Studying Distractions

Deep summer is when laziness finds respectability
~Sam Keen

Summer afternoon - summer afternoon; to me those have always been the two most beautiful words in the English language. ~Henry James

Good story I found on Basicjokes.com...

Final Exam:
Four college friends were so confident that the weekend before finals, they decided to go up to Dallas and party with some friends up there. They had a great time. However, after all the partying, they slept all day Sunday and didn't make it back to Austin until early Monday morning.

Rather than taking the final then, they decided to find their professor after the final and explain to him why they missed it.
They explained that they had gone to Dallas for the weekend with the plan to come back and study but, unfortunately, they had a flat tire on the way back, didn't have a spare, and couldn't get help for a long time. As a result, they missed the final.
The Professor thought it over and then agreed they could make up the final the following day. The guys were elated and relieved.

They studied that night and went in the next day at the time the professor had told them. He placed them in separate rooms and handed each of them a test booklet, and told them to begin.
They looked at the first problem, worth 5 points. It was something simple about free radical formation. "Cool," they thought at the same time, each one in his separate room. "This is going to be easy."

Each finished the problem and then turned the page. On the second page was written:
(For 95 points): Which tire?

What happened to my summer??

Spent 4 hours Friday night working on a presentation for a seminar classs, spent Saturday presenting to the class and now spending all Sunday studying for my accounting final tomorrow...where are the summers I used to know????

I WAS excited that I would be able to get some of my classes done for my graduate business degree over the summer, rather than adding them on to my full semesters. I figured I would have less work to do since they were summer courses and it would not be so bad since I did not have another 5 courses to study for as well. Life would be a breeze, get some credits done, have time to enjoy the summer......

NOT the case at all! Summer classes are even more intense classes since they are only 6 weeks long, it is like Billy Banks turning it up to 'double time'. Same amount of stuff packed into a small amount of time = more work per week = less free time. It is already July and my first class and first seminar are almost over. I have no idea where the time went and now it is crunch time with final presentations and a final test.

So now I can breathe after all this....right? Not so much my next class starts Thursday night and of course does not end until the week before the fall semester begins.

It is realizations likes these that remind me that I am becoming an adult...GASP! I know I should not be surprised, gone are the days of summer camp, summer sports clinics, weeks spent at the pool, time trying to make your own slip and slide in your backyard, etc. Growing up is great too, now I enjoy concerts, bars, trips, etc.

But sitting here studying for my accounting final makes me wish I had more free time like when I was 5 years old jumping through the sprinkler with the neighborhood kids and enjoying enough kool-aid to fill a tub. Memories.....

Weekend Away!

This past weekend was great since I got to get away from Des Moines for awhile. Not that I do not love Des Moines, but I needed a change of scenery. I went to St. LOUY (st. louis, mo) for a surprise birthday party for my sister. It was great to see my family....yeah I actually said that outloud. I flew in Friday night, my brother in law picked me up from the airport, and I surprised my sister, since she had no idea I was coming to visit. It is not everyday that you make someone else cry out of happiness, but that night my sister cried up a river.

All Saturday afternoon was a ladies afternoon with my mom, three sisters and me. We spent the whole time at a winery in MO. The afternoon was amazing because the weather was great, the wine poured endlessly, and the views were spectacular. We got to taste test delicious wines made locally served by a good looking guy nonetheless. I felt so 'posh' because we brought a picnic, listened to live music and sipped wine for a few hours. I feel like wealthy people do that, and I am NOT wealthy by any means....come on I go to Drake, they take all the money I have. It was relaxing yet fun and I would suggest a winery trip to anyone, just make sure the winery is quality.

That night we had a surprise party for my sister which was great because she suspected nothing! She is always reading people since she is a psychologist therefore she notices everything but we slipped this one by her. Again, she cried a river. She turned the young age of 30, which seems insane because I feel like all my sisters were just little kids growing up. The party just made me realize how OLD I was becoming.....BOOO! Parties in St. Louis are always great because the in-laws that I have down there work for Budweiser so kegs, expensive beer, and nostalgia are always included. I am not a huge drinker but it is still fun.

I had to fly back Sunday morning, cheapest tickets available and only time I could find a ride from the Omaha airport (flew into Omaha because Des Moines transportation, including airlines, SUCK....for another blog) back to Des Moines. There ends the awesome weekend as I had to spend the rest of Sunday working on a graduate class presentation with my group...blogging now is my break from working on my part, good excuse I thought! We need to institute 5 day weekends...

Pictures to follow. Hope your weekend went just as well if not better!

Remembering the Good 'Fast' Days

I used to be a running nerd....ok, so I still am. In high school I ran cross county in the fall but preferred the track and field season in the spring. We had a very intense running program at my high school which made it challenging but well worth it. I loved every minute of the sports, the teams, the challenges, the competition, the adrenaline, etc.

I would have LOVED to continue running in college but had to make dicisions according to my priorities as college athletics are very time consuming. School came first, but I will always have a place for track and field in my heart as I continue to lace up my running shoes a few times a week.

I am remembering all these memories as I got to watch some of the greatest athletes compete in the 2008 NCAA Outdoor Track and Field Championships. Who would have ever though little old Drake would host such an amazing event? Not I. But it was spectacular to see and I think more people now might recognize who the Drake Bulldogs are.

I chose some of my favorites pictures to represent the meet, as I used to long jump, run hurdles, run sprint relays, and pole vault.

Saturday Morning Run in Pictures

First time I have ever seen a prison evacuating inmantes....

Principal Park taken over by flood water

The bridge is unpassable.

The railroad tracks are under the water.

All the best restaurants on Court Ave. are sandbagged up!

The water just keeps rolling in.

The water is to the top of the bridge. Will it overflow?

All the Des Moines businesses are closed up and shut down.

The city is being overtaken by flood water. The top of the amphitheater arch is all that is left.

Super Sweet Deal Keeping me Busy.

I have not blogged for a couple of days because I have been SUPER BUSY, as the life of a PharmD/MBA student.

Drake offers this sweet deal where you can get your PharmD and MBA degrees in 6 years, most other schools do not have this kind of opportunity. The over-achiever that I am....as most pharmacy students are, I decided that this was something I was interested in. Signing up for the joint program was easy but actually going through with it.....that's another feat. As a pharmacy student, my schedule is set for me starting my P1 year. Nice that I do not have to make decisions about classes but sucks because I have little room to take other classes that may interest me. Well as a pharmacy student my schedule is already full to the max almost every semester so any of the graduate business course for the joint program have to be fit in on top of my full load of classes or during the summer.

Hence I am taking summer business courses this summer. Now don't get me wrong, the classes are not horrible but when I have a full time internship in a pharmacy, with evening clas and a weekend seminar, I have not time to even blog....what a SHAME. I have to work 40 hours a week for my internship (my hesitance towards it to be discussed in a future blog), then I have evening class two nights a week, 3 hours each night (with a test this past Monday night). This past weekend I also elected to take one of three required weekend seminars that was from 5-9 Friday night and from 8-5 Saturday. Not busy enough?? I was going to try to fit in some of my rotation hours that I have to complete as a pharmacy student each year, but I just don't have any more time in the day. I enjoy keeping busy but sometimes I keep myself too busy.

By the way, pharmacy classes and graduate business classes do not compare. Many people assume pharmacy classes are automatically harder than business courses, which may be true for undergrad classes. But graduate business courses and pharmacy courses are on the same playing field because both are challenging in their own way. The pharmacy classes challenge your ability to retain knowledge whereas the grad business classes challenge your ability to apply the knowledge. I like challenges and when the challenge is constantly changing, the game of life becomes even better.

I will try to be more persistent about my blogs, as I try to hang on tight to my speeding life.

3 Years On Campus....Finally my own Apartment!

I got home to my apartment tonight after work and realized I was growing out. I lived on Drake's campus for 3 years and was happy with it.....most of the time.

Freshman year I lived with one roommate, Jenny, in a double in Herriott Hall (one of the halls being re-done as we speak). We were placed together at random as she was a business major and I was a pharmacy major. In my opinion being placed with a random roommate is better than rooming with your best friend from high school. I have heard too many horror stories of friends as roommates becoming enemies by the end of the first semester. Now do not get me wrong all roommates with struggle at times but getting to know new people and learning to live with others is essential. As essential as living on campus for a year or two when in college to get the true college experience. Jenny and I became best friends with each other and with the other people on our floor. I think for most people it happens on purpose and naturally that you often times share a unique bond with the individuals on your floor becuase you always see them and learn to love them. Plus Drake places you on floors with people in a common class called your FYS class, a special introductory Freshman class.

Anyway, Jenny and I got along so well my freshman year that we decided to live together our sophmore year in a double in Morehouse. That year we were both so busy that we barely saw each other, plus we were both making different friends, her in her sorority and I in all my activities. After a second year of being on campus most people are dying to get away.

I was in some sense ready to move in with other girlfriends off campus but the convenience of living on campus was overwhelming for my hectic college life. I also had not and still did not have a car on campus so living on campus just seemed logical. My junior year (P1 = Pharmacy year 1) I lived in a single room in Morehouse. It was great, like having your own place. I had lots of friends in the building but always had my single room when I needed my own space. I could role out of bed and into class, go back to my room for those 45min breaks between classes, and be there on the spot for meetings or activities, unlike my off campus friends who had to plan their days around when they could get to campus or where they would park. By the way, parking at Drake is a major problem that the school is supposedly working on, but has seen little to no progress. Anyway, I enjoyed the convenience of not having to worry about any utility bills, cable charges, or cleaning because it was done through the campus housing. However I was becoming sick of the food on campus. It rarely changes, is not near anything like 'mom's home cooking' and is even more limited for vegetarians like me. So you could imagine that by my third year of it, I had ENOUGH.

As junior year rolled to an end I decided I need to move off campus because I was going to need a place to stay while taking summer classes and wanted to grow up and out of campus life. Once again I was going to live with three of my friends in a house but decisions weren't being made and I was getting nervous as summer neared. So I decided to venture on my own and looked for apartments/ roommates for about 3 weeks.

I moved into my OWN apartment the weekend after finals! I was scared that I would be lonely but that has not happened yet. I LOVE IT! I am still getting used to all the space I have (big upgrade from a single dorm room to a HUGE apartment) and still do not have everything in its place yet. I think that will take the rest of the summer. I do not have lots of furniture but am slowly accumulating more from friends, other students and the store. The bills and rent suck when they come in the mail but they are cheaper than the dorms. The food is my own choosing and I still have location convenience because I live right across the street from campus. I spend no money on parking or gas which is amazing for me considering school is so damn expensive and gas prices are only going up.

Living on campus was never that bad but having your own place to call home and inviting people over to "my apartment" is an experience I have always wanted. So stop by "my apartment" when you are arond Drake, as I always have a couch available and a no needed flip-flop policy for the shower.

"Like a Virgin!"

This is my first blog ever and I am having as good of a time as those women in the old Herbal Essences commercials! OOOO YEEESSSSSSS!

I used to think blogging was a waste of time because who really wants to read about mine or anyone else's life, problems, feelings, successes, etc. Now that I am starting my own blog, I realized that a lot of people blog not for other people but for themselves as a way of expression. I plan on doing just that. I plan on expressing myself by just being me and writing about my everyday life. If people choose to read my blogs GREAT. I might just make those things everyone talks about....Friends? I am not blogging to be a spokeswoman for anything in particular nor can I promise Vega style entertainment in my blogs since I suck at poetry, do not have a Paris Hilton life and only hear the sound of crickets after most of my jokes. Respond to any of the blogs with your thoughts or questions since I LOVE to meet new people, get fresh perspectives, and answer questions.

Well my first blog felt pretty liberating but more is yet to come.
Until next time, "You stay classy, bloggers"