In Florida

Enjoying a vacation in Florida...Sarasota Sands, baby. Hope everyone has a safe and happy new year!

Merry Christmas!

"Merry Christmas to all, and to all, a good night!"

Had a wonderful couple of Christmas Eve services at Mount Pleasant First UMC. Got to see pretty much everybody from church who I miss most, so that was nice.

We head out tomorrow for Florida - the lovely Sarasota timeshare. Dolphins and manatees, here I come!

Lots of love to everyone, and a very Merry Christmas!

Grades are all Posted!

EEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEE!!!!

A year ago, I never thought that these grades would make me happy, but...

I 4.0ed my James Madison International Relations Class! EEEE!!!!!!! Woohoo!! I think the prof must have done some creative rounding on my behalf - I was right at the edge and would have been tipped over only if I got a full 4.0 on the exam, I think...but I'll take it! No problem! Yay!
And I 3.0ed organic chemistry. Which I was starting to worry was going to be worse than that. So:

Anthropology 270, Women and Health: 4.0
Biology 148H, Lecture: 4.0
Biology 158H, Lab: 4.0
Chemistry 351, Organic: 3.0
Madison 220, International Relations: 4.0
Microbiology 301: 2.5
Religion 310, Judaism: 4.0

Current Cumulative GPA: 3.8358. We'll take it, folks! Yay!!!

And Back in Mount Pleasant

Back in Mount Pleasant...
We played Yahtzee! last night (of course) and watched the sixth "Harry Potter." Today I'm going to try and do something at least slightly productive...
Ooh, ooh! I could wrap presents! : )

And Back in Lansing...

Back at the condo with Rick and Megan. I'm baby-sitting for Pastor Kennetha tomorrow. Megan got me "Star Trek" - Merry Christmas to me!

In Mount Pleasant

I'm in Mount Pleasant for about a day...drove up with some family friends and had a great afternoon/evening with them. Tomorrow I'm seeing a few friends and then driving back down to Lansing with some other friends. Mom, Dad, Granna, and I are off to Florida on Christmas. We're still not sure where we're doing Christmas Eve...

And we're done! (Kinda)

The final exams are done. I am now in the library waiting for a 2 o'clock meeting to start with one of the kids I supervise for my Professorial Assistantship. So come 4 o'clock (I'm hoping perhaps a bit earlier), winter break is here!
I also have an Honors Option Paper I need to write for Zierler...perhaps I'll do that in the next hour and a half. But maybe not. lol.

Four Down!

Organic chemistry was absurd. The exam was too long. The fact that Nolan (chemistry whiz) thought so too gives me some hope...but it really wasn't pretty. Ugh.

HOWEVER - James Madison International Relations was a blast! Had a lot of fun. Greatly, greatly enjoyable. Heavens, I'm such a dork...

ANP 270 Grade

Officially 4.0ed ANP 270 with an Honors Option. Surprise, surprise. : )

Microbiology Results

Got the grade report already...it is, indeed, a 2.5. I have 2.5ed my first class! Be proud of me. : )
Good life experience. Let's never experience it again. ; )

Two down!

Honors biology lecture is now done. I received a 28/30 for the term paper...the biggest negative comment was "great prose, but just too much of it." I laughed. The final was an essay. He gave us 10 questions to prepare for and told us he'd ask us one. Liar. Gave us two and let us choose. My favorite was on there. I just spent an hour and a half answering "What is life?" It was fantastic.

One down!

Microbiology is done. And even though I didn't do nearly as well in that course as I was expecting (2.5), I learned a lot, both about microbiology and myself. Things that are good to know. And now, let's never reenact that experience...lol.

Yay! ANP 201 Honors

201: Biocultural Diversity section 2, the honors course, just opened. (I've been monitoring for weeks.) And I'm in! Woohoo!!!!!!!!!!!!!
Becca=fun.

For your information

My grades are not going to be incredibly gorgeous this semester. Just to let you all know. So don't be shocked when you see all too many threes...(and hopefully no twos, but I can't promise...)

Classes are ending...

No more honors biology lecture! No more anthropology! Tear. I hate this time of year. And love it at the same time. I get to take new fun classes next semester...but I'm all done with some really awesome ones...

Late Night at Taco Bell

I was planning to steal a ride home with Amy from campus tonight and was waiting at church for the Wesley Foundation Peer Ministry meeting to get out. Tonight, of course, is the night they decided to go on forever...

Anyways, Amy and I decided to stop at Taco Bell on the way home. "I'd like two crunchy beef tacos, please." "I'm sorry, we're actually out of beef. Would you like to upgrade to chicken or steak for no extra cost?"

You're out of beef. Okay then. Thank you, oh Taco Bell, for your service.

I always knew that dieting was dangerous...

http://www.slim-fast.com/recall.aspx

Englewood Cliffs, NJ, December 3, 2009 – Unilever United States, Inc., in cooperation with the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA), is conducting a nationwide voluntary recall of all Slim-Fast® ready-to-drink (RTD) products in cans, due to the possibility of contamination with Bacillus cereus, a micro-organism, which may cause diarrhea and possibly nausea and/or vomiting. The probability of serious adverse health consequences is remote.

The products were sold in stores nationwide.

Product Description:

The products are packaged in paperboard cartons and contain four, six or 12 steel cans that are 11 FL OZ (325 mL) each. Individual cans are also sold in certain retail outlets. The recall involves all Slim-Fast® RTD products in cans, regardless of flavor, Best-By date, lot code or UPC number. A listing of all RTD recalled products is attached to this press release.

No other Slim-Fast® products are affected by this recall. No Slim-Fast® powdered shakes, meal bars, or snack bars are affected by this recall.

The recall was initiated after the company conducted quality testing on Slim-Fast® RTD products in cans. Out of an abundance of caution, the company is recalling all RTD products in cans that are currently in distribution centers, on-shelf or in back rooms in retail outlets or in consumers’ homes. The company is in the process of identifying and correcting the production issue, and will resume production and shipment of the product when the issue has been addressed and corrected.

Consumers who have purchased Slim-Fast® RTD products in cans are urged to discard them immediately and contact the company at 1-800-896-9479 for a full refund. The Consumer Services Center is open Monday – Friday, 8:30 AM – 6:00 PM ET. A recorded message is available 24/7.

But I like Ben!

I can't decide about ANP: Islam and Africa. I like Ben a lot! Boo!!!

More Good Course News

So. A few words that many of you will understand as my being happy:

"Anthropology 491: Special Topics. Section 002 Topic: Islam in Africa."

Oh. My. Word.

MUST HAVE!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Problem. REL 480: Philosophy of Religion, which I was specifically invited to take, conflicts. It conflicts with another course, too, though. So perhaps it was simply not meant to be. I can take two more religion courses with that professor in future years. I think I have to do ANP 491...because that's just too good to pass up...

Microbiology

I thoroughly enjoyed microbiology today. We discussed foodbourne pathogens and did a bit more epidemiology-type stuff.
This is me, wondering if I should switch back...and the answer is "no." I simply should convince the Honors College to pay for eight years so I can just keep going to school forever and ever.

Let it Snow!

It's snowing! Yay! I like the snow...happy Becca. Hope you all enjoy too! Lots of prayers for those without a place to go...it's getting very, very cold out there.

Thank God for Ross

I've done "The Tragedy of the Commons" in two classes today...thank you, oh MC 241.

Chuck's Tips on Life

Aww. Got this from my bio lab professor today:

Hi Everyone-- I hope you're rested up and ready to make that sprint down the stretch. Keep working and keep your spirits up. Sometimes the pressure towards the semester's end can seem unbearable. Here are some of my tips for dealing with life's stress:

a) Work steadily and wisely. Determine what's most important (or what's worth the most points) and give that your primary attention.

b) Do the best that you can do under the circumstances. DON'T LET OTHERS PUT UNDO PRESSURE ON YOU TO SUCCEED.

c) REMEMBER THAT YOUR SELF-WORTH DOES NOT HINGE ON YOUR ACADEMIC SUCCESS. Please remember that the people that really matter in your life don't equate your successes or failures with your value as a person.

d) Be at your best. Eat well, sleep well, and maintain a positive attitude. This is the time when bad choices can really affect your performance. AVOID DISTRACTIONS. Don't stay up all night to finish a paper, then be groggy during an exam. Don't get involved in family or roommate or boyfriend/girlfriend problems. THEY CAN WAIT. Deal with those problems over break. Got negative friends? Avoid them until after exams.

e) Focus on what's important. YOU are important. A single course is NOT the end of the world. A single semester is NOT the end of the world. Keep on top of your stress by reminding yourself that 1) you are worth MORE than any of your problems and 2) you can only do your best. Others will just have to learn to adjust to that. They will.

f) And finally, when you feel ready to unravel - seek help. Talk to your professors, because they can often help you come up with a plan that will help you make it through the difficult times. Seek a good counselor. Academic advisors, pastors, and trusted uncles or aunts can help you focus and give you a better sense of self-worth as you go through stress-filled times.

Oxygen=Pit Bull

Our orgo professor just used a pit bulls and meat metaphor to explain oxygen competition over hydrogen...
I love college.

Ooh, ooh, microbiology is useful!

I'm writing my paper for Honors Biology on social amoebae...and I'm coming across stuff I know from microbiology! Woohoo! It hasn't been pointless! YAY! (I never thought microbiology was useless entirely. Just nice to see it have a point for me.)

Aww

Facebook Message from Barb:

Subject: "Jorgen has a question"
Body: "Dear Becca,
I would like to ask if you found King Tut. I miss you and I love you. I was looking at pictures of King Tut. I know that you were in Egypt. Thank you again.
Mom, Dad, Hollan and Jorgen‎"

Thanksgiving Weekend

Happy late Thanksgiving to you all; hope you enjoyed. Mom and Dad came up and we went to Grampa Farnum's on Thursday. The younger cousins all came, and it was good to see all of them. (Including Andrew, who is now in his first semester at MSU but whom I haven't actually seen yet...oops.)
Friday we went to the Bohls' and stayed forever...so Mom and Dad crashed at my place again.
I finished my Anthropology Honors Option Paper on Women and Health in Islam yesterday. Today, the goal is my News & Views Honors Biology Paper on the social evolution of amoeba. Yeehaw!
And then tomorrow will be reading orgo, international relations, and Judaism texts for the coming week. Woohoo!

Argh!

All we did in class today was review the last exam. The answers to which are posted online. ARGH! I am perfectly willing to go to classes on the Wednesday before Thanksgiving. IF they actually contain some amount of material. ARGH!

Classes Today

We're just reviewing in Microbiology...I came in in case some words of wisdom are being spoken. Nothing major...just running through the lectures again.
In organic chemistry, I'm guessing like 40 of 400 will show up. Alas. I will go to that, as well, in spite of the fact that I get very little from lectures.
Thus far, the main benefit from coming to class was getting up...Pacita was over till like 3:45 this morning, so I was a bit of a bed-hugger this morning...

And they're all off..

Bye bye, friends. Everyone's off home...a bunch of people left yesterday. And more are taking off today. Lindsey left early last night, so I have the condo to myself. Until Mom and Dad come to crash, that is. :)
I get a lovely weekend, mostly at home, writing a paper about Women and Health in the Quran and another on social evolution in amoeba. Woohoo!

A few thoughts to wrap up the evening...

1. I am appalled by how many of my friends do not know that English is not the official language of the United States. Asked a bunch if they thought it should be for a friend's polling project, and way too many of them said they thought it was...tear.
2. The moment when Spock says "Live long and prosper" to the Vulcan Science Academy Council after they tell him his human mother is a disadvantage is one of the best movie moments ever.

And that is all. Good night and good luck.

Movie in Judaism

We watched "Trembling Before G-d," a look at homosexuality in practice and law in Jewish (mostly orthodox) communities this morning. I only cried like nine separate times...
Incidentally, I was wearing my "Legalize Gay" t-shirt today. There was no hiding where I was on the topic for the day...lol.

Reflection Room

Forgot to tell you about this...majorly excited.

Click ME to read an article about the new Reflection Room on campus.

Fun Weekend

'Twas a great weekend. Friday I had a few meetings, the Transgender Day of Remembrance vigil, and then an overnight RING retreat at Justin's house (during which I ran away for a bit and hung at Kelsey's house). Saturday finished the retreat, hung out with Emily a bit, worked on my term paper for international relations, and Megan came over. She brought "Star Trek!" I have watched/listened to it or at least part of it somewhere around six times...
This morning was church and we had the bell choir play and a mini-orchestra and timpani play with us during the anthem...and a FANTASTIC postlude. Great morning.
Sunday after did some chores around campus, wrote more paper, refereed scoring during Bailey's Quidditch game, had a couple of brief meetings or presentations, watched "Singin' in the Rain" with Lindsey, and finished a draft of my term paper (which my lucky parents now get to edit, if they so choose).
And now, one more round of "Star Trek: the Best Bits" before bed. Yay!
I love life. I love you. I hope you love life. : )

Fun in Microbiology

Just had a good day in Microbiology...we did epidemiology. I like epidemiology. It has a point. Unlike certain other topics in micriobiology...lol.

Good Organic Chemistry Quiz!

I have just completed a very successful organic chemistry quiz. I may honestly have 20/20ed that. Yay!

Oh, that felt beautiful

I just added REL 480 and dropped MMG 302!!!
Becca=floating on moon.

ZOOLOGY!!!

I've found it! Ecology, Evolution, and Organismal Biology

Here are the classes I get to take for this BEAUTIFUL, WONDERFUL, FANTASTIC, PERFECT major:
ZOL 341 Fundamental Genetics
ZOL 355 Ecology
ZOL 355L Ecology Laboratory
ZOL 455 Evolution (W)
ZOL 328 Comparative Anatomy Bio Vertebrates (W)
ZOL 313 Animal Behavior

And some combo of:
ZOL 310 Psych/Bio Human Sexuality
ZOL 415 Tom's Class! (Evolution and Behavior with my current honors bio prof whom I love)
ZOL 434 Evolutionary Paleobiology
ZOL 448 Evolutionary Develop Bio
ZOL 457 Foundations Evolutionary Bio
ZOL 320 Developmental Biology
ZOL 402 Neurobiology
ZOL 430 Neuroendocrine
ZOL 849 Evolutionary Biology
ZOL 822 Topics in Evol Bio

Becca=INCREDIBLY happy she found this. Never would have thought to look under Zoology...but this is seriously what I find really fun and cool. And tonight, Fukuyama showed that I could actually bridge it with my International Relations and Peace and Justice. I LOVE LIFE!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

But maybe?

Zoology Major with a focus on Ecology, Evolution, and Organismal Biology? It might happen, folks. Anything's up for grabs, here.

Not fair!

They have an Ecology, Evolutionary Biology, and Behavior GRADUATE program at MSU. But not an undergrad. Excuse me! I want!

Fukuyama Lecture 1

I'm sitting in an amazing lecture about the evolution of social politics and interactions. We talked a lot about chimpanzees and biology in a poli-sci lecture.

I LOVE COLLEGE!!

(Can I please major in social evolution?)

FYI

I am now planning to do a BS in Human Biology rather than Microbiology. The courses interest me more and will be more helpful in doing public health rather than lab rat antibiotics and stuff, something I find fascinating but don't want to do myself.

HOLD THE PRESSES!
I made a credit-calculation error. Switching majors would only save me 1 credit. So maybe I'm not. Argh. I dunno...

Fukuyama is Coming!

Fukuyama, who wrote "The End of History" (in which he argues that, in one sense, history is done with...the ideological war is won with liberalism as the victor) is coming to MSU today as part of the LeFrak Forum on "Religion and Modernity." We've got a fancy reception at Cowle's House tonight, followed by a lecture. Tomorrow I get a small group student discussion with him, and then another lecture tomorrow night. We've read a few passages of his in MC 220 (International Relations: Security), so I'm looking forward to being able to talk with him from a slightly-informed viewpoint.

No Bio

We don't have honors biology lecture this week; they are instead offering walk-in term paper clinics. This is lovely, as it gives me time to actually write said paper...along with all the other term papers. This is unfortunate because it means I am missing my weekly double doses of Tom Getty hilarity. Sadness...

In other news, I'm officially 3.0ing microbiology...if I even do that well. Those questions are ridiculous. Hopefully I will manage to memorize absolutely every fact for the final, I guess.

Quidditch!

I have just watched a game of Quidditch. I kid you not. It's really quite fabulous. Lena was the Snitch...she dresses up in gold and has wings as a headband. The Snitch is handled like Capture the Flag - he or she has a sock or flag tucked into the waistband and the Seekers must get it. The Snitch is able to run all around, off the pitch, so they're truly "seeking" the Snitch. And the other players run around with broomsticks between their legs, trying to score goals. Like basketball. But totally better.
The capture of the Snitch ends the game, but isn't a totally ludicrous number of points, so goal-scoring actually matters.

Peace and Justice Lock-In

We did a peace and justice lock-in at University UMC last night. The Conference Council on Youth Ministries joined us. It went incredibly well, and I got to see a bunch of people from the Conference I hadn't seen in a while!
YAY!

Oh, What a Week

The week of four exams is over...kinda. The four exams are over, anyways. Once again, I didn't do so well in microbiology or organic chemistry. This is what happens when a right-brained person tries to take on left-brained activities...

Morning Sickness=Good for Baby

Today in Honors Biology: Embryonic Development!
There's speculation that morning sickness during pregnancy is an adaptive trait that allows any microbes or chemicals that would be bad for the baby to get out of the body. Data suggests that women with greater morning sickness have fewer miscarriages.

So, prenatal advice with Tom Getty: Don't try to suppress it, "let it out."

Fun in Judaism!

I got to read the Writ of Excommunication of Spinoza today in class. FUN!

The Senhores of the Mahamad make it
known that they have long since been cognizant
of the wrong opinions and behavior of
Baruch d'Espinoza, and tried various means
and promises to dissuade him from his evil
ways. But as they effected no improvement,
obtaining on the contrary more information
every day of the horrible heresies which he
practised and taught and of the monstrous
actions which he performed, and as they
had many trustworthy witnesses who in the
presence of the same Espinoza reported and
testified against him and convicted him; and
11fter all this had been investigated in the
presence of the rabbis, they decided with the
consent of these that the same ESpinoza
should be excommunicated and separated
(rom the people of Israel, as they now excommunicate
him with the following ban:
After the judgment of the Angels, and
with that of the Saints, we excommunicate,
expel and curse and damn Baruch
d'Espinoza with the consent of God,
Blessed be He, and with the consent of
this holy congregation [kahal kadosh] in
front of the holy Scrolls with the 613
precepts which are written therein, with
the anathema with which Joshua banned
Jericho, with the curse with which Elisha
cursed the youths, and with all the
curses which are written in the Law.
Cursed be he by day, and cursed be he
by night; cursed be he when he lies
down, and cursed be he when he rises
up; cursed be he when he goes out, and
cursed be he when he comes in. The
Lord will not pardon him; the anger and
wrath of the Lord will rage against this
man, and bring him all the curses which
are written in the Book of the Law, and
the Lord will destroy his name from
under the Heavens, and the Lord will
separate him to his injury from all the
tribes of Israel with all the curses of
the firmament, which are written in the
Book of the Law. But you who cleave to
the Lord your God are blessed.
We order that nobody should communicate
with him orally or in writing, or show him
any favor, or stay with him under the same
root, or come within four ells of him, or read
anything composed or written by him.

Orgo Exam 2

Today was our second exam in organic chemistry...this one was longer (as in more problems) and harder than the last one. I think I did a fair job studying, though, and wouldn't have done much better if I had prepped differently. Everyone else seemed panicked by it, so I think the class average is going to be much lower, and I think I did somewhere around as well as I did last time. We shall see, though.

Today was also the biology exam, which was laughably easy.

Hey There

This weekend has been all sortsa fun...I've studied, went to meetings, attended the Pastoral School Graduation, and studied some more. Watched some movies too. Life is good. : )

Bio

More fun in bio...we totally just had a picture of Spock and Kirk in our lecture sides. YES!

Med School

I think I'm not going to med school, by the way. Or maybe I will, but I'll be a DO, not an MD. We've been looking a lot at the medicalization of stuff in my Women and Health class. Maybe I'll be a medical anthropologist...it's fun. : )

Israel in the Summer

Had an informational meeting today about the summer study abroad program happening in Israel. And...a faculty member of the Residential College in the Arts and Humanities is doing a two-week environmental study course just before the Jewish Studies through Madison, which his wife runs. I know Eric through the Chautauqua and know Yael by reputation. Eric's starts June 9; Yael's June 27. It's another four credits worth of tuition and an additional program fee, but I get a larger scholarship automatically from the Jewish Studies department. And with Eric's program, we travel all around Israel instead of just all around Jerusalem. So. Yeah. I think that might be happening. I'm hoping to count Eric's session as an international development course...that would be good.

BS 148H Quiz

So...our pre-lecture quiz today was most definitely on what happens to testicular size and function under excessive exogenous hormone levels.
Crudely put, I just explained why men on steroids have tiny balls in class.
I love college.

MC 220 Midterm

3.7. YAY!

MMG 301 Quotation

Fantastic Definition: "synthetic chemical compound that does not naturally occur in nature." Are they naturally occurring in the synthetic world? Heehee.

He Loves Me!

So...Pollock told me and Mark to stay after REL 310 today. I, of course, spent five minutes fearing the worst. The worst turned out to be a request to join his Philosophy of Religion class in the spring...
Not that I can take it, of course. But it feels good to be loved.

REL 310 Paper

Becca=happy. Religious studies paper #2=98%. Haha, world!
Comment at the end: "This paper is too long! - Only because that's the only thing I can really think to complain about here."
So there, world.
(I'm particularly happy about this because we had a bit of a spat on Wednesday about my typing during a class movie. I was (usually) typing notes on the movie...) Of course, he graded this before the movie. But whatever.

All Saint's Day

Happy All Saint's Day, darlings. My trio during Communion went well; I didn't seriously screw the other two up. The choir sang an arrangement of "Amazing Grace" that was incredibly powerful and also went well. I had Matt's name read during the Role Call of the Saints...and managed not to bawl all through the anthem, which they of course scheduled immediately after reading the list of names.

Happy...Rain!

Happy Halloween, everyone. And may we all enjoy the rain, which has caused the cancellation of both the MSU Wesley Corn Maze and my biology lab stream data collection. Oh well.

Music Therapy Rally

The Music Therapy program advocates were rallying today outside the Administration Building...the vote to cut the program is tomorrow. I stopped by after chem recitation to support. Not high hopes, but it's just such a waste. Tiny percent of budget, program that is not widespread, and a fantastic outreach.

Orgo Quiz

I felt like I had done well...and, indeed, I doubled the class average. Yay for good moments in chemistry!

Singing in Church...

Lindsey, Griffin, and I are doing a trio during communion this Sunday for All Saints' Day..."Blest Are They." Aww, how cute. The college contingent of the choir is singing together. The only problem? THEY'RE BOTH MUSIC MAJORS! So what the heck am I doing there?

I am Covered!

I am officially covered for Quarter 2 under Aetna's Health Insurance for MSU students. I'm sure you were all terribly worried. : )

Home, Sweet Home

Got in at 1:30 am today from the Interfaith Conference; had Judaism class at 10:20. The Conference was incredibly well-organized and well-informed. I learned a lot and had a great time. : )

Hinduism and Anger

Here's my fun thought from the Hinduism "Speed Faithing" (quick intros to different faiths) workshop:

"Anger is like a screwdriver – you pull it out and use it when you need it and then put it right back in the box."

Interfaith Conference

I'm at the Interfaith Youth Core's "Leadership for a Religiously Diverse World" conference. Having lots of fun!

Microbio Exam

=worse than I thought. 4.0 will not be happening. Oh well, such is life.

Orgo Phrasology

I don't think this is what the professor meant, but I was greatly entertained:
"More sterically hindered, less reactive it is."

(He's not German, either. Though he does love beer...)

MC 241

I finally got Ross Emmett to reply to my Honors Option paper. I sent him a reminder email this morning; he replied instantly with comments...so he'd obviously already done it, just hadn't coded the "H" or replied to me. The class is completely and totally done now...tear. I loved that class. We did, though, get to chat about collective action problems and transaction costs today in 220!! Happy Becca. : )

BS 158H

Fruit fly experiments are:
1. Incredibly mean to fruit flies.
2. Incredibly heteronormative.

That is all.

Organic chemistry

I am pleased to announce that organic chemistry lectures are beginning to feel like something useful is going on. (It only took half the semester.) But finally, finally, I feel like he's imparting actual information and concepts. Yay!

Quidditch is Famous!

Bailey and the rest of the MSU Quidditch League were highlighted in the State News today. Bai's got a quotation and is listed as the captain of "The Ministry of Magic." Yes, my girl is an honest-to-goodness Quidditch captain. Don't we all wish we were?

Midterms

Religion=amazing wonderfulness.
Microbiology=fail at life. Forty-five multiple choice questions, incredibly detailed, from a lot of information. I didn't memorize the antibiotic resistance paths and names of specific bacteria as much as I should have. I knew they would be on the test, but spent some time memorizing other things. There was an ABSURD amount of antibiotic memorization asked on the test. And his study guide=not helpful. I understand that study guides are just guides, and that we're responsible for all material. But when he provides, for each lecture, a list of "vocabulary," and then asks a question about a term we discussed once briefly that appears nowhere on the study guide, it feels a bit tacky. But whatever. Life goes on.

Honors Bio and Wikipedia

My word, I love this professor. He's totally got links to Wikipedia's articles on amino and fatty acids on the lecture slide notes today...adore him.

International Relations (MC 220) Midterm

Well, that was most definitely the most fun I've had in an exam yet this year. (Though tomorrow morning I get to blab about Judaism, so that may change soon.)
Anyways, I was confident and happy and got to write pages and pages about international security. It was lots of fun!!!

Mom and Loreen Visit!

Mom and Loreen visited today. They were going to see David Sedaris at Wharton. I haven't read his stuff and had a meeting, so I didn't go to the show, but we all ate at Bravo! beforehand. I, of course, had my delicious balsamic chicken salad that I order every time. And a seasonal Tre Dolce - tiramisu, molten chocolate cake, and chocolate chip bread pudding - for dessert. La vie est belle!

Homecoming

I have officially participated in MSU Homecoming Events. Woohoo! Marched in the parade with the LBGT Coalition on campus, attended an Alumni Open House, and then...wait for it...attended my first college dance! I seriously suck at dancing. RING was in charge of it, so I went to help setup and tear down. I was on the dance floor a bit...but seriously, I suck. lol.

Orgo Exam Results

I got my exam back...a few really bad moments. (Most notably, when I drew out a four carbon chain and then threw a "Br" on it for n-butyl bromide...but forgot to draw in another bond. So it looks like I just have three carbons...doi, Rebecca. Doi.
But there's one where I feel like I deserve some extra credit. We shall see...


And, in other news, I think I got the hard stuff and screwed up the easy stuff. Good heavens. (There's hope that I do, in fact, know what I'm doing, though.)

Happy 750!

This is post 750. Cheers, folks!

Nuclear Study

MAD Theory is fascinating. Random notes from class:

Mutual Assured Destruction (MAD) Theory
• Rationality
o Assumes states are rational; assumes states have preferences and will choose policies to gain/achieve those goals
• War avoidance
o Assumes states want to avoid nuclear war (because nuclear war would wipe out world)
o A specific case of conventional deterrence (conventional just threatens pain, reprisal, not the destruction of the world)
o “Strangelove” military nuc office – “Peace is our Profession”
• 2nd Strike capability
o Says states should build their nuclear arsenals
o Need weapons (can’t threaten them if you don’t have them)
o Have to have credibility (I may have a big stick, but will I ever use it?)
 Need to be willing to use the capability you have
 This is a weakness with MAD – we very rarely have the opportunity to show our willingness. With conventional deterrence, not so much an issue – we’ve seen more stuff.
o Promote deterrence through punishment
o MAD works fairly well in this bipolar world where only 2 states really have nuclear capabilities
o MAD promotes proliferation a bit…
o State with 2nd strike capability can absorb enough attacks and be able to refire
 Diversify – we have in land, sea, and air. Can’t keep all your weapons in one place
 Retaliate and inflict unacceptable damage on the opponent
o Measure size by saying that neither side could win a nuclear war
o “enough” power doesn’t take much for nucs…
o If you had only 1st strike capability, you might be tempted to use them based purely on the belief that the opponent could not retaliate and thus had no deterrent (fear that enemy will decide to bomb you, so you try to get lucky – this is question with Israel/Iran – MAD works best in Cold War world, where this theory was created)
• Countervalue v. counterforce targets
o MAD is based on killing everyone
o Counterforce targets are the weapons, nuclear sites, etc.
o Countervalue targets are cities, people
o You want to keep the idea that they could respond, but saying you’re going to bomb each other’s people – huge war!
o Aiming at counterforce makes them feel they have
• Offensive v. defensive weapons
o In MAD theory, offense is defense and defense is offense
o You don’t want to use your “offensive” weapons – nucs – so they become defensive
o Missile defense systems don’t go and attack anyone, they intercept incoming missiles. Under MAD logic, this becomes offensive – it encourages attack because it takes away strike capabilities

Schrodinger's Cat!

We totally looked at data from the book today in anthropology...it was amazing.

"When the Bough Breaks"

In anthropology, we watched a segment from "Unnatural Causes" about premature births and low birth rates in African Americans. A study done showed, fairly convincingly, that premature births and low birth rates are the result here, not as much of socioeconomic class, health, or intelligence, but stress due to living in continual racism. The statistics between African American women and white women are not explained well enough by the difference in socioeconomic class (poor whites do better than middle class blacks, if I'm recalling the fact correctly - it's something very similar to that, in any case). African American women with a college degree, healthy lifestyle, upper-class career, and good, supportive family are still incredibly likely to give birth early or to a tiny baby. They looked at what stress does in pregnancy. There's also increasing attention to "life course" theories, stating that the health of the baby is impacted by the entirety of the mother's life, not just the stuff occurring during the birth.

Running!

It feels so good. I ran this morning. (I seriously haven't been. And it's been hurting me.) But the day is just so much more beautiful when I get up and run. Hopefully I am able to do so again tomorrow! (Must get up, must get up.)

Argh

I did not do as well on my orgo exam as I thought I had. Interested to see the class results...

Update: I did, however, beat the average. But barely. Mostly I'm annoyed because I felt that exam really feeling like I'd done well. I'll get the exam back in recitation tomorrow and will see what I goofed, though...

Math Science Center Kits!

The Battle Creek Area Math and Science Center does outreach kits...and, while walking to Judaism today, I saw several being loaded into a van from the Education Building! I miss Jackie Zanotti now...(she worked in the Outreach Center). And Carolyn. And a bunch of other people...humph.

War Simulation in International Relations!

1. Divide class into two states.
2. Tell both states the other state is your enemy.
3. Tell them the key to power and security in the world is paper airplanes.

People react in a LOT of different ways to this. In our class, we're apparently a bunch of blood-loving classical realists. The other "state" just mass-produced and chucked airplanes at us. Our state took some time to deliberate...and kinda got our butts kicked. Fun simulation, though. Some folks will just stockpile and never fire. Some will fire in a neutral direction. Some will hold Model UN conferences to encourage non-production. Some will just sit there. FUN!

Bio Exam

Had an exam in biology lab yesterday. Incredibly easy. Very glad I didn't spend much time over the weekend studying for it. It was basically just an overview of whether or not we understood the methods we've been using and know when we'd want to apply them.

The State News liked my cake...

Ta da, Becca's in the State News. Teehee.

Happy National Coming Out Day!

The LBGT caucuses on campus do activities throughout the week to support individuals who are coming out. Today was a picnic. Our theme this year is "The Wizard of Oz."

Tada, the cake I baked for the occasion:

And thanks to Sarah from church and her mother for initial cake baking.

How does this happen?

Okay. I am definitely being assigned and recommended for random things by people. I just received the following email:

"Hello, Ms. Rebecca Farnum,
I am contacting you on behalf of Associate Provost Terry Curry to thank you for your willingness to serve on the All-University Awards Committee to select Excellence-in-Teaching Citations. We need only one representative for the college, and have asked your colleague to serve.
Since you will not be serving on the committee, I provide, for your convenience, below to be removed from your calendar:
1. Tuesday, October 20, 5:30 - 6:30 p.m.
2. And, Tuesday, November 10, 5:30 - approx. 8:30 p.m.
Please do not hesitate to contact me if you have any questions.

Thank you.

Betsy"

Well, Betsy, you're welcome. I had absolutely no idea I was invited/willing to do this. But okay. Though those time slots do actually work for me, so I could have done it. Shame...

Orgo Exam

Well, the professor is a terrible teacher. But he writes a beautiful exam. I'm fairly happy with life right now.

I'm off to the Kellogg Biological Station for an Honors Biology Lab field trip. I have no idea if I'll have internet access or not. So...love y'all! Have a great weekend. : )

Skipped a Meeting!

I skipped a meeting today to give me a bit more time to study for orgo and not be rushing around. I said "no!" I hope you're all proud of me; it wasn't easy. But the girl learns, slowly.

(I would have been late. And my contribution to these meetings feels incredibly minimal, and I get very little out of them. But still. I had to say "no." And that's not fun.)

How Nobel of You, Barack

Hope you enjoy my title, there.

Anyways - thoughts? In case you haven't heard, Barack was announced as the winner of the Nobel Peace Prize. Many are shocked; he wasn't mentioned as a forerunner.

Deserved?
Too early?
"Meddling" in policy?
Appropriate statement of support and encouragement?

BS 148H Fungi

So a mushroom walks into the bar.
Bartender says “Get out, we don’t want your kind here.”
Mushroom says: “Why? Can’t you see I’m a fun-gi?”

Why did the fungi leave the party?
Because there wasn’t mush-room!

It's possible that we also saw what was described by our professor as a mold "orgy." I love this class...

An addendum:
It's further possible that the statement: “Let us introduce the concept of the vaginal ecosystem" was just made.
We were talking about yeast infections.
I seriously love this class...

MC 220 Paper

We got our first papers for International Relations class back. 3.4. Which may be the lowest grade I've ever received on a paper. But I had a very hard time figuring out exactly what I wanted to argue - it was on a topic I have very little experience with. I finally found an argument, but it came a bit too late to write the paper on it, sadly. It's only 10% of my course grade, though, so I still have a chance to 4.0 if I do decently well on my exams.

Anthropology 270: Women and Health Exam

First official midterm was today. ANP 270: Women and Health. Multiple choice, fill-in-the-blank, matching, and three essays. I had a good time. Good heavens, I'm such a freak...

Homemade Bread!

I have successfully used Granna's bread maker and Mum's recipe to make tasty, well-risen, fully-bodied, delicious bread!
Yay!

Yummy lunch for Becca today.

Oh, the world...

This status update on Facebook from a friend greatly entertained me:
"Today my elderly neighbor asked me to house-sit for the weekend. Though instead of giving me any contact numbers or codes she gave me a small slip of paper containing her facebook email and password. When I asked her why she said that she wanted me to check her farmville account and make sure that at 5:30 I harvest her strawberries so they won't wilt. MLIA.‎"

Mixer!

Lindsey and I went to Grampa's yesterday...and got a mixer! Yay! No more handbeating cookies. : )
Also received a toaster, some more cups, matching flatware, and measuring cups. Woohoo!
Thank you, Grampa! : )

Dude! Slime molds are cool

Fun thing from bio today:
Slime molds: single cells mass together to form slug. Reproduction happens best when some cells hold up the others. "Sucker" cells become the foot; "selfish" cells crawl up and reproduce. How does cooperation ever continue? Kin preference - the nice, cooperative cells group together and the mean, selfish cells do the same as generations pass. So cooperative cells work together to shove away the selfish jerks. Fascinating.

Biking Down Farm Lane

I turned right on Service Rd and took it all the way to Farm Lane, and then went down Farm all the way to Bessey this morning. The bridge is lovely. (Though I have not yet ridden on the bridge, only under it.)

Farm Lane!

It's open; it's open!

MSU has been working on a fancy bridge over Farm Lane forEVER! But Farm Lane - and the bridge - are now open! We drove down it to the ponds for bio lab. I may well bike in using the bridge just for the heck of it tomorrow.

Chemistry Exam

My organic chemistry exam has just been moved from next Wednesday to next Friday due to the Engineering Career Fair. More time to study, I suppose. (Or put off studying? Just kidding.)

Midterm Time!

They're coming, folks. Papers due, heavy quizzes, full-blown midterms.

I don't have anything too insane, I don't think. Check back in a week...lol.

Woohoo, Reen!!

Loreen finished the LakeTrek...1,000 miles around Lake Michigan! (LakeTrek.blogspot.com)

'Twas a lot of fun celebrating. And it's good to be home...(With my grandmother's coffee table. Thank you, Granna. : ) Though we're now sans Fred...I sent him to Papa with Mommy tonight. He'll live out the remainder of his happy days serving Wesley.)

Off to the Windy City!

Granna, Mum, and I are off to the Windy City to play! The reason for our visit can be read at laketrek.blogspot.com.

Love ya!

I love Getty

Professor in Honors Biology:
So, with all this jargon. You can look it up in your text. But it would probably be faster and better to just go to uh...Wikipedia with it.

I thought he was going to say "Google," terrible enough as it is. But no. He said "Wikipedia!" The blessed man told us to use Wikipedia!

URAB

I was just invited to a meeting of the Undergraduate Research Advisory Board. How fun.

"As a student leader with a record of scholarly achievement, you can help to shape the future of undergraduate research at Michigan State through your service on the Board. Your experience and insight would contribute much to the future development of UR at MSU."

Gee, yay! lol. The Board only meets twice a semester; I'll go and add my voice but will not (I will not, I cannot!) take on any additional role other than email conversations.

Good Morning!

I walked into campus this morning. My bike is outside Wilson Hall where I parked it yesterday morning. Tonight is church and Wesley - I'll make Erik the engineer and general mechanical-whiz look at it before going into the bike shop.
In other news, I get Judaism today! I love this class. Days without it are so depressing. But on days with it, I don't get anthropology, honors biology, or international relations...and that's depressing too. Good grief, I'm a freak.

Happy Tuesday!

Classes have been great today. Unfortunately, I have a flat back tire...and was slightly late to Anthropology today as a result. Takes forever to bike like that. I will work on resolving that tonight.
Hope you all are having a fantastic Tuesday; I certainly am!

International Day of Peace

It's today! Happy peace, everyone. Let's live in Shalom, shall we, folks? Love each other, dangit!

Fortune Cookie

"You will always get what you want through your charm and personality."

Well, it's worked so far...
lol. Just kidding - seriously, folks.

On that note, though...anyone want to buy me a horse? Heehee. Teasing. I don't actually want a horse.

My next fortune: "Simplicity and clarity should be your theme in dress." What kind of fortune is that?!?

Megan and Meatballs

This weekend has been one of food and friends. Megan came in from Mount Pleasant to visit. Friday night I went out to eat with Alec and his grandparents, and then Megan came over to his dorm room and a huge number of random people played Mario Kart for an absurd number of hours.
Saturday was an adventure in meatball-making. They actually taste good! YAY!
Saturday night we saw "Star Trek" at Wells Hall with the Campus Cinema, and then headed back to Bailey's room to open presents her mother had sent for St. Piven's Day. (Don't ask...I have no idea what St. Piven's Day is or who St. Piven is...though I've probably been told at some point in my life).
And today is church, a meeting, and then home to actually get something useful done!
Love y'all!

Crude Moment in Bio

We looked at the "Frank and Ernest" cartoon asking "If the theory of evolution is right, how come mothers still have only two hands?" I quipped that it's because they wouldn't be mothers - no one would mate with them. Prof replied to the tune that it might, in fact, increase attractiveness. And let's just say it wasn't phrased quite that politely.

Fun Comment to Overhear

I'm walking up the steps in Case...

"...particularly China. I don't know how the rest of Asia feels about it."

But you do know how China feels?

Chautauqua!

The dialogue group has started back up at State. This year's theme is "Creativity, Economic Development, and Ethics." I did some work on this over the summer, finding possible readings and the like.
We had a really great turnout tonight. Something we're working on this semester is involvement with the community. We had several community members present tonight in addition to students and faculty.
It's going to be a great year!

Chris's Status

A great status, in honor of the fantasticness that is Snyder-Phillips' cafeteria.

"‎‎Chris Heffner‎‎‎ ‎went to lunch at Sny-Phi today: $0.00 with meal plan. Listened to the classical music that was playing in the Gallery during his meal, $0.00. Found out that there is BREAKFAST FOR DINNER there tonight: priceless. Some cafs provide nourishment. For everything else, there's Sny-Phi.‎"

(Strangely enough, I really haven't missed it at all...love doing my own grocery shopping.)

Fajitas!

I have successfully prepared fajitas. (With help from mother's instructions.) But I did it all by myself...and they're edible! Not just edible, but actually tasty! Yay!

Which one?

Vote on your favorite format, folks.

Fifty Minutes

is a crappy amount of time for a class. Particularly a science lecture that happens three times a week. It's just not sensible. Really should have two seventy-five minuters...

Give Me a Title!

I need a title, folks. A title that will win this photo the Grand Prize in MSU's Study Abroad Photo Competition.
Thoughts?

This shot was taken on Mount Sinai.

I'm thinking something like:
Sinai Solitude
The Stillness of Sinai
Mount Sinai Meditation

Other ideas? Improvements on the above theme?

We've Hit 700 Posts!

The last post was the seven hundredth, by the way. Just in case anyone's keeping score...

BS, MHC, and Princess Diaries

Well…for those of you who read “Princess Diaries.” In the last book of the series, Mia talks quite a lot about MHC – major histocompatibility complex. She talks about how people are attracted to each other biologically due to MHC and how it affects our body odor…( http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Major_histocompatibility_complex#MHC_and_sexual_selection). Anyways, this is what we talked about in BS148H today. I managed not to start cracking up. But now I want to read that book again…

Lay Abstract, Try 2

If you're not Charlie, you can probably ignore this. If you're Charlie...sorry to be a pain.

Following is the abstract with the bad effects spelled out a bit more clearly. I went over things again, and I don't think you're reaching the wrong conclusion...attached are the two graphs that give the results. Am I totally missing something here?


The way land is used in agriculture often affects natural ecological habitats nearby. In this study, information about the past and present collections of fish in both the central Chattahoochee River system and the in-stream habitats was used to test the sensitivity of fish populations to land use. A positive relationship was found between agricultural land use and the level of deposits in the river. The more agricultural land use near the water, the more sediment was found. Greater levels of sediment were generally accompanied by less fish diversity, that is, the more sediment, the fewer number of fish species present in the water. In mainstream water, a relationship between agriculture and species abundance was found: More agricultural land use was accompanied by a fewer number of species. This relationship was not observed in headwater reaches, suggesting that mainstream reaches are much more responsive to land use than headwater areas. These results are important in the field of fish conservation.

Train!

I got stuck by a train heading home last night! It was a huge cargo train. Fun! It went on forever...and generated quite the nice breeze.
I don't think I'll hit one on the way in, ever. But I'll need to time coming out of worship a bit better, or I'll hit the weekly cargo train all the time.

Bio Lab

Had our first full bio lab meeting yesterday. It was...a joy. This semester is going to be mostly ecological biology. And, much as I love trees and bunnies, studying them does not feel very "labby" to me. My TA is a agricultural landscape design guy who looks at how what we use land for affects the natural habitats around it, particular in streams and other bodies of water. But Kelsey promises me that it becomes science eventually. (Just not a science I care about...)

Wesley Worship is Back!

Had our first worship at MSU's Wesley last night. We're focusing on "Change" for the first part of this semester. Our sermon intro last night was the music video of "Waiting on the World to Change." I'd never made out so many of the lyrics, so that was fun.

Lay Abstract

This is quite possibly going to be my hardest assignment in my Honors Bio Lab: write a lay abstract for a paper. I know how to write abstracts...but it's HARD to write one in non-scientific prose. If someone wants to read through this and just double-check I haven't been too science-y (a good sign would be if you hate science and can understand it!), I'd appreciate it.

Lay Abstract – The way land is used in agriculture often affects natural ecological habitats nearby. In this study, information about the past and present collections of fish in both the central Chattahoochee River system and the in-stream habitats was used to test the sensitivity of fish populations to land use. A positive relationship was found between agricultural land use and the level of deposits in the river. The more agricultural land use near the water, the more sediment was found. Greater levels of sediment were generally accompanied by less fish diversity, that is, the more sediment, the fewer number of fish species present in the water. A relationship between agriculture and mainstream species abundance was found, but a relationship between agriculture and abundance in headwater reaches was not. This suggests that agricultural land use has a greater effect on mainstream reaches – and their fish species – than on headwater reaches and the fish communities native to them. These results are important in the field of fish conservation.

Science Abstract - Historical and contemporary fish collections were used to examine the influence of agricultural land use on fish communities in the central Chattahoochee River, USA. In-stream habitat data were also collected to examine the relationship between agricultural land use and stream habitat structure. We found a significant positive relationship between agricultural land use and in-stream sediment (r2=0.43, P=O.Ol). Stream depth heterogeneity decreased significantly with increased sediment (9=0.39, P=0.02). Mainstream reaches draining agricultural lands
had significantly lower levels of fish diversity than forested reaches (r2=0.47, P<0.01). Agriculture also explained significant variation in mainstream species abundances but was not a significant predictor of species diversity or species abundances in headwater reaches. Most pool species that use coarse substrates decreased in relative abundance with increasing agriculture in the watershed. Our results suggest that mainstream environments and their associated communities are more susceptible than headwater reaches to the effects of agriculture. This finding has important consequences for conservation, since mainstream reaches are reported to function as species refugia during pulse disturbance events (e.g., floods, droughts).

Walser CA, Bart HL Jr. Influence of agriculture on in-stream habitat and fish community structure in Piedmont watersheds of the Chattahoochee River System.
Ecology of Freshwater Fish 1999: 8: 237-246. ©Munksgaard, 1999.

Microbes

Today's prize (though not exact...but close enough) quotation from MMG 301: "We've found evidence of microbial life on earth for a long time. They've been around even longer than us, believe it or not." HOW is that hard to believe? DUH microbes have been around longer. Good heavens...

Happy 09/09/09

I was typing out my date for notes...and realized it's 9-9-09. So happy Nines, everyone. (They should have had the new Elijah Woods movie "9" come out today...)


And...of course...it did. Haha. That'll teach me to post things before double-checking. As I was typing, I suddenly wondered if it was. But I posted before bothering to check. Naughty me!

Well, ladies and gentlemen, go celebrate the nines today.

Religious Studies

Judaism class=fun. I'm going to end up going to seminary or something if I'm not careful, I'm having way too much fun exploring religions academically.

Fun Moment in BS148H

Are viruses alive?
In isolation, they are unable to replicate its own genes or regenerate its own supply of ATP.

Now...try substituting "human" for "virus."
And if we really want to push buttons...try substituting "fetus" for "virus."

Not perfect, as we can argue over exactly what is considered "isolation" and that kind of thing. But fun to think about.

What a World

Today's fun item: An advertisement for the Uloop MSU Classifieds, where you can buy and sell textbooks. A small white piece of paper with...a sudoku on it. lol. It entertains me that this is how you get folks to hold onto and display a piece of paper. Very smart, actually...

No Class

Good grief! It's the fourth day of classes...and already a canceled session. ANP 270, Women and Health, is canceled this morning due to (female) instructor illness. Ah, the irony.
What I don't understand is that she has a TA - a graduate TA who has taught full classes herself before. So why she's just not handling the discussion I do not understand. But whatever.

Running!

I finally managed to get myself up and running this morning...felt absolutely terrific. I stumbled upon a Therapeutic Riding Center just a ways behind the condo complex! Granna, did you know it was there? It's a full center for the differently-abled - there's a Special Olympics outpost, a sensory trail, and several other buildings. I'll have to check out their volunteer policies.

(Another) New Computer and Ukai

Grampa Farnum came and brought me the Mac desktop he created out of parts in the basement. Then he and Grandma and I went to Ukai Japanese steakhouse. Very good food, and a lot of fun to watch as the guy came out and cooked in front of us.
Tonight will consist of setting up the new computer and writing a paper for my James Madison International Relations class. Also watching "That Thing You Do" with Tom Hanks and Liv Tyler. Fun!

Sunday Errands

Went to church today, and took the boys who are obsessed with Egyptology some photos of Egypt. They were very excited.
Then stopped at the Student Bookstore to grab a few more textbooks. So I get to do more reading this afternoon!
On the way home, I grabbed a few essentials - chocolate chips for pancakes, and some cheap used DVDs. I got "Down With Love," "Man in the Iron Mask," and "Failure to Launch" for $7.42 with tax! And then the guy at the counter gave me "Forrest Gump" for free because it was a collector's edition but didn't include the extra disc. Life is good!

A Lovely Day

Today consisted of reading coursework, watching movies, doing condo chores, and generally being incredibly happy.
Love you all!

Dinner with Alec, Boyd, and Judy

I went out to dinner at Chili's with Alec (the oldest son of the woman I'm named after, all of whom are close family friends) and his grandparents (who are my grandparents' best friends and whom I've known basically forever). Alec is a freshman at MSU this year. Chili's was good...they have a nice 2 for $20 deal where you get an appetizer, two entrees off a pretty long list, and a dessert.

Percy says "Hi"

Ladies and gents...I am typing my first blog entry from Percy. Percy is a Compaq; he's silver and shiny. Unlike Fred, he has a number pad (the extended keyboard). Also unlike Fred, he does not currently speak in Alan Rickman's voice or have pictures of adorable family friends on his background. So we'll be dealing with those issues for a little while...

New Computer

Ladies and gentlemen...
Today, I have purchased a new computer. I left Fred's power cord at family camp, and Cedar Campus couldn't find it. Fred also needs a new copy of Windows. I was working my way up the price ladder to fix him, and he's had a lot of wear. I love him dearly, but I (well, Dad) acquired another Compaq today. He will be named Percy in honor of Fred's passing.
Fred will happily live the rest of his days at Wesley@CMU, where Papa will get him going and use him for slide shows and things. I kind of wonder why, if Papa is going to spend all the time getting him going again, I am buying a new computer instead of just making him spend the time for me. But I shall love Percy, too, and Fred will be useful at Wesley.

Large Lectures

I do not like them. I was incredibly fortunate not to have any last year. This year, I have three. And my Honors Bio is pretty blasted large as well. It's not fun. Though they're incredibly easy to 4-point...because generally they grade based only on fairly easy tests...

REL 310

First class! Yay!!!
Highlights:
Prof is a practicing Jew. He was wearing a very off-center yarmulke today that was small - so from the right angle, you couldn't tell it was there.
Mark Bogner, a friend from chemistry and fellow ADS, is in my Judaism class. (I knew that going in.)
We chatted about the year today; 'twas lots of fun. I really like the professor (surprise, surprise). The class is invited to a Shabbat dinner in November - that will be fun! He and another religious studies prof are also working on a field trip to Toronto to see the Dead Sea Scrolls exhibit...

Convo 2009

The young people's convocation and legislative assembly in Wisconsin went well. I have officially ended my service with the group (I served for two years as secretary and treasurer and for one as chair) and have happily handed the reins over to a great new executive board!

And now I'm back on MSU's campus for "good" (meaning I don't think I have to leave town for at least two weeks!), have internet in the condo, have classes in two days, and will once again start blogging regularly!

It's good to be home.

All Systems Go!

The condo is officially complete - WE HAVE INTERNET! YAY!
That being said...I am leaving for a weekend young people's event in Wisconsin. Starting Monday, August 31, you will have full blogging reports. Apologies until then, folks.

Cell Phone

Ladies and gentlemen...it has happened. Becca has a cell phone. Welcome to the New World, Rebecca.

Happy 2009-2010!!

Ladies and gentlemen, here we go!

I have officially moved into my condo at MSU, and the 09-10 school year is fast approaching! I do not yet have internet in the condo, so blogging will not resume in full for a few days yet. But it's coming soon...as are classes, homework, church choir, and many other wonderful, fabulous things!

Walker Bros.

Barb and Todd took me to Walker Bros. today, a family pancake place. Had this huge apple pancake that Gregory would love...
I think we're either doing an art festival in downtown or the Children's Museum this afternoon. They have a barbecue at another family's house tonight, which I'm skipping in order to pack without the kids underfoot.

Becca in Cairo

Just to let everyone know - there will be a different blog for the Cairo trip. I may continue to post on this one with random, personal stuff. The Cairo blog is designed for people who want to keep up specifically with the trip, so it will be more edited and probably slightly more formal than this one.

The address is: beccaincairo.blogspot.com.

Again, I may keep posting personally on here. But I suggest checking the other one.
Love you all!

Chicago Fun

Hey All - Sorry; I've been atrocious about the blog. Internet is limited and the kids are too much fun (and/or too demanding...in a wonderful way).
The seven-year-old created an office in the loftspace of his room last night, complete with paper-made laptop, cell phone, iPod, calculator, and briefcase. Freakishly adorable. The four-year-old girl and I enjoyed a theological discussion last night. ("God is everywhere?" "Yep." "In the mirror?" "Yep." "In the light?" "Yep.")
Biked to the Metra Station today; took the Metra downtown; obtained my passport and visa with no problems; biked home; went with the dad on errands. (It's very possible we bought some ever-so-vital ice cream drumsticks.)

In Chicago

The first bit of Cairo-travel has begun! I am in Chicago, as I had to drop off my Visa application at the Egyptian consulate. Will stay with family friends for the rest of the week...then fly out on Sunday!

Back in Mount Pleasant

We (Mum, Dad, me) are all home safe from Yosemite and Gregory's graduation. Had a wonderful time. I climbed to the top of Half Dome - which is quite a trek - and got to look over the edge WAY down. It was very cool. Gregory got an apartment near Harvey Mudd that he can commute from and was able to move in today, so that's exciting. And now...to get to bed in order to try and switch time zones.
Love you all!

"Star Trek"

We all went to see "Star Trek" last night. It was my first full encounter with it. I saw part of one episode Gregory was watching when I was very young and was absolutely terrified. (There was some kind of gun that did something scary. I don't remember much, other than the fact that I couldn't sleep that night.) But I thoroughly enjoyed the movie. It had a few familiar faces, which was incredibly reassuring. I closed my eyes a few times, and there were a few sad moments, but nothing terrible.

Friday's Activities

We went to lunch with Gregory at the same nice Italian place he took me when I was here for my scholarship interview.
Then we hung out at the hotel (total bums that we are).
Friday evening was the Parent Appreciation Dinner. We talked with a few of Gregory's friends and ate lots of good food. Daddy got wine. I got bruschetta.
Then we went with Erin (Gregory's girlfriend) to ice cream. It was our first time meeting her. She's entirely wonderful. Engineering major, plays french horn and piano. Wants to get a PhD in music education as well. Gregory thinks she should major in music in undergrad as well. The girls (meaning me and Erin) disagree.
All in all, a lovely day. We're about to leave for the Senior Recognition Lunch, Academic Open Houses, and President's Reception. Followed by "Star Trek."

In Cali

We are safely in California. I have internet in the lobby of the hotel but not the rooms, so this will be limited. We have not seen Gregory yet; he works in the college's library till noon. Woohoo for a three hour time change! This will be fun...

Bye, Hannah!

Hannah and I had our last movie tonight until August sometime. We watched "Bride Wars" with Anne Hathaway and Kate Hudson. It's really quite cute. (Granna, I would not suggest watching it with Chris and Mark. They'd mock it the entire time. Though Hannah's much older brother had seen it and said he liked it okay - high praise for a chick flick coming from a recently graduated college-aged male!)

Grades

All grades are officially in...I four-pointed everything but macro, which I 3.5ed.

Overall GPA as of right now: 3.9054.

"Live Free or Die Hard"

Watched it (finally) last night. It was really cute! (Yes, I just used the word "cute" to describe a "Die Hard" movie. But seriously. It was.)

Good Morning

Apparently Finals Week was a bit taxing on my body...Monday I woke up at went running at 5:30, went back to cuddle in bed because it was cold outside, and didn't get up again till past noon. (Good grief!)
Today I didn't get out of bed till round 9:30, though I did run and shower immediately after. This feels ridiculous though...I don't do this!

"X-Men Origins"

Saw "Wolverine" today. It was quite good, though it had a few minor story flaws. Thoroughly enjoyed it, though.

Firefox, Thou Art Beautiful

I love Firefox (the internet browser). There as a website I need to do a lot of work with this week, but the address is crazy and not just a simple name. But I type the title of the page into the address box...and good ol' Firefox takes me there.

Oops!

Apparently I posted this on the Cairo Blog...whoops!

"Good morning and welcome to Day 3 of Exams Week. Today I have my religion exam at 12:45. Won't be hard...once I've prepared for it. So I should do that. lol.
Bailey isn't done until Friday morning, but I think she's done with everything that's ridiculously stressful. Woohoo!"

Grade Report

Not everything is up quite yet...but I did 3.5 my macroeconomics (which I'm glad to take over a 3.0, even though I'm not thrilled with it!) and...I got a 4.0 in my first Madison class! Woohoo!! This is the prof that very rarely gives four points. So I'm excited.
And it was close, too, let me tell you. He rounds up, but doesn't give four points on individual assignments. When all is said and done, I was at a 3.7525. Good grief, was that a close one. Thank God he liked my final paper.

Ashley got to go outside!

"Good Evening, Today was a great day. Afternoon therapy Ashley got to go outside. They have come up with a way that she can go out. She was so happy to have the sun on her face and the breeze. When she was outside she heard kids at the nearby school playing, a dog barking, birds. She loved every minute of it. Also today she was able to roll on to her right side, she did it alone two times. She needs a little help to do the left side. The therapist helped her feed herself lunch. Thanks for all your support and love. We love all of you so much. Love Russ, Julie, Ashley and Katelyn"

WOOHOO!!

Well, Kids...

It was a great year. I started bawling while I was packing...
Only four months till I'm back in classes!

(And before that, I'm going with my family to California and to Cairo by myself. So I suppose I have no grounds for complaint!)

From Ashley

"Good Evening, Ashley had another good day with therapy. I was so excited today, I asked her to hold my hand and she opened her right hand and grabbed my hand and squeezed it. Then I asked her if she could open up her left hand and spread her fingers she did, then I asked her to close her left hand and she did. I was so excited I grabbed her and hugged and kissed her. Just three weeks ago we were prying her hands opened, so for her to be able to control it and do that, it was wonderful. We got the test back from her UTI, one test came back positive and the other two came back negative. So we have to run the test again and wait another week. Before she can come out of her room. They are trying to come up with a way she can go outside. So we can keep our fingers crossed. Thanks for all you support and prayers. Love Julie, Russ, Ashley and Katelyn"

Ooh...An Opportunity

I was just emailed by the American University in Cairo to say that classes are ending earlier than was originally advertised. Classes finish July 22; my flight is July 27. Rather than trying to change my flight, I think I shall plan to keep that time for myself. I won't have that much luggage to be in the way...here goes Becca, rambling around Egypt!!

Goodbye, Chris...

Chris just left our room for the last time...it was very sad...Have a good summer, sweetheart.

Ashley Update!

"Good evening. Ashley is getting stronger. She lifted her head up to let dad put a pillow under it. She has such a wonderful attitude, she laughs and makes anyone around her laugh. She enjoys her therapy, and does it with such great pride. Tonight she was even giving Katelyn orders. Katelyn has Ashley helping her try to talk us into getting texting, but they are not winning. It is hard to believe we are on day 46. This road we have been on has been a very hard one to take. But Ashley is doing so great, as dad says she's coming. She has the dream to run in a marathon with her cousin Amber, to do back flips down the hallway at Covenant. To be a nurse and work with children at St. Judes. She has these dreams and I believe she will. Thank you for all you love and prayers. Love Russ, Julie, Ashley and Katelyn"

Chem Score!

Apparently Hunter is very nice with his grades and does effort curves or something...StuInfo is currently telling me that I have received a 4.0. Really not sure how this is possible. Though I will say that I felt fairly happy about that final. But still. Talk about lenient. I don't know that I truly deserve it...(For example, I most definitely do NOT deserve a 4.0 in chemistry if I only 3.0ed economics, though this is not yet confirmed.)

Later thoughts...I was talking over the score with Lena in the caf. And I think the exam was weighted quite massively. And I think I honestly did do quite well on that. So maybe the 4.0 isn't quite as grotesque as I originally thought.

I don't want it to be over...

It's so close to being over. I don't want it to be over! I like it!!!

Thank God I get to come back in the fall. I'm going to be such a mess senior year...

I Hate that Button

The "Submit" button. It's terrible. I just turned in my James Madison Politics and Markets long analytical essay. Had a lot of fun writing it. Hope it's good. I like it. lol. It's a bit longer than Ross asked for...but he never gave a maximum. So he had it coming.

Chem Exam

Well, folks, it's done. I'm going to miss Professor Hunter very much. I think my performance was slightly less disappointing this time...at least I hope so. I felt better while I was taking it, at least.

I was up on the second floor of the Chem Building, waiting for the exam. Dr. Walker (my chem lab prof) saw me and asked if I had my poster. He wants to post it in his hallway...because he likes the color scheme. lol. At least I have good aesthetic taste?

Now that's just dangerous!

The "g" and "h" keys are in close proximity on the keyboard. I'm sure most of you have noticed this. But when one is instant messaging, and therefore typing quickly, one tends to suddenly notice things like this more often. Like when one attempts to type "So there you go" and instead types "So there you ho." Oops.

Ah, Blueberry Morning

I'm having what I think is my first bowl of Blueberry Morning cereal since Lent. And it's oh-so-good. There was a reason a bowl of it was my favorite Lenten meal...(and also probably the one closest to breaking the no-junk food rule...)

Oh, MSU, How Beautiful You Are

Seriously, people. This campus is frikkin' gorgeous. (I am in a seriously happy mood.)

And...went over to Yakeley after the Econ exam to get a smoothie. And also got...CHOCOLATE CHIP PANCAKES AND WHIPPED CREAM! I love my life.

Goodbye, Macro

I am now finished with EC 252H. The exam went fairly well. There were a few questions where I wasn't entirely confident, but that was mostly my fault, not the prof's. Nice job, Luis. In spite of all my complaints throughout the semester, I'm honestly going to miss you. And macro. I really do think, after all the whining is over, that I learned a decent amount. About both macro and life. So go figure. Even what I hate has been wonderful. (Good grief, throw the end of the semester at me, and I get all sentimental...)

Finals: Day 1

Good morning and welcome to Day 1 of Finals Week! On the agenda for today:
7:45-9:45 - Macroeconomics. (Thank God; let's get this thing over with. I am starting to feel like I've actually learned something in this class. Kind of.)
12-3 - Chemistry Review Session (Yay!)
2:45-4:45 - Arabic Final (I shall be sad to be done...and Sarab (teacher) is moving, so I won't even get to pop by and say hello to her next year.)

And then...let's study for a chem final and write a Madison paper! YAY!

From Ashley Herself

"Sunday, May 3, 2009 5:00 PM, EDT
Good Evening, I'm sitting here in Ashley's room talking to her, and we thought we would give you an update from Ashley. "I'm doing good, I'm hungary "(dinner will be here in a minute). "I love you all, and miss you". "I like my therapy, and the nurses are good to me". "I like them all". "Thank you for all your prayers and reading my wedsite". Love you Ashley"

Lena's Haircut

Elena and Bailey got their hair buzzed today.

At first, everyone just hacked off Elena's hair. I think it should have stayed like this -




But then they did this -





And Bailey's just as short -

Econ Study Group

I'm in my first official full-on, planned study group of my university life. This is thrilling.

TTFN, UUMC

I had my last worship service at University United Methodist Church this morning. Said good-bye to the choir; hugged the kids; blew kisses at all and sundry. I'll miss the folks...
But there's always next September! (And before that, there's Cairo!!)

Go Alliteration!

I seriously just used the phrase "ineffective information infrastructure" in my Madison paper. Oh yeah, baby.

Yummy Running!

Weird title, I know. But I was able to smell a bunch of flowers while running this morning. Yummy!!

Yay for Ashley!

"Good evening. They took the pick line out, they don't think they will need it anymore. Ashley's doing much better with eating. She had lasagna for dinner and they don't need to grind her food all up into mush. Ashley has been sitting in her wheelchair for about 4 hours now, her neck is getting much stronger and she is able to hold her head up more. Today she was still my cheerleader. I had a tournament today and we won, and Ashley was just so happy for my team. ttyl Katie"

Some Great Plays

I went to the RCAH and Theater Department's showings of "This is a Chair" and "Far Away" tonight. Directed by Ann White, the assistant prof who helped me with MLK Day and does research in food rights.

"Anarchy never looked so good!
"This double bill of Caryl Churchill’s searingly playful political theatre features stubborn children, new romance, suicidal drug dealers, exquisite hats, and a global war in which Canadians, mosquitoes, Russian swimmers, children under five, mallards, Thai butchers, crocodiles, deer, and Latvian dentists have repeatedly proved traitorous.
"In This is a Chair, audiences witness seven short scenes from ordinary life that seemingly have nothing to do with the geo-political titles that introduce them. In Far Away, Joan is saddened that her hats are burned along with political prisoners’ bodies, though she understands that demand drives the millinery industry. Together these plays offer a fantastic and terrifying vision of the potential consequences of alienation from the global events which shape our daily lives."

HAHAHAHA! Yes! Score!

I've been waiting for nearly a week. And finally, FINALLY, I have found it. I've had my breakthrough. I am no incredibly excited about writing this paper. HAHA! I love it when this happens. Score for Farnum.
(Sorry, kids, there goes my empathetic time of writing a paper I wasn't interested in. I'll have to stick with feeling sympathy for you.)

Argh!!

Writing papers for topics one is barely interested in is not fun. I guess I've never done it before (because I've always been interested in the topic). I know understand why people have trouble.

Our final assignment for my favorite class (Politics and Markets) is about the subprime mortgage crisis and credit crunch. Ross! Come on, man!

I suppose it's good for me...
__________________________________________________________

Ten minutes later: Oh good! I have my introduction.

"Introduction
Just the credit crisis? Definitions of terms, historical look at what happened. Do we want to have the various causes in here or not? They’d be different and it would get long. Grag!!! Ross, I hate you. Loserface."

Hmm. Perhaps I should revise that a bit...

You know you're tired when...

I was debating whether or not I'd tell you this. It's sure to cause your opinion of me to decrease in favor. But here we go.

Mt. Hope United Methodist Church. Thursday, April 30. ~8 pm. Girl wants to watch "Rugrats: The Movie." Oh, lovely. When the older kids want to watch a movie, we'll often open up a connecting classroom and watch it in there. Which means that, if there's a large contingent watching the movie, they need a supervisor. So I got to watch "Rugrats: The Movie!" Lucky Becca.

You know you're tired when...you cry. While watching "Rugrats." Yes, ladies and gentlemen, I cried. Not once. Oh no. Like three or four separate times throughout the movie. And we're not talking teared up. We're talking streams of tears, at one point. Yeah. I'm a bit pathetic.

(For the record, it's a very sweet movie about a new baby brother. And so Tommy has to deal with being a big brother and not getting attention.)

Smoothies!

I went to visit my friend Sarah in Yakeley Hall today. Their caf is a big "organic" caf. They have personally-made smoothies! My first was strawberry-peach-strawberry yogurt-ice. They ran out of strawberries for my second. So I asked for just peaches with peach yogurt and ice. And the girl put pears in instead. It was actually really good, though...

Tulips are in Bloom!

The tulips have come in! Not as pretty as the flowering trees in my opinion, but still very lovely. I saw by Kedzie Hall that are spiked. The petals, that is. I think they're still tulips, though, and they were mixed in with all of the other normal tulips. Anyone have any knowledge about spiked tulips? (Yes, I know I could just Google search. But I thought, for once, I might to learn from my elders rather than the internet...we'll see if it works out!)

Ashley's Test Results

Not as good as I would like, but something that is potentially solvable, or at least workable. Mom and I are going to visit her sometime the week after I'm done at school; perhaps we'll get details then.

"Good Evening, Ashley had many different therapist in to see her today. When Russ got there to see her, the therapist was trying to get her to balance on the edge of her bed. They were very pleased with her attitude, and her willingness to try. She got to have mash potatoes, mac a cheese and chocolate pudding. She likes her chocolate. We did get the results of the MRI Covenant did the last night. I don't get it completely, the tunnel from the eye is ok, the back of the brain that processes things has damage. Ashley said things were black yesterday, so at this time we are not sure how her sight is. Ashley is winning over peoples hearts here at Mary Freebed just like she did at Covenant. Thanks for all the prayers, Love Russ, Julie, Ashley and Katelyn"

Yay for Dinner!

Islam let out early as it was the last day and we needed to do evaluations. Which means I get a real dinner before work! Yay!

Haha!

We had to do a webservation (website analysis) for our Islam Religion class.
Errors:
1. Forgot to place "provide" in a sentence; she picked up on what it was supposed to read.
2. "avoid contractions in academic writing" (I used "I've" at one point)

Final: "An excellent and careful analysis of the site." 15/15

Haha! Take that, oh REL 330.

Chemistry Poster Presentation and Lunch with Grampa

Today the Chemistry 186H (honors freshman lab) presented their projects for the semester in the chem building main hallway. Grampa came to see the presentations, and then we went to eat at Panera. I had a fantastic Fuji Apple Chicken salad. 'Twas delightful.
Also get to baby-sit the six-month-old today. He was very happy this morning; we sang and danced for an hour and a half. He was very tired when I left, so I hope he went down for his nap well and his parents got to sleep as well...

Facebook Spam!

For those of you who don't know Facebook well - you can comment on "actions" friends take online. When other people comment on the same thing, you receive a notification. So I might comment on my friend's picture ("Oh, that's a cute dress") and a mutual friend might add a follow-up comment ("I really like the color").
There are certain pictures and actions that get a lot of attention, though. This sometimes start to feel like "Spam Notification." Generally, you yell at your friends rather than Facebook (especially when they're purposely commenting as much as possible while laughing about the fact that it's spamming you).
One of the gang recently entered a relationship. Her status on Facebook now reads "In a Relationship." And I commented "YAY!" So I've been getting some stuff. Poor Kelsey, however, is also received the notifications - because Elena commented on the post using Kelsey's account. At least I actually did what I'm being spammed for!

Ashley Again

"Good evening. Ashley got checked in at Mary FreeBed today and met a lot of people who will be helping her. Ashley is going to get to work with her therapist tomorrow. Ashley kept saying that, she knows its gunna hurt like cheer, but she's tough, she's a Schafer. G2G Katie

P.S. Aunt Sheila that one means Got To Go"

Ashley gets to be transported!

This is good - it means she's stable enough and the doctors are fairly happy with her condition.

"Good Morning, I got to go visit Ashley yesterday, that was so wonderful. We missed eachother very much. She is so excited about her ride today and getting to go to Mary Freebed. She told the nurses at Covenant that when she comes back to visit she is going to do back flips down the hall, with Ramon's help (her tumbling instructor). She talked a lot about cheer and how she missed it. She remembers a lot about cheer, and all the hard work she had to do. But always ends with that exercise is good it make you healthy. I talked to the nurse this morning and they she told me Ashley had an MRI last night, they wanted to check our her sight, she isn't seeing real clear. She says she sees outlines but can't see clear. Ashley didn't want to have any test down, but we reasured her she need it get it down before going to Mary Freebed. She she said she would do it but not like it, and she didn't like it at all. The test took 2 hours, and she was scared during it Her nurse stayed right beside her holding her hand the entire time. She is sleeping now, after the test they gave her a bath and braided her hair. So from 1a.m. till about 4:30 a.m. she was up busy. So hopefully she will sleep during her ride so she will be ready to work. We took Katelyn out of school today and she is going with Russ and I to meet Ashley at Mary Freebed. So at 9:00 a.m. today we will start another new chapter in this journey. Please say a little prayer that all goes well during our journey today. Ashley has such a positive outlook on this, she wants to get better, she wants to run, and talk better. With all the support and the hand of God holding her I know she can do it. Thank for you being with us through this. Our family has growen over the last 5 weeks and you all hold a special place in our hearts. Love Russ, Julie, Ashley and Katelyn"

Haha! I am Fini!

I have finished my chemistry paper and poster! And they are BEAUTIFUL! Huzzah. And now, to bed. (I know, I know, it's late. But I was on a roll and didn't dare stop...)

Huzzah for Chemistry!

I have just found an incredibly helpful statement online. I am going to be able to finish my chemistry lab paper and poster just beautifully now. Life is grand, my darlings, just grand.

Yay for REL 330!

Yay! Ms. Geissinger agreed to let me take my exam at a different time. So I am able to go to the fancy Scholarship Banquet at which Dr. Esquith is being recognized for his Distinguished Contributions to Honors Students. This is just lover-ly.

Update on Ashley

"Good Afternoon, Ashley had a good night, she slept good. She is so excited about going to Mary Freebed, and riding in the ambulance. This morning she was really upset, she was confused and thought she wasn't going to ever see me again. The nurse told her I would be better soon, and she would get to see me. Ashley was not letting her off. She was sure I could never be with her again, because I am sick. So they called me this morning and I got to talk to her. She told me she loves me and misses me so much. She told me I had to be better in two days. So the Pringles (as Ashley called them) better go away fast.

I know it is hard to imagine how Ashley has came along. But to think that 5 weeks ago she was in a coma and a machine was doing the breathing for her, the Doctors told us it was in God's hands. To today we have this gabby girl, that has stolen the heart of the doctors, nurses, therapy staff, cleaning people, and many people that has signed onto her site and given her and us encouragement. It just goes to show she was a wonderful girl.
Thank you for all you have all done. Love Russ, Julie, Ashley, and Katelyn "

MSU in Spring

MSU in the spring is beautiful. Freakishly gorgeous. There are all these flowering trees in bloom everywhere. Especially by the Alumni Memorial Chapel! My word, it's incredible. I love my college...heehee.

Yay for Ashley

This update is actually from her little sister...
"Good evening. Today Ashley ate mashed potatoes and gravy, macaroni and cheese, and a chocolate shake for dinner, but earlier she had chocolate ice cream for lunch. Russ told her about going to Mary Freebed and Ashley got so excited to get to start working and ride in an ambulance. As of right now we think Wednesday will be the day for the ride in the ambulance. ttyl Katie

P.S. Aunt Sheila that means talk to ya later."

Last Day in the Lab

Today was my last day in the lab...it didn't hit me until like halfway through our time. Mark was showing me the enzyme reaction and high-pressure liquid chromatography today. It's very much a "hurry up and wait" process. So we talked quite a bit - Nicaragua, Kenya, mission work, philosophy, etc. Had a lot of fun; 'twas a great ending to the semester.

Smoothie!

I got a smoothie in Case before MC today! Yeehaw.

And I managed to .zip the attachments and send them. At least the ones that really needed to be sent. The PDFs are "Still Working..." Come on, Gmail, you can do it!

Stupid Attachments

I'm trying to email something...and the attachments are huge and are taking forever. And I thought I'd whine at you about it.

Okay. My apologies. Whining over. We're chatting about the Fed in Econ today...and he's stated the basic facts. But we're not actually talking about today's Fed. And doesn't that seem like something that would be a fun discussion? Argh.

Oops. Apparently I just started whining about something else...sorry.

Last Monday...

It is my last Monday. And Ross isn't planning to hold a class session on Wednesday. THIS IS MY LAST DAY OF MC 241!! I am probably going to literally cry...and that's just pathetic...

Oh, Julie!

Back safely from Indianapolis.

Poor Julie's gotten shingles...

"Good Afternoon, Ashley slept all night last night. She has done really well today. This has been a hard couple days for me. I came down with shingles Friday night so I am not able to see Ashley for 4 to 10 days, till they are all dried up; so I sit in the waiting room and the nurse and Russ give me updates. Russ has told Ashley that mom is sick and she seems to understand. Ashley and Katelyn had another spat today over who loves the other more. Talk about funny. Katelyn said Ashley won. Ashley has an UTI that has a bacterial infection in it that puts her in semi quartien. So to see her you have to put on a gown and gloves. Tomorrow they will do an evaluation to see if she can be transfered to Mary Freebed. With this infection, we need some strong prayers to make it possible. Ashley has crossed some big bridges with your support and prayers. She has many more to go, she is a strong girl and has a great support group behind her. Love you all, Russ, Julie, Ashley and Katelyn"

I'm Off!

The weather is absolutely gorgeous today...and I'm off to sit in a car for several hours. But I get to bike to church before climbing in the van! Love you all very, very much.

Some cheery news from Ashley:
"Ashley had a great night, she fell asleep around 9:00 p.m. and slept till 4:00 a.m. then she talked with nurse till 5:30 a.m. and back to sleep.

These last 33 days I have done a lot of thinking. When Ashley was born we lost her heart beat and she was an emergency c-section. She was my miracle from God at that time. Now I have to thank God again for a miracle. During this time people I work have have had babies. I have gotten to see two in the last two days. A Child is such a precious gift from God. For me if sometime today everyone that reads this give you Child, Mom, or Dad a hug and let them know how much you love them and how special they are. I hope everyone has a wonderful weekend, Love Always, Julie, Russ, Ashley and Katelyn"

Mother's Day is coming...I hope Ashley is able to make it wonderful for Julie.

MSU and Money

In the State News today:
Headline: "Budget cuts will take toll on MSU." (You don't say!)
Article Immediately Under: "$10M donation to MSU adds to mysterious trend of anonymous giving"

I found the placement rather entertaining...

Butter Side UP!

I made toast tonight in the caf. And very skillfully dumped a piece after globbing a huge amount of strawberry jelly on it. But it landed butter-and-jelly-side-UP! Shocking. And people ask me why I believe God loves me...lol.

Yay for Ashley!!

I'm starting to seriously think she might pull through this, folks. Praise God and praise God.

"WOW!! That is the best way to describe today. Ashley had such a wonderful day. Her Grandparents came up and had a great visit talking with her. She talked all day, it is a little after 8:00 p.m. and she wont give up and go to sleep. She is so tired but she is fighting sleep. During physical therapy they stood her up. They had to support her but did great. Katelyn came and saw her, when Katelyn said "Hi" Ashley smiled big and said "Katie" over and over again. So it was worth skipping out of Health and not going to practice today. It didn't take long for the two sisters to have a little spat. Katelyn told Ashley to go to sleep and Ashley said "no" this went on for a little while. They both would laugh. What a wonderful sound. We did move rooms today, we had to move her down one room they are trying to do repairs in ICU and wanted to work in the room Ashley was in, so she moved down a room. They did tell us that if they need the room for a more serious patient, Ashley will get moved down to the 4th floor. But at this time she will stay in ICU. Thank you all from all the Schafer's and Appelgreen's, we are all so overjoyed at the progress Ashley is doing, with all the support and prayers we are ready to keep going. Love ya all, Russ, Julie, Ashley and Katelyn"

Ha! So there, Religion Test

We finally got back our religion exams from March 24...I received a 44 out of 45. Haha! Take that!

Howdy There

Life is plugging and chugging along. The number of things I have to finish before/during finals now seems real to me, so I've entered crunch mode.

This weekend I have a church meeting in Indianapolis, and I'm not sure what the internet situation will be. So hang in there if you don't hear from me forever.

Love to all!

Good Day for Ashley Again

I think reading these updates has become one of the most meditative/spiritual times of my day...

"Good Evening, I'm sitting here with Ashley waiting for her to fall asleep before I leave. She had a really good day. Physical Therapy sat her up on the edge of the bed, they have to support her, but the more they do it the stronger she will get. Speech Therapy had her count to 10, she had a little problem with 4 for some reason she said Cody. But she did good. Then asked her when her Birthday was and she said January. They asked her where she lives and she said Beal City. They asked her if she had a sister, and she said yes. They asked her sister's name and she said Katelyn the whole thing. It was so exciting to be here while they did this. So now we just have to work on this every day, so she will be ready for her next journey. Tonight, she was really upset, she wanted her dad, so I had Russ call and talk to her, he even sang to her, she smiled while he sang. She is starting to relax and I hope she will sleep.

Thank you God for taking care of my daughter, please watch over all the people that are sending prayers to help Ashley, they are all so special, and watch out and guild all the nurses, doctors, and therapist that are caring for our Ashley. Amen

Love you all, Russ, Julie, Ashley, and Katelyn"

Oh, Julie

The concern of Ashley's mom makes me cry...she's been so strong through all of this, and it has to be absolute hell...

"Good Afternoon, I'm sitting here in Ashley's room, just thanking God and all of you for your continue Support and Prayers. The hospital has sent Ashley's information to Mary Free Bed in Grand Rapids to evaluate her. Mary Free Bed wants to wait till Monday to reavaluate her, before they transfer her to their Rehab unit. At this time she is not stable or does not respond enough. So this weekend we will work on what ever they ask us to. So she will be ready on Monday.

Ashley is saying more and more words. She brought tears to my eyes when she saw me she said "Sorry". I wasn't sure that is what she was saying so I asked her and she told me "yes" the nurse was here with me, we couldn't believe she told me sorry. I told her she has nothing to be sorry for, we will make it, everything will be ok.

I don't want to leave her side, it is like when she was a baby I want to be part of all "The First". The doctor just came in and I showed Ashley the pictue of Cody and her in Colorado, and she told the doctor who was in the picture, she said Cody Ashely. So these are all good signs.

Keep the prayers coming she can feel them. Love Julie"