One Class Down.

Current Location: Outside the library, sitting at a table underneath a tree.

So, I just finished my first college class- good ol' PDBio 120.

Now waiting for my next one- Spanish 205. I am so scared!

... and that is all for now

1:40 PM UPDATE!

The rest of today went swimmingly. Spanish was good- it's full of girls. Not a single boy... except if you count the little scrawny one that sits in the front row... I do not. Our teacher just speaks in Spanish REALLY FAST the whole time, but I am up for the challenge!

American Heritage was good as well. The best thing that happened to me during it? I will tell you! I found a seat on the end of a row, went to grab my desk on the right hand side like I always do, and then to my absolute inexplicable happiness, it wasn't there. It was on the LEFT side! Needless to say, I freaked out and proceeded to share my thrill with the girl sitting next to me. She feigned excitement for me, too. :)

In conclusion, it was a great day. Getting done with school at 12 is a beautiful thing!

Oh, and I added Poli Sci 101 to my sched, too. Should be an adventure

4 AM

That is the current time, and I am not sleeping. Oh, college.

It's going.... better, to say the least. The first few days here were a bit rocky... all the people, apprehension, and little sleep all filtered into an out of her element Alyssa. At some times I have not been that happy of a camper, but I am proud to say every day gets better here. I am learning to embrace all the new-ness. One thing that has helped me quite a bit this week is a quote I heard in a talk a few weeks back during Education Week here at BYU. A few of the talks were given at the Marriott Center, and since I work there, I was able to listen as I Windexed, swept, and got scuff marks off the floors. One day as I was walking around the building and listening halfway, a line in one particular talk about getting prayers answered stood out to me: "the grass is greener where you water it."

I mulled it over a little, wondering about the pigmentation of my "grass" right now. Since hearing the talk, these words haven't left my head, and it's actually become a sort of mantra to me this week in my search for new friends, success in school, and just keeping a positive attitude altogether. As I've ventured out of my shell, and watered my grass a little, I've discovered what good a little extra effort can do. So, I am going to continue to do what I can to turn my patchy and yellow lawn into something much more rewarding. Funny how easy it can be to just turn on a sprinkler, let it sit, and reap the benefits!

Wisdom Wednesday

So... first "day" of college. Well, college life, that is. I'm all moved in, my mom bought me food to eat, and the beginnings of a new and improved picture wall is forming. However, as of now I just feel verrrrry small and insignificant among a sea of a trillion eighteen year olds. It's weird and I do not like this feeling! I like knowing people and having friends... a feeling I am kind of without as of now. However I think some of this crankiness/weirdness has been caused by one little thing, so I offer this wisdom.

WW25- Get more than 3.5 hours of sleep the night before moving to a new place with all new people.

So, now I guess I'll hit the hay so that I don't repeat the same mistake tomorrow. Wish me luck!!

And so it begins..

Think I have enough stuff? Haha

I Should Be Sleeping...

but who can resist this?!

I thought it would be a good idea to see what my family would look like if we went to high school together...

I laughed at loud at these ones, and thought you might too. :)

This looks like fate to me.... Payton's face just fit too well.

Sometimes I wish my parents were black.

Definitely my favorite.

So now I bet you're wondering how I did this, right?

yearbookyourself.com

go crazy!

Wisdom Wednesday

So again, Wednesday has come around. Man, these weeks are flyin'!
WW24- Three Hour Naps.
This job I just got has some crazy hours that I have subjected myself to. You see, I can sign up for my own shift, and for some strange reason, when the new schedule comes out, my hand and pen always gravitate to the 6-10 AM shifts rather than, say, a 4-8 PM. Don't ask me why, I don't really do anything the rest of the day, and when 5 AM rolls around on those morning I have to work early, I curse that part of me that thought it might be a good idea to go to work before the sun rises! However, it feels great to be finished before many people are even awake!
I still have one issue, though. I don't really like going to bed at night. I am definitely a night person. This has been really bad the last few nights, when instead of retiring at 9:30 or 10 like I know I should, I stay up til 11 or 11:30, and then work in a zombie-like trance the next morning. Yesterday the wrapper on my Dove Chocolate said, "Kick a Bad Habit for Today". (ironic, don't you think, having that on a chocolate wrapper? I laughed) However, that habit definitely didn't get kicked yesterday. Why? Well, it has something to do with the fact that when I come home from work, I like taking 2-3 hour naps, and that makes it impossible to go to bed at night. Haha but I don't care! I love my naps. Having full length dreams in the middle of the day, what could be better?!
So, that is all for now. Go now and try a nap for yourself. You will not regret it.
T minus 7 days until college! Eek

My Week

I'm in the midst of a lazy Sunday. Like most people, I've done most of the common Sunday tasks: skyped, slept, gone to church, and just kind of sat there.... thoughtless. Well, I was basking in the glory of the latter activity just now, when I realized I was staring at my desk. It's a messy one, I will be the first to say it, however, it is my way of being creative for the day.... so bear with me :)

1. Macbook. This thing deserves to be called by it's name- it is anything BUT a computer. In fact, I've finally a name worthy of this creation: caM. (Like Mac backwards, get it?) I thought I was pretty clever. Anyways, he's been the vehicle for a lot of enjoyment in his short life, already. Like I've written in earlier posts, my favorite thing to do lately is skype, and without caM, i would be up a creek. skype, facebook, half.com for textbook searching, and icalendar are my favorite things to do on here, lately.

2. Job Schedule. This week was my first one in the setting of a full time job- well, almost full time. I worked about 32 hours this week, and most of those hours were put in while the general populous of the people my age are still sleeping; in fact, most probably had just gotten to bed. I had the "opportunity" to work early at 5 one day and 6 other days, and that meant getting up much earlier to shower, eat, get dressed, and sometimes do a combination of the three :) Despite my complaining, however, it's been a great time! I like the people I work with, and I am turning pro with a dust mop, know how to operate a burnisher, can sweep stairs with keen precision when using a "disney set", and I am getting better at getting my time stamp straight when I punch the clock. (It only ended upside down once, and that was at 5 AM!)

3. Class Schedule. I love these classes, and I check it about every day to see if I can fit in a yoga or pilates class between work and sleeping. Yoga is definitely one of my favorite things to do lately. It's so calming, so relaxing, and I feel pretty cool because not only can I touch my toes, I can place my palms on the ground. Ohhh yeah! Ha but yeah, I have been going to that little Gold's place every day that I can, and I've been working out every day, which is quite an accomplishment for me. It would for you, too if you had my motivation.... my mother weighs less than me, and that is wrong.

4. Antonio the BlackBerry. What a trooper this phone has been, but I'm not here to talk about him. He's just the vehicle for me to chat with Diana! My best friend is now a Wildcat at the University of Arizona- a whole 734.5 miles away from me. Sigh. Oh well, she is going to make SUCH an impression during Rush this week for her new sorority life. :) Go get em Diana!

5. Book List. The time has come... I have to buy my books for all my classes, and if you know me at all, you'd know how much I dislike spending money... especially when it's on a 100 dollar biology book. Honestly? Haha well, also if you know me, you know I can usually find ways around spending all that money I don't want to spend in the first place. (Pretend that makes sense!) I found my America Heritage book on ebay for 15 bucks, and I'm bidding on other treasures as the days go on. I am on a mission to spend less than 200 dollars on books!

6. Yes, that IS wart remover :) Long story short, I have a weird wart on my leg I am trying to get rid of, and my Mom said it was too expensive to get removed at the doctor. So, I am taking matters into my own hands. Wish me luck!

7. Missionary Letter. This was Skyler's last letter to me in the MTC... now he is off, away in France. It is so weird, thinking my friends are off in foreign countries serving missions! I love it when they send me letters and e-mails. I live for Eric's Wednesday letters!

8. Penny. This penny represents how poor I feel. Money runs through my hands like water these days- I've started trying to budget and track my money, but it's so HARD!

So, that is that. I have to work tomorrow at 6 AM, so guess I'd better be getting to bed! The end.

Chain Gang

The other day my good cousin Shaun declared through his facebook status that there were 19 days until he is headed to BYU. Commenting on that, I told him that he should make a paper chain to make the time go by faster! I love paper chains SO MUCH. The best chain I ever made was this one: A countdown to the end of school... made on January 8th. Could you tell I wanted to graduate? ;) All the best ideas come at 1 AM, let me tell you! After making this and telling my whole senior class about it, I commonly was asked how long the chain was, how many more links there were, and how I became such a genius. (ok, I lied on the last one.)

Other chains I'll always hold dear to my heart are the "days until Summer School is over" chain and various Christmas ones. The art of the paper chain is wonderful. You can physically tear the days away, relieve stress, get a visual of how much longer you have to endure waiting, and be crafty at the same time! However, Shaun did not share my enthusiasm for a paper chain... in fact he didn't even know that what was.

What are they teaching those New Mexicans?! I was concerned for poor Shaun. Paperchain crafting is a definite life skill that ranks up there with making peanut butter & jelly and tying your shoes. So, I made him this.

Much to my surprise, Shaun was more that eager to make his own chain after watching my tutorial. What can I say? I inspire people. HA.

OOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO

My virtual chain.. t minus 16 day til college

Wisdom Wednesday

There are many rites of passages I have passed through the last few weeks of my life. For instance:

I just bought my first textbook on ebay. (15 dollars, baby!)

I went bought my own groceries and realized how expensive my favorite foods are. (A pesto mix for 1.50? Oh please!)

I went to a student ward game night with my college friend... (willingly. yeah, I know.)

I used my real credit card for the first time. (And then got scared, so I went right home and paid it off )

And I have experienced the beauty of the SKYPE HYPE!

WW23-Have you experienced Skype?

Well let me tell you... it keeps me up at night with it's greatness. Basically I can talk to all my friends back home on my computer in the comfort of my bed, see their faces, and discuss pressing issues without having to stress my thumbs with texting, and I get to see their faces! It's great. I love it. I love  technology. Find me and we can talk! 

Just Waiting For My Confirmation...

Move in to Utah- check.

Find a job- check.

Buy my all Sports Pass- CHECK.

That is right, friends! I am now a ticket holder to all BYU sporting events for the 2009-2010 school year. It is fantastic. 

I don't regret paying 30 extra dollars for amazing seats my cousin pressured me into buying. 

I don't regret that I took a gigantic leap of faith, and know virtually no one in my group, so now I keep getting facebook friend requests from all these random BYU guys who I will be spending much time with come fall! (I will just keep praying they are not creepers)

I don't regret that I had to spend the last hour refreshing and refreshing and refreshing my page to get my ticket order to work. Why? Because it is going to be just that great. 

I will be so close I will be able to hear the crack of bones and the snap of the ball.

I will be so close I will be able to witness every pained expression on the players' faces. 

I will be so close that a few drops of player sweat might just reach my arm a time or two. 

There are T- 22 days til college. CAN'T  WAIT.