I HATE doing nothing.

I HATE doing nothing. I hate doing nothing. I hate doing nothing. I can't begin to count the number of things I love doing - there are thousands. However, I can only think of a few things that I hate doing. One thing I hate doing is NOTHING. I can't stand it!

I have this list of 100 things I'd like to do in the next 1000 days, and I'm making great progress. I very well may be done in the next 100 days, in fact!

One thing on my list is "Do nothing for an entire day." I tried that today.

I sat on the couch for eight hours, read an entire book, cross-stitched my choir folder, blogged, watched so much TV, Skyped, and read so many webcomics.

After eight hours, I just went insane. I could not do it anymore. My body started twitching and freaking out on me. There was no comfortable way to sit anymore - my back is still just aching from sitting weird on the couch all day. I was all fidgety and bored to tears.

At 8:30 PM, I gave in. I got up, and in the last hour, I have done a ridiculous number of things. After such a long day, I just needed to be efficient and get something done. I cleaned the entire kitchen, did four sinks of dishes, made toasted pumpkin seeds, devoured two popsicles, made lunch for Monday and Tuesday, and sorted my laundry. All in an hour, after doing nothing all day.

Never again will I do nothing for a whole day. I feel unaccomplished and completely unprepared for this week. I feel like I've gotten nothing done and I wasted so much time. I wish I would have gone for a walk (even though it's yucky outside) or played a game or talked to a friend or practiced organ or SOMETHING productive or at least fun!

I cannot relate to my college friends who play video games eight hours a day, seven days a week. How do they do it??

YUCK!

Fun!

I love vacation! Over break, I've done so many fun things. I mentioned several of the chores I've done, but I've barely said anything about the fun I've had!

1. Went out to lunch with Dustin! It was really great to catch up with him again. We had a blast!

2. Went out to dinner with Peter and Zach (camp friends). It was refreshing to see camp friends, and it energized me for the camp retreat I'm going to next weekend.

3. Cooked dinner for three friends! I made penne with a spinach garlic sauce, tossed with tomatoes and chickpeas. It's been awhile since I've followed a recipe and made real food. Thanks, Dad, for the vegetarian cookbook you gave me for Christmas! The dinner was yummy.

4. Played a lot of Pictionary. I'm still not any better, but it was fun.

5. Watched TV with my roommates. Did I mention that it was really, really dumb TV?

6. Read two books. Also, really, really dumb books (they're the written form of chick flicks). Still, fun.

7. Cross-stitched "Chapel Choir" onto my choir folder! Hahaha.



8. Laid in the grass for an hour and enjoyed the 65 degree weather in Moorhead with a beautiful shining sun.

9. Practiced organ, piano, voice, and guitar.

10. Skyped with friends in England, Northern Ireland, Australia, Scotland, Colorado, Michigan, North Dakota, and Minnesota.

11. Played piano at church.

12. Saw the Vienna Boys' Choir perform! Wow! They're okay at singing. ;-)

13. Got laryngitis, completely lost my voice, and had to cancel my voice jury...again. Oops!

Last semester?

I've been working on figuring out my schedule for next semester, and hold your horses, this is going to be quite the ride! This is much more complex than any schedule I've looked at before. Here are my concerns/requirements:

1) No classes before 10:30 AM. Period.

2) As few classes on Friday as possible.

3) I want to take a Religion class from one of two professors, so there are only two available options.

4) I need science. I have to take science or I will not graduate. I hate science. Therefore, I am going to take Astronomy, no matter what.

5) My last requirement for my major is a Creative Applications course in Music. I can take Counterpoint or Orchestration, and obviously I don't like orchestra so I'll be taking Counterpoint (which is only offered at one time).

6) I am paying (well, Mom/Dad are paying [thanks!]) $36,000 for me to attend school this year. I would love to just take twelve credits and totally slack off for my last semester, but I am going to take as many credits as I can and get the best experience I can. Therefore, I need another 2 classes (6 credits).

7) I am going to take a class with my roommate R, who also needs another class. We are going to take it pass-fail, and guess what class it is! Dad, you're going to have a heart attack. Actually, you all might. I'll let you guess, and you can see below.

8) I am going to take Yoga. Twice. Because I can, and it is great. And I already took it once. Yes.

Here is my tentative class schedule. Remember, hold your horses!

Monday:
11:50-1:00 PM Counterpoint
1:20-2:30 PM Constitutional Law (Pass/Fail)
2:40-3:50 PM Astronomy

Tuesday:
10:30-12:30 PM Astronomy Lab
12:50-2:30 PM Yoga
2:40-4:20 PM Legacy of Luther

Wednesday:
11:50-1:00 PM Counterpoint
1:20-2:30 PM Constitutional Law (Pass/Fail)
2:40-3:50 PM Astronomy

Thursday:
12:50-2:30 PM Yoga
2:40-4:20 PM Legacy of Luther

Friday:
1:20-2:30 PM Constitutional Law (Pass/Fail)
2:40-3:50 PM Astronomy

MEA!

Today has been an exciting day! MEA Break is so much better as a teacher! Here are a few exciting things I've done today...

1) Washed the 7 spots of bird poop off of my car
2) Washed the mold out of our bathtub
3) Visited the Moorhead and Fargo public libraries
4) Listened to MPR
5) Went to the bank to deposit checks
6) Shopped for groceries
7) Purchased/created a Halloween costume
8) Cleaned/vacuumed my room
9) Appealed a parking ticket, hopefully successfully

Today was a success!

Today was productive! I...

- Went to the grocery store and purchase adult foods (peaches, spinach, soy milk) and not-so-adult food (jell-o, Scooby Doo fruit snacks)
- Deposited paychecks at the bank
- Returned books at the public library
- Appealed a school parking ticket
- Cleaned my room
- Cleaned the kitchen
- Baked brownies
- Bought a rake and black trash backs, and coincidentally raked the yard
- Had a clubbie reunion and played Telephone Pictionary and Bocce Ball
- Had a birthday party for my roomie Rachel and played pin-the-tail on the donkey, hit a pinata, and did other excellent birthday games

I feel so...productive! Tomorrow:

8:30-9:00 AM - Church choir rehearsal
9:00-10:00 AM - Practice organ, do ACDA score study, meet up with dad (!?)
10:00-11:15 AM - Church
11:15-12:15 PM - Lunch
12:15-1:00 PM - Organ lesson and jury rehearsal
1:00-1:30 PM - Really fast score study
1:30-3:00 PM - Direct ACDA choir rehearsal
5:00-8:00 PM - Play piano for United Campus Ministries gala and worship study
9:00 PM - BED

Also, tomorrow is the Extreme Home Makeover reveal (around 2:00 PM). Some of my friends are arriving at the site at 8:00 AM - they're expecting 15,000 people. YUCK! Remind me not to leave the house tomorrow! Oh wait... :)

Becoming a teacher?

Ah, excellent. I just shelled out $270 and a future four-hours of my time for my first two sets of teacher licensing exams!

I scheduled my first set of exams for Saturday, December 18th at 8:00 AM in West Fargo. This was the only date all semester that works with my schedule, as we're not allowed to take any time away from student teaching for the exam. My last date of student teaching will be that Thursday or Friday, and I'll be testing on Saturday. Needless to say, I'll be fried. The exam is testing my knowledge of music pedagogy, so I'm not too worried about it. In fact, I don't plan to study at all. :) I'll probably hang around in Moorhead that Saturday, then play at church on Sunday and head home to Rochester!

My second set of exams is scheduled for Tuesday, December 21st at 2:00 PM on Greenview Drive in Rochester (sound familiar??). This is great for a couple of reasons. 1) It will make sure I get home to Rochester, which will mean I'm sure to get at least some rest before the exam. 2) Dad can let me practice on his arm and Mom will give me a chill pill. Anyway, the test is on Secondary Pedagogy (grades 5-12), so classroom practices/teaching styles/history of teaching, etc. This may be my downfall! I'll have to start studying soon...

These exams are really frustrating! This summer, they changed the Minnesota teaching licensing exams from the Praxis to the MTLE. I took the first set of Praxis tests my sophomore year, and I'll finish my testing with the MTLE. When I acquire my teaching license, I will have used a combination of the two exams. The Praxis is a nation-wide licensing exam, but the MTLE is only used in Minnesota. Since the Minnesota certification program no longer requires the national Praxis, I probably won't be taking it. However, if I ever plan to teach in another state, I'll need to (and the MTLE won't do me any good in other states). How silly is that!?

PLUS, since it's a brand new test, there are no prep materials available. In fact, the website only includes a brief description of materials covered on the exams, and five practice questions for each. Over the course of the semester, we are hoping they will release full-length practice exams, study materials (such as books I could order), and an in-depth discussion of exam materials.

Isn't life exciting? ;-)

I am old! I am a kid!

I am old!

This morning, I awoke at the lovely time of 5:45 AM. I promptly took a shower and then ate a bowl of Raisin Bran for breakfast while watching the morning news. As I drove to school, I listened to NPR and watched the sun rise.

For lunch, I ate adult food and dined in the Teacher's Lounge. I had a whole grain bread sandwich with hummus/colby jack cheese/spinach, with a side of carrots.

When I got home from school, I cleaned out my car and took out the trash. I then did the dishes and started laundry.

I'm driving out to Hawley tonight for Coronation at 7:30, and I'm planning to be in bed by 9:30 PM tonight.

I am a kid!

When I packed my lunch, I put my sandwich in a Spiderman ziploc bag.

I lost my phone today and ever since, I've been freaking out that I can't get ahold of anyone to tell them how my day was!

My pajama shirt that I woke up wearing says "Don't get all up in my grill!" and it's a picture of a hotdog, hamburger, and a grill.

First day? Success.

Extreme Home Makeover, yeah??

Extreme Home Makeover is in Fargo-Moorhead for the week!

They are producing a show, replacing a home in Moorhead. The house is actually just two blocks south of Concordia, and WOW is there a buzz around here! They started work this afternoon, and there are giant semis and ABC trailers everywhere. Crazy!

The show has 4,500 volunteers from around the community. It's great to think of how many people are willing to help out this week - quite a few members of my church will be involved. The Grommesh family has been through a lot. Their nine year old son Garrett has spina bifida, and their eleven year old daughter Peighton has Axenfeld-Reiger's syndrome, a pancreatic enzyme deficiency. Their new house will be spectacularly handicap-accessible. Yet, a part of me wonders how much could be done if those 4,500 volunteers were spread throughout Fargo-Moorhead, helping the thousands of other people in need. Yeah, this family could use help, but how many other members of the community are in dire need of assistance? Interesting.

We had a great discussion during half-time at church this morning. ;-) But seriously, we have quite a few questions about the effect of this home makeover. What happens to the family after the show? Do they also receive help paying taxes for this new home, which is in a higher tax bracket? The kids' bedrooms are always decked out with snazzy decorations appropriate for their age (think Disney Princesses and GI Joes). But what about a year later, when the kids have moved on but can't afford to paint their rooms? And just looking at past makeovers - it would be interesting to come back in six months and see how many places have been redone, or trashed. How many people can stand living in a chartreuse and magenta dining room? Hopefully this one won't be quite as garish.

Anyway, enough with my cynicism. I'm hoping this will be a fantastic experience for the community. :)

So, here is the website. Check it out!

http://www.extrememakeoverfm.com/