Highlights of the weekend!

1) Leading a small group

Much to my surprise, I arrived at camp this weekend to find out I was in charge of leading one of the small group Bible studies that met three times throughout the weekend. I was assigned a group of thirteen year-old kids, and got to read the Bible, play games, and do art projects with them for a few hours each day. They were quite the group to handle, but it was fun! I like being silly with kids. :)

2) The office

I spent an average of four hours a day in the office this summer, and it was fun to be able to retreat back to a place I remember so well and so fondly! I enjoy having a place to go when meals get too loud or when I'm overwhelmed with crazy kiddos. I have the special privelege of hanging out in the office!

3) Yelling

Due to an unfortunate circumstance involving a bunch of curse words and physical violence, I yelled at two kids. I've never yelled at camp before - never, in three and a half years...crazy! I guess my patience is tested when safety is a concern.

4) Puzzles

In a 48-hour span, we finished THREE 1000-piece puzzles. They kept us up until the wee hours of the night (morning??), and I may have gotten a little crabby, but we did it!

5) Volunteers

We have approximately twenty-five people on our summer staff, and we had nineteen people volunteering at this retreat. It was a volunteer-camper ratio of 1:6. I thought that was pretty impressive! It was great to see such good friends that I haven't seen in months. Anyway, we were all stacked in the basement of a lodge for living quarters. We had two toilets, three sinks, and ONE shower for the nineteen of us. Yuck! Saturday was honestly the first day in my entire life that I have noticed how bad I smell. Needless to say, I found a way to fit in a shower.

6) Snow fort

We built two awesome snow forts. As in, the kind you see in the Hoover playground where there are a bunch of tunnels intersecting and enough room for people to sleep! A few people slept in one of them Saturday but had to leave halfway through the night because it was so cold...oops!

7) Food

Mmmm, food is so much better when it is free! And when it's made for you. And when it comes from camp. Camp oatmeal is probably my favorite thing in the universe (okay, not really, but pretty close!). I even got to bring home a tupperware of extra food!

8) Banangrams (Scrabble)

I like games...a lot. I like words...a lot. I like word games...a lot! Friends at camp sure love word games a lot, too! It was fun to play and make silly words and make up rules and laugh.

9) Boot hockey (broomball)

There was an excellent full-size hockey court cleared on the lake, and we played a few rousing games of broomball. SO COLD (turns out it is windy on the lake??), but so great!

10) Sledding, skiing, snowshoeing

I couldn't bring my cross-country skiis to camp because I had five people in my itty-bitty car. But, luckily, camp has some awesome skiis (from the '70s), that we could borrow. Similarly, camp has a bunch of old snowshoes that are great to tromp around in. And, we made this sledding hill from the lodge all the way down to the lake (thankfully there was a clearing in the trees) and sledded down on inner tubes.

It was a great way to spend a weekend! Some day, I am going to have to stop working at camp for the summer, and that's going to be really difficult for me. It really is one of the best places on Earth!

Confirmation!

I am so pumped! Things are falling into place for my upcoming trips, graduation, etc.

This weekend, I got together with two camp friends, with whom I'll be traveling to Europe in May. We purchased our tickets - and we are SO EXCITED!

We have eight or ten friends from camp spread out across Ireland, Northern Ireland, Scotland, and England, so we've got plenty of connections / housing possibilities. It's going to be tough, though, to figure out how to fit everything in!

Here's what our itinerary looks like...

Monday, May 16th

1:30 PM - Depart from Minneapolis

2:50 PM - Arrive at O'Hare in Chicago

4:18 PM - Depart from O'Hare in Chicago

Tuesday, May 17th

5:55 AM - Arrive at Heathrow in London

10:05 AM - Depart from Heathrow in London

11:35 AM - Arrive in Glasgow, Scotland

In between these dates, we are going to go on various trips, including four or five nights in England (staying in Manchester, roadtripping down to London, Stonehenge, Harry Potter castle, etc.), maybe a weekend in Paris, possibly a weekend trip to Northern Ireland, and a couple nights in Edinburgh, Scotland. Sounds great, eh??

Tuesday, May 31st

9:00 AM - Depart from Glasgow, Scotland

11:30 AM - Arrive in New York, NY

2:15 PM - Depart from New York, NY

4:17 PM - Arrive in Minneapolis, MN

SLEEP

Wednesday, June 1st

12:00 PM - Support Staff training starts at camp (four out of seven of us will be coming from the UK the day before - uffda!)

I just want to be a teacher!

Okay, I did my part!

I've been in school for seventeen years!

I passed my tests!

I have a GPA of 3.8 and I haven't gotten a grade lower than an A- since sophomore year!

I complete student teaching!

I have a stellar resume and great references/recommendation letters!

...

...

...

I have Senioritis!

Can I just be done? I just want to be a teacher!

Band!

I joined band! I am so proud, and super excited.

Today was my first rehearsal, from 4:00-6:00 PM. I was nervous before...as in, my palms were all sweaty and I was bouncing my knee! But, it turned out to be okay.

I played third clarinet, and I wasn't even the worst one in the section! In fact, I was better than TWO other clarinetists! (The other two members of my third clarinet section)

Anyway, it was an interesting experience. I was nervous about the first five minutes of rehearsal. I wasn't sure how early to be in the room, when to put together my instrument, what we'd be doing during rehearsal, how the ensemble BEGINS running through a piece, etc. But it was okay! I knew all of my fingerings and I can play two and a half octaves on the clarinet - exactly what I need to know.

It was a good experience, and I'm looking forward to next week. Stay posted! :)

Conference planning?

This ACDA Conference thing is SO EXCITING! I am the only student from Minnesota to receive the scholarship, and I have only received the names of a few other students from Minnesota planning to attend the conference. It's daunting, but exciting! I will be spending a lot of time in the next few weeks catching up on coursework so I can miss classes, and spending time booking plane tickets and hotel rooms, registering, and planning for the trip.

Meanwhile, I have been busy e-mailing leaders in ACDA and at local colleges trying to find the names of contacts I could meet up with at the Conference, or ideally, another female student with whom I could share a hotel room to defray the costs (it will probably cost me between $1200 and $1400, and my scholarship is for $800).

I have contacted the...
- National ACDA Chair of Youth and Student Activities
- ACDA of Minnesota President
- ACDA of North Dakota R&S Chair for Youth and Student Activities
- ACDA of South Dakota R&S Chair for College and University Activities
- ACDA of Iowa R&S Chair for Youth and Student Activities
- ACDA of Wisconsin President
- St. Olaf College Director of Music Education
- St. Olaf College Student ACDA President
- Luther College Director of Music Education
- Lawrence University Choir Director

And those are just the names I can think of off the top of my head!

So far I have heard back from several of these contacts. The MN-ACDA President asked me to contact other leaders, since he didn't know of any other students in Minnesota attending the conference.

St. Olaf has been very responsive and helpful - they have four students attending the conference. Unfortunately, they are all male! We are exchanging contact information in hopes of meeting up in Chicago, but clearly, I haven't yet found a roommate.

North Dakota is sending one student to sing in the honors choir, and they booked a double room for her. The R&S Chair has sent her an e-mail asking if she would be willing to share the room. I have my fingers crossed that this situation will work out!

I guess I'll just have to wait and see! If I can share a room, I'll save hundreds of dollars. But, if I have a room to myself, I guess I won't complain too much! :)

New Schedule??

Why didn't I figure this out BEFORE registration and BEFORE classes started?? I am currently taking 14 credits (I've never had a semester in which I've taken fewer than 16 credits) - because I don't get any credit for yoga since I've already taken it (if I did get credit, I would be taking 15 credits right now).

Here is what I am going to the registrar's office to do tomorrow morning....

1) DROP Constitutional Law! After trying to write my first brief, I realized that I know NOTHING about this class! Nothing about the Constitution, the history, or more importantly - how to read lawspeak and what the vocabulary is. So, I'm dropping this 4-credit class!

Which brings me down to 10 credits, and I need at least 12 to be a full time student. So, I am going to add:

2) Instrumental Conducting I! Don't you think that would be a WAY better use of my time than Claw?? (Sorry, Dad! But I AM a music major after all) It's only 2 credits, bringing me to a grand total of... 12 credits! But still five classes. Weird, huh??

Anyway, that will be much less stressful. If I wanted to, I could even add another 2-credit course, to bring my total up to 14 credits. That course is...

3) Methods for Teaching Piano! Again, way closer to what I'll be doing with my life than Claw.

Instead of adding Methods for Teaching Piano, though, I think I might join the Cobber Echo Band! It is a 1-credit course that meets from 4:00-6:00 PM on Sunday afternoons. I would play clarinet (which I should learn by this Sunday...)! I think it would be a fun experience and it would look great on my resume to have band experience, both in conducting class and in an actual band.

My new schedule would look something like this:

Monday:
10:30-11:40 AM Instrumental Conducting
11:50-1:00 PM Counterpoint
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:
10:30-11:40 AM Instrumental Conducting
11:50-1:00 PM Counterpoint
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

ACDA Convention!

"On behalf of the Scholarship Selection Committee of the FMC Endowment Fund, I am pleased to inform you that your application to receive a scholarship to attend the ACDA National Conference in Chicago has been accepted. We congratulate you not only being a recipient of this award, but also for committing yourself to further growth as a student choral director."

It is a great day! I am going to Chicago, most-expenses paid. Thanks, ACDA of Minnesota! I couldn't be happier to be attending the national convention. :) March 8th is quickly approaching...

Last First Day!

Today was my "Last First Day of School!" It was quite the day. I know I'll be in schools for the rest of my life, but this is probably my last as a student...strange. This semester will be full of all sorts of "lasts," but I need to remember that the next year will be full of all sorts of "firsts." I have so many things to look forward to! And so many things to enjoy right now.

Here are the highlights of my day:

1) Chapel Choir! We are singing the most challenging music that Chapel Choir has sung in the last three years, and it will certainly be the most rewarding. I can't believe how far the choir has come and how great this last semester will be. We sound fantastic, if I do say so myself, and our tour is going to be something I'll never forget.

2) Astronomy! For four years, I've been terrified to take a science class. Well, let me tell you, this one is not going to be too tricky! I don't remember the last time I took a 100-level class, and I forgot how they're geared for entry-level, first-year students. It's going to be a breeze - my prof is pretty funny and I know a few other music kids in the class. I can do it!

3) Constitutional Law (Claw)! Again, another great professor. I'm just taking this class for fun, so I've been planning on taking it pass/fail so I wouldn't have to worry about my grade. After the first day of class, though, I think I can do it! I don't think I need to take it pass/fail. We write briefs for class every day, and we're allowed to form a Law Firm for the semester with another classmate and work together on these. I think my roommate and I might form a Claw (Constitutional Law) Firm!

4) Counterpoint! I LOVE Bach. I love math and formulas and things that make sense, and this class is going to teach me about Bach/Palestrina/writing like this and analyzing music like this/it is going to be great.

5) Friends! I had a friend from camp over this evening and we laughed and went to Target and ate cookies and Skyped and it was relaxing. It's fun being a student again, and having so much more time!

6) Boots! When I left home yesterday, I saw a line of boots by the front door. Holly and I have the same pair of boots, so I grabbed my pair and headed out the door. Turns out, though, I took the right boot of my pair and the right boot of hers. So, I headed to class this morning wearing two right boots, one size 7 and one size 5. I tripped several times and got some laughs from friends. What a great story! Anyway, during my Target run, I bought a new, much-needed pair of boots. They are not very attractive, but I had to choose between utility and style, and goodness knows that in Fargo-Moorhead, we choose utility.

Anyway, the semester is off to a great start! More to come later... :)

Also, in honor of my last-first-day, I took this rollercoaster picture. Please ignore the random splotches of me that are missing.

Safe arrival!

I have arrived safe and sound at Concordia! After a nine-hour trip, might I add... My day looked something like this:

9:30 AM - Arise, shower, pack, eat delicious cinnamon rolls, say goodbye to family!

11:36 AM - Depart from Rochester, MN with a full car.

11:50 AM - Find out from Dad that my car is not quite full - I left my laptop on the kitchen table. Meet Dad at the 75th St. exit in Rochester to get my laptop (thanks, Dad!).

1:30 PM - Meet a friend from camp in Stillwater, MN for lunch. Eat a delicious Greek potato concoction and realize that I'm across the river from Wisconsin! Sweet.

3:30 PM - Gas up in Stillwater...prepare for the next leg of the journey!

3:45 PM - Depart for Moorhead, MN

5:30 PM - Roads are awful! Going 30 mph near Alexandria. Figure I won't make it to Moorhead until 9:00 PM...ugh! My friends from Concordia weren't joking when they started calling it "Death-94."

7:00 PM - It's getting better! After a quick stop for dinner at a gas station in Fergus, the roads are brilliant and clear of packed snow/ice/yuckiness. It's smooth sailing - driving 73 mph 'till Moorhead.

8:15 PM - Arrive at my house in Moorhead after gassing up one more time. My roommates shoveled all of our sidewalks and both driveways - it must have taken HOURS! Thanks, roomies!

10:50 PM - Realize that I'm across the river from ND, meaning today was almost a three-state day! Yes! I had an awesome break but I'm happy to be home. Classes tomorrow will be a rude awakening... :)

I give Moorhead a thumbs-up!

Stuck?

Hi! Happy New Year.

I'm not really that sad, I'm just stuck in Rochester and would like the interstates to open so I can get back to school. :)

Also, I tried to go sledding today. It was cold. Boooooo.