almost time for break

My mom and Kristen's mom are driving up (well, over?) on Thursday and will be here late Thursday night, and they'll stay Friday too, and on Saturday morning we'll head back home. I'm not looking forward to break. It just kind of messes up the schedule you've got going for yourself, you know? I guess most other people are like, "Thank goodness break is here!" but Christmas break really threw me off balance, and I'm hoping this week off doesn't do the same.

I'm not going to miss the food here, that's for sure, but I will really miss the people, particularly Chris and Peter. I hang out with them almost every night now, even though hanging out consists of almost nonstop jokes at either my expense or the expense of women! For those of you who don't know, I met Peter this summer at orientation; he was staying with mutual friends of the family and I met him at their house. We didn't hang out much at all until just before Christmas break, when I started joining the college ball tournaments at Bob's that he and Chris were a part of. As for Chris, we were in the same First Year Seminar class, and again, I started hanging out with him when I started playing college ball. Now the three of us do lots of things together: weekly Wal-Mart trips for groceries (I have basically a constant hunger), near-nightly movies, baking, trips to the house of our family friends, baking/cooking, studying, whatever! And of course, the whole time, I'm saying stupid things (not on purpose!) and they're laughing at me! It's a surprisingly good time :-) I'm staying with them at Chris's house overnight on the way back to school, so that should be fun, because Chris has a cool sister and nice friends. Except the guys are going to startle us during the scary movie we're going to watch--I hate that!

Well, I've got to go set up for the Hall Association's scrapbooking night. I'm going to bring some of my clear acrylic stamps to show people (my mom and I sell Close to My Heart products) so people can play around with them, they're so much fun. "See" you all after break!

"that's how you know..."

One question that it was suggested I address in my blog was how you know that a college is right for you. For me, it wasn't an extremely difficult decision once I got rejected from my other top choice university: I just felt comfortable at Bluffton when I visited, and I knew I would have a support system here because my best friend from home is a sophomore here, and my parents have friends in town. So even though I'm eight hours away from my family, I've got people that I can turn to here.

I really like the beauty of the campus here. It's so cute! Sure, there's a few ugly buildings, but then there's the really picturesque parts like the library, Lincoln Hall, and even Centennial. It was important for me to have a nice green campus that wasn't too harsh-looking, and that's what I got. I know that part of the beauty of campus is that a lot of the walkways are not absolutely straight--they have some curve to them. So it gives it a softer look than geometric lines. And even the lampposts here are pretty--they're old-fashioned, not highway-style. I would be depressed by a campus that wasn't aesthetically pleasing, and so I'm very happy with what I see as I walk every day on campus here.

On a different subject, yesterday in public speaking class we got into a big debate! It was so intense. Every single person in the class got question #23 on our midterm wrong, and so we argued that it had not been worded clearly. It took us a looong time--like 20 minutes--to convince the prof that he should throw the question out and give us 2 extra points. We finally convinced him, after almost every single person in the class spoke up and did their best to contribute to the argument! It was the most fun session of the class we've ever had! Those are the best classes--when students get to actually speak. It might not happen that much, but when it does, it's awesome!

that darn cat

There is a white cat who keeps sneaking into Ropp (my dorm). It left a little present in the hall this morning, and apparently it's about to have kittens. I'm worried I'm going to come into the kitchen one day and oh--lookit--there's a litterful of kittens right in front of the refrigerator door! I don't know where the cat comes from; people suggest that it has a home but gets more attention here, but I don't know about that. It has no tag and comes and goes whenever. What kind of gross diseases does it have that it's bringing into the dorms?!

Today, I was really satisfied with one of the dishes at lunch. It was a bean/vegetable/cheese quesadilla that I dipped in sour cream. Oh it was absolutely delicious and not too bad for you! I was also really satisfied with the concern that the dining services seem to have for the students. I just answered an online survey they sent out by e-mail that asked about how Sodexho (the company) is doing in regards to wellness. I don't know if things will actually change, but it's nice to think they're listening! We're getting some interesting new offerings this month at Bob's, I think (the fast-food-type option on campus). Nothing that I am really interested in eating, but other people might like to try it.

This was the last day of one of our sections of Biblical Worldview class. We had Randy Keeler, who is a fun professor that I had for First Year Seminar class last semester, for the past few weeks. His section was the "Ministry" section. We talked about ways to discern God's will; baptism; ways God speaks to us; what it means to call yourself a Christian; and stuff like that--how to live your life. The unit before that was Laura Brenneman's, and it was more history of Christianity and the Bible. I liked both of the units. They weren't exactly revolutionary or fascinating, but they were interesting enough, and it's a great introduction to what we'll study in upper-level religion courses. Some people don't like Biblical Worldview and the fact that it's required, but I think it's a really important class to take because it makes you analyze your faith a little bit more and increases your awareness of the world around you. I almost feel that I learned more about the Bible in this class than I ever did in Sunday school! So, for all you prospectives: there's absolutely no reason to dread the class! :-)

missed opportunity

Do you know who Spike Lee is? He directed "Inside Man" recently, but is most famous for his films exploring racial tension, like "Do the Right Thing." I will admit, I have not seen more than about 5 minutes of "Do the Right Thing," or any of his films other than "Inside Man." But I know that he's legendary and very talented (at least in many people's eyes) and somewhat controversial.

Well, yesterday in sociology class, the professor, Dr. Nyce, told us that she had 4 extra tickets to see Spike Lee speak in Dayton that night, and anyone was welcome to have them. I immediately called up my best friend Adam, who is more obsessed with movies than anyone I know including me and is a teenage director. I knew he would kill me if I didn't go! He reminded me that he had seen Spike Lee talk at the University of Rochester and that it had changed his life. But I couldn't find a ride to Dayton or anyone to go with, and I already had plans to bake biscotti with Peter and Chris at Rodney and Marie's, so I ended up not going. I was pretty bummed a lot of the day. I mean, it's SPIKE LEE! For someone who wants to make meaningful movies, he's a role model.

But I ended up having a good time baking biscotti, even if I ended up doing all the dishes. And mm, that biscotti is good!

I cleaned my room up some last night, so I'm proud of myself!

Tomorrow we have an outline for a big speech due in public speaking class, which I'm nervous about. I don't know what to speak about! I mean, I have a topic: how to educate consumers about environmentally friendly textiles. But I don't know how to go about educating them! I need to go to the library and get help from the reference librarian, I think. They have their hours posted on the Bluffton website, and the hours are pretty convenient.

Then I have my meeting today about "Singin' in the Rain". Exciting!

the plans are revealed :-)

Ah...Friendly's. Tonight I went with Chris to Friendly's after trying to get into the Olive Garden and a steak restaurant. I got my usual: I special-order a former menu item, the 4-cheese-and-bacon supermelt with tomatoes and honey mustard. Oh gosh it's so good. And of course an orange sherbet Slammer. Yummy!

So, awhile ago I might have alluded to a new project that would possibly be coming up for me. I think I can finally announce the good news to the world at large: I'm going to be filming/editing/just plain DOING the filmed sequences for the spring musical at Bluffton, "Singin' in the Rain." If you haven't seen it, the musical is about actors in silent films who are making the transition to "talkies" way back when. So during the musical, they show bits of the silent films and of the talkies, some of which are disastrous. Since the drama department needs someone to create these sequences, they asked me to work on it! I've been sent a script and I've marked up the scenes that I'll be filming, and even did a little bit of storyboarding today. But then I got discouraged because I think I need to watch some silent movies and the movie of "Singin' in the Rain" to get the feel for what those early films were like so I can be historically accurate. Luckily, I have a Netflix subscription, and you can play that movie online whenever you want! Since I have a meeting with the head of the theatre department on Tuesday afternoon, I'll have to get cracking on that ASAP! I have a lot of questions to ask and it could be a very difficult job. But I'm ready for it! Please wish me luck. This would be something great to put on a resume and to show potential employers, and it'll be doing film again! Oh I'm so excited and nervous!

"legacy"?

I suppose you could call me a legacy, couldn't you? The daughter of an alumnus of Bluffton? My dad graduated from Bluffton sometime a long while ago :-) 1978 actually. I've always felt a little left out growing up in the Mennonite church because I don't have any family connections to other churches and other Mennonites (my parents are the first Mennonites in their families), and a favorite activity of many Mennonites is to see the funny familial connections we have with each other! So that used to bum me out a little bit, but now I have a different kind of insider connection: being the daughter of a Bluffton alumnus. I sat with Kristy and Ben at dinner today, and Ben's dad was my dad's roommate here. Ben and I had never met before we came to college, but our parents tell us stories about each other and they know all these college staff and faculty that went here too. Ben and I were making a list of people that our parents knew, including Randy Keeler (religion professor), Steve Steiner (science professor and honors program director), and oh, now I can't remember the rest. And then there's also Rodney and Marie, who live just outside of town and whose house I go to on the weekends, although Ben doesn't know them. I just get tickled that I have these little unexpected connections.

So, if you're Mennonite, you might find yourself with some distant cousins or some friends of your parents' if you come to Bluffton! But the point of this blog isn't to exclude people who aren't Mennonite: I want to assure you all that you shouldn't worry if you aren't Mennonite, everyone is very welcoming no matter where you're from! In fact, I take Kristy, Peter, and Chris with me when I visit Rodney and Marie; Peter is Mennonite but his parents don't know Rodney and Marie, and Kristy and Chris have no connections to the Mennonite church or anyone here. But they fit in just fine anyway!

food times 2

On the first Wednesday of every month (I think), Dining Services has a meeting that anyone is free to go to where we can share concerns and ideas and thoughts about the food and about Marbeck Commons and Bob's in general (the cafeteria and the fast-food-type place). Amy, Sarah, and I went this Wednesday and I thought it was really helpful. For example, I asked whether it would be possible to put hard-boiled eggs into the salad bar more consistently, because if you don't want to eat the meat they're serving as an entree or you're vegetarian, you need protein. I also expressed my concern at the amount of deep-fried main dishes. Then, we got to tell the Marbeck Center Director and the food service head what our dream cafeteria would be like--with layout, atmosphere, etc. They're thinking about/planning a huge overhaul of the current cafeteria. I'm not sure as to the timeline of the project--this would obviously cost a heck of a lot of money and take so much planning and effort. But it's great that they're thinking about this and trying to get student feedback!

In other food-ish news, we had an interesting floor activity tonight. A bunch of us signed up to go to dinner in Neufeld, the newest dorm, to learn etiquette. Dr. Nerad, a family and consumer sciences prof that I had last semester, taught us a ton of guidelines and rules for formal dinners. It would have been nice to have had that before the banquet for the Honors Program! That reminds me, I want to tell Pete, the dining services manager, that I really liked the rice and raisin dish they served then!

So I've had a couple of unusual meals the last two days! It's definitely a nice break from the usual day-to-day stuff we do all the time!

a little risque for Bluffton...

Last night, everyone, including me, went to this show thing called Sex Signals. By "everyone," I mean 300 students--a third of the campus! Me and my friends arrived 45 minutes early to get seats. It was crazy packed.

So, we'd been seeing ads (some with pictures of the two actors in risque poses) around campus for a couple of weeks for a "sort-of improv show about sex". I heard somewhere that it was about date rape, but I don't remember where. So I was kind of iffy about the whole thing--sounds a little awkward!--and I hadn't been feeling well, but all my friends were going. So I decided what the heck, it's a campus event, and I don't feel like there are enough of them that really attract a large audience, so I wanted to participate in something that brought a lot of campus together. I wanted a sense of community, you know?

It ended up being a pretty great time. The two actors were absolutely fabulous. They have such skill at improv. First they had sort of a conversation with the audience about stereotypes about girls and guys, and they did skits. It really got a little bit R-rated for Bluffton, I thought. I was a little shocked. It's good to have honest talk but it was a bit intense for me. It was still hilarious, though! Then we got more serious with a skit about a guy accused of date rape, where he gave his side of the story, and a little "sermon" about date rape. But the heaviness didn't last too long, so it was still mostly a lighthearted good time. I'm really glad that they were brought in--it was a great event. A bunch of campus groups got together to sponsor it, and I think this proves that we can do incredible things when we team up!

So, that was the highlight of the past few days! In other news, the campus is flooding. I did NOT know that I was signing up to live in a swamp when I enrolled :-) Nah, it's not that gross, but there is definitely a lot of flooding. Some paths are blocked by enormous puddles and the Riley Creek is way overflowed. It's been intense!