nice this weekend so that all of the scheduled outdoors activities can take place outdoors.

Well, again, I want to thank you all for reading my blog. It has been a privilege to share just a small part of my Bluffton experience with you. God bless!

2 weeks/14 days/336 hours/20160 minutes

So today marks the T-minus two week countdown! I can't believe that I only have two more weeks here at Bluffton! I am sure that these next two weeks will go by incredibly fast; however, I feel so overwhelmed with everything right now.

Because next week is our last week of classes, it seems as if some of my professors want to cram in as much as possible in the next few days (i.e. tests, papers, presentations, etc.). I would have loved it had I just been able to enjoy these last two weeks. I was talking to another senior yesterday and she said that she hopes she can survive these next two weeks. Not that I am happy that someone else is a little stressed right now, but I am glad that I am not alone in feeling overwhelmed.

Tonight I will be attending the annual Mock Interviews. This is an event when school administrators and teachers, as well as business professionals, come to Bluffton and interview students. Although we are not actually interviewing for a position, many times students are offered the chance to schedule an actual interview. I cannot believe how nervous I am for them, given the fact that I know they are just practice. Oh well, I figure that if I am going to mess up in an interview, tonight is the night to do it. I am sure that I will survive the mock interviews. :)

For those of you wish to visit Bluffton yet this year, I recommend coming this Saturday. Bluffton University is holding its annual Riley Creek Festival. The RCF is so much fun---food, prizes, booths, and blow-up games! Does it get any better than that? Anyways, you should seriously consider coming on Saturday to see what the campus community is like.

Well, if I didn't have to work on my humanities paper before going to a presentation in a little bit, I would blog some more. However, I unfortunately need to get working on my paper. Ha!

Check for my blog after the RCF on Saturday--I will fill you on what happened in case you couldn't make it.

Make a Name for Yourself!

Last night, I was at one of my very last Student Senate meetings as a Senator. At last night's meeting, we discussed the upcoming Student Senate elections; I couldn't help but to think back when I first ran for Student Senate.

Over my four years at Bluffton, I have stayed very busy with academics, work, hanging out with friends, and attending many meetings for various student organizations. As a student, I am very glad that Bluffton offers over 40 student organizations. It is through these organizations that you can fine tune your identity and make a name for yourself. Some advice that I have for you prospective students: find an organization that you want to be a part of and join it! Through the student organizations that you chose to be apart of, you will have the opportunity to meet many new people, experience many things for the first time, etc. While my experiences in student organizations here at Bluffton will all conclude within the next week, I will still continue to give 100% to these organizations as I can only show gratitude to them for making my Bluffton experience so great!

Beauty of Bluffton

Ha ha...I realized after I published my last blog that the one I published before it also had a title written in Spanish. I have decided to lay off the Spanish titles for a little while in case you can't read them. However, you never know when I will return to them. ;)

As I walked to work today, I was really reminded of the beauty on Bluffton's campus. Now, my walk was not all that sentimental, but I really did notice how neat Bluffton's campus is. I don't know, maybe its the fact that I am graduating in 5 weeks, but I am starting to see things in a different light.

The other night, when it was warm...and not cold (yes, it snowed here yesterday), I went on a walk with my girlfriend Jen. It was so nice to walk around the Village of Bluffton. It too is very pretty. I enjoy small towns and enjoy the community atmosphere that they provide. Now that I am graduating, I look back and wish that I would have taken more time to see the whole picture, to see the beauty not only of the campus, but of the Village of Bluffton as well. After graduation, I will truly miss this place, which I have made my home for the past four years.

Seis Semanas

Wow, only six weeks to go. I have five weeks of classes left and one week of finals. Honestly, I am glad that this semester is going by fast, but at the same time, I am not ready for my life as a college student to come to an end. Recently, I have had many people ask me what I plan on doing after college. My answer..."get a job." Ha ha...isn't that every college graduates plan? The question that has bothered me the most is if I am ready to graduate. Well, that question is a little bit trickier to answer than the first. Sure, I want to get a job, but I don't have a job. In all honesty, I am excited to graduate (it will definitely be a bitter-sweet moment), but if only I had a job, then I would really be excited about the new chapter in my life that is about to begin--life after college.

One nice thing about graduating is that I will not have any more papers to write (well, until grad school :) ). I turned in my last big research paper on Tuesday...17 pages. It felt good to get that one out of the way. Of course, I will still have some corrections to make on it as it was just the first draft that I turned in. And of course I still have five papers to write in the next 5 weeks (yikes!), but the baulk of my writing requirements are done! As a math and science person, writing is not a favorite of mine. Perhaps that explains my lack of blogs. :S

Yesterday I received information about May Day, Baccalaureate, and graduation. It really does not seem as if my four years at Bluffton are coming to end, very quickly I might add. One thing is for sure, I am going to live out the next six weeks here at Bluffton and enjoy every moment that comes my way.

Esta Bien!

Well, since I last wrote to you all, I enjoyed my last spring break as an undergraduate student, worked on hours of homwork, and ate supper at my cooperating teacher's house.

Spring break was good. This was the first year that I did not go to Florida for break. However, the weather was "warm" in Indiana and I was able to relax and hang out with my family and my friends who had spring break last week as well. I was able to get a lot of work accomplished over break. Although I really didn't feel like working on homework, I am glad now that I am back into my regular routine that I don't have to worry about as many projects anymore.

Last night I was able to go over to my cooperating teacher's house for supper. Two to three nights a week, he and his wife have college students over to their house for supper. Supper is always interesting...the food we are served is fancy, and not to mention delicious! It is always nice to go over there for dinner and hang out with Bluffton students. Usually I meet at least one new Bluffton student at dinners like that.

Spring Break...here I come!

Today is my last day at Bluffton, well that is before Spring Break. Our Spring Break is next week, and let me tell you, I am ready for it. I had a stark realization today, this will be my last spring break as a student at Bluffton University. Hopefully, I will be able to find a job that will give me an annual spring break as well. :)

This week was hectic for me; however, next week is looking even more hectic. I went to the basketball game on Tuesday night, it was the conference opener and the men's team lost to Anderson. Also this week, I attended a couple of the Grad Week events. One of the events that I attended was an etiquette meal. There I learned how to properly eat food during an interview. It actually was pretty interesting.

This is the first year that I will not be going anywhere for spring break. However, as I previously mentioned, it is going to be a hectic week. I have a ton of homework to do! Granted, some of it isn't due the first day we are back from break, but most is due by the end of the week when we get back, so I figure that I should work on it over break and get a good start on it, if not finish it.

Although I have a lot of homework to do, I am sure that I will be able to enjoy my last spring break as I will be spending it with family and friends back home in Indiana.

Around Campus

Well, as I am sitting at my computer, looking out my window at the wintry day outside, I am reflecting the events that have happened in the last week.

A week ago Wednesday, Student Senate sponsored a white out at the men's last home weekday basketball game. This was a fun event as we gave out approximately 130 white t-shirts to Bluffton students, hot dogs, prizes, etc. It is nice when there is excitement on campus for such events. In case you are wondering, Bluffton beat Anderson in over time.

Last night, we sponsored a "paint the stage pink" night for the women's team. They played Bluffton's rival, Defiance College. Last night, we gave out pink t-shirts, candy, beverages, and of course more prizes. I realized last night that I was at my final home game as an undergrad student at Bluffton University. I can't believe that my four years have gone by so fast!

Anyways, I love the events such as the white out and pink out. Of course, I got two free t-shirts out of the deal, not to mention that they have sweet designs on them. I will definitely miss the crowds of the Bluffton basketball games, the baseball player's pep block, and the smell of popcorn (which I might add, is the best popcorn you will ever get for $0.50...just ask Dan Stanowick :) ).

As a prepare for graduation, I am reminded of all the great times that I have had on campus and all of the great times that I will have in my remaining 2 months here at Bluffton.

Brrrr

Okay, so have I ever mentioned before that I am ready for summer? Well, if not, I am. It is incredibly cold walking around on campus. I am so glad that all of my classes are in the same building this semester. Therefore, I don't have to walk from building to building to go to class.

This week has been stressful so far. I have a paper that is due tomorrow in my CAPSTONE class. Fortunately, my procrastinating skills neglected to show up over the past week, as I had my paper "finished" on Sunday. After having my professor look at it and make a few suggestions and taking it to the Writing Center, I am now ready to make the final 5 or so corrections to the paper and turn it in. Bluffton has a Writing Center. The Writing Center is staffed by English and Writing majors. Students can take their papers to the WC to be proofread. It definitely is a great resource to have on campus.

On top of my paper being due, I had a huge test in my Humanities II class yesterday. It covered a wide range of topics: religious reformations, science and technology reformations, the age of exploration, 17th and 18th century governments, and enlightenment art and literature. After about 10 hours of studying, my mind was definitely fried. However, I think the studying paid off as the test wasn't too bad. I am positive that I missed a few, but am hoping for at least a B+.

My days of studying at the undergraduate level or almost over. I have less than three months until graduation. YIKES!!

I am sure that most of you who are reading this blog live somewhere in the Midwest and have experienced the recent snow storm. There is snow all over Bluffton's campus! That honestly is one of the worst things about college...having to walk around outside in the snow from class to class. One nice thing about Bluffton is that most of the classes are in Centennial Hall, which means that depending on your schedule, there might be minimal walking outside in the snow.

My biggest complaint about all of this is that my car is literally stuck in all of the snow. When the parking lot was plowed, a heaping pile of snow was created behind my car, not to mention the already high snow drifts between my car and the cars on either side of mine. When I went out to my car last night to get my phone charger, I literally stepped into 12 inches (if not more) of snow. Hopefully I don't have to drive anywhere soon...if I do, I guess I will have to get a shovel somewhere first to dig out my car. Summer is sounding better each and every day.

I have been busy last week catching up from my trip to D.C. Catching up entails doing extra homework, sleeping, and getting better as I was sick earlier this week. I haven't even had time to upload my D.C. photos to Facebook. LOL! Anyways, this coming week I have a paper due in my CAPSTONE class and a test in Humanities II, so as you can imagine, this weekend will be full or work as well. I am hoping to be completing some more job applications soon...let me tell you, they can be a bear to fill out.

After D.C.

I was planning on blogging after the inauguration on Tuesday, but since the internet connection at the house we were staying at was down, I was (obviously) unable to blog. Now that I am back at Bluffton and (somewhat) rested, I can blog.

The inauguration was absolutely amazing! As I mentioned in my last blog, we left our house incredibly early to get to the Metro station. When we got off the Metro, we walked into a sea of people. The Metro station was incredibly packed. Once we made our way out of the station, we made a mad dash for our assigned gate. The wait in line was not near as bad as what I had anticipated it to be. Of course it was cold outside, but since I was well layered, the temperature was bearable.

Once we made it through the security area, we ran to a location where we could see the inauguration. We were in the fourth row of people, but after some people knocked down two rows of fences, we were able to run forward quite aways...by doing so, we ended up in the second row. Although I couldn't make out any faces from where I was standing, I was able to see people on the stage. Thanks to a large jumbo tron and speakers near by, I was able to easily watch and hear the inauguration.

Let me tell you, it was a mad house after the inauguration. Millions of people flooded the streets and Metro stations; some Metro stations were closed and some streets were blocked off. Because of all of these factors, it took us 3.5 hours to get out of the city and back to Hyattsville! Talk about stressful!

Wednesday was a long tiring day as we traveled back to Bluffton. Yesterday was a great day as I was able to rest a little bit and catch up on a few things. I am hoping to get lots of rest this weekend and print off my pictures. This was one of the best experiences I have had here at Bluffton University during my four years.

An Experience of a Lifetime

Well, yesterday was a great day! I stood outside for 5 hours for the inauguration kick-off!! Wow...talk about an experience. The kick-off was full of a complete line-up of A-listed actors, musicians, and entertainers. I also heard Joe Biden and Barack Obama speak!! Although my group was far back from the Lincoln Memorial, I was able to watch everything on a big jumbotron. I am hoping that my pictures turn out half way decent.

On top of the concert, I attended church at Hyattsville Mennonite Church. It was nice to be able to attend church so far from home. After the concert, I went to the Jefferson Memorial and with Bethany, Vance, and Nate. After walking what seemed like miles to China-town, we were able to fight the wall to wall of thousands of people to make our way into Fuddruckers. Our meal tasted soooo good, as we were not able to eat lunch due to the concert.

Today was another great day. I went to the National Archives and saw the Constitution, the Declaration of Independence, the Bill of Rights, and the Magna Carta. I then was able to get my picture taken in front of the White House and see the Lincoln Memorial and the Vietnam War Memorial.

After a long day in D.C., I am ready for bed, especially since we are leaving our house at 3:45 am for the Metro station!

Live from D.C.!

Greetings! As I hinted in my last blog, I am in Washington, D.C. for Barack Obama's Inauguration. I came yesterday with 6 other Bluffton students and professor Perry Bush. As the President of the Bluffton University Young Democrats, I have been busy planning for this trip. Our drive yesterday was pretty uneventful...it only took us 10 hours.

Today was cold, however, not near as cold as Ohio. Pretty much, to us, D.C. feels like Miami Beach...okay, maybe not quite, but the 30 some degree weather here sure beats the -13 degree weather in Ohio.

Today we road the Metro into D.C. from Hyattsville, MD, where we are staying. For some, it was their first time riding the Metro...I believe that everyone enjoyed this experience. We broke off into groups, but most of us saw the same things. I went to the official inaugural store and another store that was selling Obama inaugural gear. I have never seen so much Obama stuff in one region!

On my way to the Air and Space Museum, I and my group, saw a live taping of MSNBC News, to which we appeared on!! After visiting the Art and Space museum, we went to the Museum of Natural History. I then walked around with Cyrus. We went to the Washington Monument, China Town, and Union Station. We walked it all...let me tell you...we walked several miles today.

Tomorrow, we are planning on going to the Inaugural Kick-Off. Hopefully I will get to blog about this experience next time.

Until then...peace out Ohio and all who read this!

1/15

Well, as the title of this blog indicates, I am officially 1/15 done with my last semester here at Bluffton University.

We started our classes last week. So far, they are not seeming to be too bad. It always seems like at the beginning of each semester the classes appear as if they will be overwhelming, which usually does not turn out to be the case. However, this semester I am taking Humanities 2, CAPSTONE, and Issues in Education, all of which require a lot of reading to be completed outside of class. I am also taking reading assessment and two math classes; these classes have a lot of work accompanied with them as well, but not as much reading as my other classes.

I spent this past weekend working on homework. That was a change for me since I completed my student teaching last semester. I am having to get back into my studying habits. Who knew that one could get used to not having homework and studying for quizzes/tests so fast? LOL!

Anyways, I am sure that I will be blogging about it later, so I might as well let you all know...I am going to the Inauguration!! I am so excited; however, that also means that I have a lot of "make-up" work from my classes that I will miss while I am in D.C. For most of my classes, the make-up work is due before I miss class. That means that I have to not only do my homework that I am assigned this week, but I also have to do the homework that I will be assigned while I am gone. :(