Ok, so... I have an embarrassing story to tell.
Last month APO went to the gorgeous Saylorville Lake for our chapter retreat. We were going to have a bonfire and make s'mores and have fun and all that good stuff.
Personally, few things in the world make me happier than a bonfire. I love the smell. I love being outside. I love getting dirt on my shoes. I love eating melty marshmallows on sticks... I love it all.
So I was pretty jazzed about this. Before I left my apartment, I went to the wooded area near my parking lot to get twigs and stuff for kindling. It hadn't rained in a while so everything was pretty dry and I was all excited.
I brought matches, too, just so you know that's not where the story is going.
Anyway, we get to the fire pit and I'm going to start this fire.
First of all, it should be said that all fire starting experience I've had has been in Colorado where if you breathe warmly on a pine needle it will ignite. We have had lightly smoldering cigarette butts that have started the entire state on fire. That's how dry things are.
In Iowa, there's a little something-something called humidity that, even though you can't always cut it with a knife like you can in July and August, is kind of always there anyway which makes the supposedly dry wood not all that dry.
So imagine my shock when we lit match after match after match and our lovely twigs weren't catching hardly at all. And when they did, the burned out pretty much immediately.
That's not to mention the fact that in Colorado, it isn't hard to find firewood. I'm pretty sure I remember walking around and just picking up branches and bigger pieces of wood along those lines and using it in the fire.
They don't do things like that at Saylorville and we, in fact, had to buy firewood from a massive trailer-looking thing that turned out to be a vending machine.
45 minutes and most of our supply of paper plates later, with no lighter fluid (I was far too confident in my ability to start a fire to use lighter fluid), we had a small but growing fire started.
And hour later, almost everybody got bored and left. So there you have it. But I was still proud of myself. And embarrassed. :P
Tuesday, October 27, 2009
Sunday, October 25, 2009
Some splanin' to do
Last week one of my English professors emailed me asking to give one of her first-year advisees some, well, advice. She was considering picking up a magazine major in addition to her English major and wasn't quite sure.
I emailed her and told her about the professors and the classes and why I decided to be a magazine major in the first place.
And the most amazing thing happened. I got excited again. I got excited because I was explaining to this student, a girl I have never met before, why she should be a magazine major. Why it's fun. Why it's worth it. What she'll get out of doing this.
It just reminded me of the time when I was excited about it, too. When hunting down sources for something was an exciting challenge, not an irritating chore. Interviews were cool. I loved saying I was with the media. I loved writing and reading and writing some more. It was all exactly what I wanted to do.
And I realized by talking to this stranger that it is still exactly what I want to do. I'm still having these weird problems with apathy, but I know now it's not because I don't WANT this. I do. I'm just trapped in this weird place where I'm tired of school but I'm terrified of it ending because I have NO IDEA what is on the other side. I know I'll be ok, but I still don't know what even that means.
But the good thing that came out of doubting myself this way was that it forced me to think about what else I want to do and I came up with some really cool options. I would love to do educational programming somewhere like the zoo. Or special event planning (like Race for the Cure or Night Eyes or other huge community fundraiser types of things like that). Or volunteer coordination for a non-profit.
I'm interested in all sorts of things and, yes, I absolutely would love to write for a magazine that's applicable to a topic I'm interested in, but there are so many other options. Maybe I wanted myself to not love journalism anymore because things are so grim right now in the industry. Maybe I wanted myself to move on to something else so I could be happy with what I'm doing after I graduate. It's really hard to say.
But at the end of the day I am in love with journalism, but with a lot of other things, too. And that's only good news because it means I have options. A lot of them. Because maybe I won't be journalism-ing soon after graduation, but I can still be doing something I love. I just have to find a job that qualifies.
I know it seems I'm terribly hot and cold these days about school, but I think that's nothing but realistic. Things are sometimes so great and so clear to us but then there are these obstacles and we get confused and lost but we have no choice but to forge ahead because we can either push through it ourselves or have time drag us through kicking and screaming. Some days I'm armed with boots and a machete and other days I have road rash on my butt.
I emailed her and told her about the professors and the classes and why I decided to be a magazine major in the first place.
And the most amazing thing happened. I got excited again. I got excited because I was explaining to this student, a girl I have never met before, why she should be a magazine major. Why it's fun. Why it's worth it. What she'll get out of doing this.
It just reminded me of the time when I was excited about it, too. When hunting down sources for something was an exciting challenge, not an irritating chore. Interviews were cool. I loved saying I was with the media. I loved writing and reading and writing some more. It was all exactly what I wanted to do.
And I realized by talking to this stranger that it is still exactly what I want to do. I'm still having these weird problems with apathy, but I know now it's not because I don't WANT this. I do. I'm just trapped in this weird place where I'm tired of school but I'm terrified of it ending because I have NO IDEA what is on the other side. I know I'll be ok, but I still don't know what even that means.
But the good thing that came out of doubting myself this way was that it forced me to think about what else I want to do and I came up with some really cool options. I would love to do educational programming somewhere like the zoo. Or special event planning (like Race for the Cure or Night Eyes or other huge community fundraiser types of things like that). Or volunteer coordination for a non-profit.
I'm interested in all sorts of things and, yes, I absolutely would love to write for a magazine that's applicable to a topic I'm interested in, but there are so many other options. Maybe I wanted myself to not love journalism anymore because things are so grim right now in the industry. Maybe I wanted myself to move on to something else so I could be happy with what I'm doing after I graduate. It's really hard to say.
But at the end of the day I am in love with journalism, but with a lot of other things, too. And that's only good news because it means I have options. A lot of them. Because maybe I won't be journalism-ing soon after graduation, but I can still be doing something I love. I just have to find a job that qualifies.
I know it seems I'm terribly hot and cold these days about school, but I think that's nothing but realistic. Things are sometimes so great and so clear to us but then there are these obstacles and we get confused and lost but we have no choice but to forge ahead because we can either push through it ourselves or have time drag us through kicking and screaming. Some days I'm armed with boots and a machete and other days I have road rash on my butt.
Sunday, October 11, 2009
The Bug
I've caught what's going around. Not H1N1 or the seasonal flu or the fall cold (as opposed to the winter cold and the summer cold and the spring cold) or pretty much anything else that comes with chesty coughs and stuffy noses.
My symptoms are as follows:
Sluggishness, loss of interest, finding constant distraction, day dreaming, severe procrastination and lack of sleep.
In high school we called it Senior-itis. Now I just call it apathy.
The closer I get to the end the less I care about pretty much everything. The good news is that I'm not alone... it seems to be a bit of a trend among seniors. Still, that doesn't make it better.
I just don't know why I don't care anymore. Do I not care because I'm just burned out after 15.5 years of school? Do I not care because I'm bored? Do I not care because magazine journalism isn't something I want anymore?
I suppose that last one doesn't matter so much because I'm not about to change my major or anything. Besides, I wouldn't know what to change it to. But it's such a horrible feeling and I don't know what to do about it. How do I motivate myself? I don't know the answer.
It's confusing and weird and I pretty much hate it. I'm not even enjoying my magazine capstone project all that much. I know it's a big deal and I know that this is my last journalism class at Drake and that most of my academic effort should probably be poured into this class, but...
My symptoms are as follows:
Sluggishness, loss of interest, finding constant distraction, day dreaming, severe procrastination and lack of sleep.
In high school we called it Senior-itis. Now I just call it apathy.
The closer I get to the end the less I care about pretty much everything. The good news is that I'm not alone... it seems to be a bit of a trend among seniors. Still, that doesn't make it better.
I just don't know why I don't care anymore. Do I not care because I'm just burned out after 15.5 years of school? Do I not care because I'm bored? Do I not care because magazine journalism isn't something I want anymore?
I suppose that last one doesn't matter so much because I'm not about to change my major or anything. Besides, I wouldn't know what to change it to. But it's such a horrible feeling and I don't know what to do about it. How do I motivate myself? I don't know the answer.
It's confusing and weird and I pretty much hate it. I'm not even enjoying my magazine capstone project all that much. I know it's a big deal and I know that this is my last journalism class at Drake and that most of my academic effort should probably be poured into this class, but...
Sunday, September 27, 2009
Professor Peruvian
I am a big, big, big fan of animals. I'm a complete sucker for most of them. Maybe notsomuch for snakes and other things that are the embodiment of evil.
Over the summer I got really, REALLY lonely and came VERY close to adopting a kitty from Petsmart but was thwarted when I found out you have to be 21 to do it. It was a good thing that I couldn't because I do want to wait until I'm settled for a longer period of time than just the next few months to make that kind of a commitment. And in the end it would be a lot of money... adoption fee, start-up stuff, vet bills, $150 pet deposit for my apartment, an additional $30 for rent... it adds up quickly.
I did the fish thing for a while and last summer it worked out REALLY well. Those guys lasted for a good long time. But since then all the fish I've had have been dead within a few weeks. I went through too many fish this summer.
I was still pretty desperate for some sort of animal companionship, but I was done with fish and couldn't afford a cat. So I came up with a happy compromise.
A guinea pig.
It's not small and creepy like a hamster; it's not going to die in two weeks like a fish; it's not a massive financial commitment like a cat or dog. It's a cuddly cage pet and the perfect solution.
My grandma was in town this weekend and she was nice enough to spring for the piggy and I bought his cage and set-up things and my roommate bought him some extra fun stuff. So far we're both thrilled. He's still adjusting so he's a bit nervous still, but he's very friendly when we hold him and makes adorable little squealy noises.
We named him Professor Peruvian. Someone (my grandma, I think) tossed out the name Professor which kind of stuck, and then we added Peruvian because guinea pigs are native of Peru. Though, we should probably call him Professor PeesALot since he likes to take a leak in my roommate's lap.
Over the summer I got really, REALLY lonely and came VERY close to adopting a kitty from Petsmart but was thwarted when I found out you have to be 21 to do it. It was a good thing that I couldn't because I do want to wait until I'm settled for a longer period of time than just the next few months to make that kind of a commitment. And in the end it would be a lot of money... adoption fee, start-up stuff, vet bills, $150 pet deposit for my apartment, an additional $30 for rent... it adds up quickly.
I did the fish thing for a while and last summer it worked out REALLY well. Those guys lasted for a good long time. But since then all the fish I've had have been dead within a few weeks. I went through too many fish this summer.
I was still pretty desperate for some sort of animal companionship, but I was done with fish and couldn't afford a cat. So I came up with a happy compromise.
A guinea pig.
It's not small and creepy like a hamster; it's not going to die in two weeks like a fish; it's not a massive financial commitment like a cat or dog. It's a cuddly cage pet and the perfect solution.
My grandma was in town this weekend and she was nice enough to spring for the piggy and I bought his cage and set-up things and my roommate bought him some extra fun stuff. So far we're both thrilled. He's still adjusting so he's a bit nervous still, but he's very friendly when we hold him and makes adorable little squealy noises.
We named him Professor Peruvian. Someone (my grandma, I think) tossed out the name Professor which kind of stuck, and then we added Peruvian because guinea pigs are native of Peru. Though, we should probably call him Professor PeesALot since he likes to take a leak in my roommate's lap.
Friday, September 25, 2009
Pelican Festival
I have more mascot experience than I care to admit. My first job was at Chick-Fil-A back home in Colorado and one night I had to dress up as the CFA cow and do the chicken dance during half-time at the Colorado Nuggets basketball game.
Then, if you're a frequent reader (and you're probably not unless you're my parents, my friend Ryan, my boss, or the mysterious person at Meredith who has been hitting a lot lately... shout out to you all) you'll recall my Curious George experience. in 2007 I had to dress up as Curious George at the Blank Park Zoo during their Halloween event and that was all sorts of interesting.
A few weeks ago was the Pelican Festival at Jester Park Lodge. Evidently, pelican migration starts in late summer and early fall and hundreds and thousands of pelicans come to rest at the massive Saylorville Lake. So people come and gather and watch pelicans and learn some stuff.
I volunteered to help through my internship at the DNR. So I got there and was told that they needed me to be the pelican greeter, Scoop. Scoop, as it turns out, is this massive pelican costume that's just all sorts of ridiculous. Thankfully, by this point in my mascot career, I'm experienced enough and didn't need help getting into the costume.
So I dressed up as a massive pelican and I'm walking the best way I know how with toddlers on my ankles. Meanwhile other toddlers were shrieking at the sight of me.
Although, one very cool thing happened. A little boy pointed right at me and said "bird!" And his parents started freaking out because that was his first word. It was pretty special to share that moment.
And, because I evidently have no problem further making public my already public humiliation, I'm putting in a picture.
Then, if you're a frequent reader (and you're probably not unless you're my parents, my friend Ryan, my boss, or the mysterious person at Meredith who has been hitting a lot lately... shout out to you all) you'll recall my Curious George experience. in 2007 I had to dress up as Curious George at the Blank Park Zoo during their Halloween event and that was all sorts of interesting.
A few weeks ago was the Pelican Festival at Jester Park Lodge. Evidently, pelican migration starts in late summer and early fall and hundreds and thousands of pelicans come to rest at the massive Saylorville Lake. So people come and gather and watch pelicans and learn some stuff.
I volunteered to help through my internship at the DNR. So I got there and was told that they needed me to be the pelican greeter, Scoop. Scoop, as it turns out, is this massive pelican costume that's just all sorts of ridiculous. Thankfully, by this point in my mascot career, I'm experienced enough and didn't need help getting into the costume.
So I dressed up as a massive pelican and I'm walking the best way I know how with toddlers on my ankles. Meanwhile other toddlers were shrieking at the sight of me.
Although, one very cool thing happened. A little boy pointed right at me and said "bird!" And his parents started freaking out because that was his first word. It was pretty special to share that moment.
And, because I evidently have no problem further making public my already public humiliation, I'm putting in a picture.
1/3 over
I realized recently that this semester is already 1/3 over. Granted that means I have about 5 weeks under my belt, but when you're feeling like things have just gotten started, thinking of it like that is really kind of shocking.
But things have just been so slow lately. I keep telling myself not to complain, but I can't help it. For instance, my magazine capstone... we're still making important decisions and only yesterday got actual writing assignments. But the book has to be to the printer BEFORE Thanksgiving break. Holy heck.
So I'm sure it'll all hit the fan here pretty soon and I won't be able to keep up with hardly anything. It's the calm before the storm, I suppose.
This week I also had my first entomology exam and that was weird. I don't remember the last time I ever really had an exam. Considering that I haven't had any sort of biology class since literally freshman year of high school and therefore am at a considerable disadvantage compared to the other students who are grounded quite well in the basics of things like biodiversity, morphology and evolution, I think it went fairly well. I can tell I generally know the info, but there were definitely some holes in my explanation of things. That doesn't change the fact that I love the class and the professor is one of the greatest I've ever had. Seriously. Keith Summerville. If he teaches it, take it.
In a couple of weeks the classes for next semester will be posted already and my roommate and I are both extremely excited. Generally I feel like we're both not terribly thrilled with classes this semester and getting to pick out new ones is really exciting. It's particularly exciting for me because I only have to pick 4 of them (yay for a 12-credit semester!) and it'll be my LAST. TIME. PICKING. Holy heck. It's crazy.
But things have just been so slow lately. I keep telling myself not to complain, but I can't help it. For instance, my magazine capstone... we're still making important decisions and only yesterday got actual writing assignments. But the book has to be to the printer BEFORE Thanksgiving break. Holy heck.
So I'm sure it'll all hit the fan here pretty soon and I won't be able to keep up with hardly anything. It's the calm before the storm, I suppose.
This week I also had my first entomology exam and that was weird. I don't remember the last time I ever really had an exam. Considering that I haven't had any sort of biology class since literally freshman year of high school and therefore am at a considerable disadvantage compared to the other students who are grounded quite well in the basics of things like biodiversity, morphology and evolution, I think it went fairly well. I can tell I generally know the info, but there were definitely some holes in my explanation of things. That doesn't change the fact that I love the class and the professor is one of the greatest I've ever had. Seriously. Keith Summerville. If he teaches it, take it.
In a couple of weeks the classes for next semester will be posted already and my roommate and I are both extremely excited. Generally I feel like we're both not terribly thrilled with classes this semester and getting to pick out new ones is really exciting. It's particularly exciting for me because I only have to pick 4 of them (yay for a 12-credit semester!) and it'll be my LAST. TIME. PICKING. Holy heck. It's crazy.
Wednesday, September 2, 2009
Senior Year
So it begins. Senior year. I'm mostly excited, although I admit things are going kind of slowly, which I'm not really used to. Not as far as school goes, anyway. But I should enjoy it while I can because I'm sure soon enough I'll barely be able to keep my head above water. Not that that's a bad thing. I enjoy that sort of challenge. So here's the class break down:
1. J122 Magazine Capstone. This is it. My last journalism class at Drake. And probably ever. Kind of boggles my mind, really. Each magazine class does their capstone project, which is an issue of 515 magazine. They do everything from start to finish. Content, design, advertising, web presence, editing... you name it. We recently had to interview for staff positions and I should hear about which position I've been offered tomorrow. The class is taught by Lori Blachford who is all kinds of amazing. I'd take anything if she taught it. She's knowledgeable and funny and generally just a great person to have in class.
2. Personal Finance. Eh. It's not as bad as it could be so far, which is good. And it's all important info to have. Budgeting and financial goals and all this business. Although, it may be presumptuous of me to assume I'll have an income to manage after graduation. Lol. But it's ok. And the professor's name is Daffodil, so what could go wrong?
3. Creative Non-fiction. I seem to be in that class with largely non-English major underclassmen. In fact, most of them seem to be pre-pharm. So that's different. Not bad, though. I enjoy creative writing and the stuff we've had to read so far is really engaging. Actually, probably some of the best I've read in college.
4. American Lit. It's an upper-level so this class has a lot of English majors and honor students and whatnot. The stuff we have to read is also fairly easy to move through, comparatively speaking. And I've had this professor before last semester and my first semester as a freshman for my FYS class. So we go way back. He's brilliant and funny, though I'm not sure he always means to be.
5. Entomology. A non-required science class. Amazing, right? Entomology is the study of insects and even though I'm the only non-science major in the class (lots of environmental science, pharm and pre-pharm, biology and chemistry), I seem to be keeping up fairly well. I'd like to take this opportunity to thank Mr. Weber, my seventh grade science teacher, for teaching me what a phylum is. We get to go collect bugs and then identify them and all sorts of cool stuff. It's good to get a break from writing and challenge a different part of my brain.
Considering it's senior year, I'm not feeling anxious like I was expecting to. I'm not worried about finding a job after graduation. I'm smart and bold, I've gained a lot of valuable experience in not a lot of time, and I'm good at my job. And I've largely come to terms with the fact that it's not likely that I'll be working in publishing after I graduate. But that doesn't mean I won't be working. I'm good at the alphabet so I can file like nobody's business. And if that's what I have to do to pay my rent for a while before I can sneak in to the magazine business somewhere, then alrighty. There's no shame in it.
1. J122 Magazine Capstone. This is it. My last journalism class at Drake. And probably ever. Kind of boggles my mind, really. Each magazine class does their capstone project, which is an issue of 515 magazine. They do everything from start to finish. Content, design, advertising, web presence, editing... you name it. We recently had to interview for staff positions and I should hear about which position I've been offered tomorrow. The class is taught by Lori Blachford who is all kinds of amazing. I'd take anything if she taught it. She's knowledgeable and funny and generally just a great person to have in class.
2. Personal Finance. Eh. It's not as bad as it could be so far, which is good. And it's all important info to have. Budgeting and financial goals and all this business. Although, it may be presumptuous of me to assume I'll have an income to manage after graduation. Lol. But it's ok. And the professor's name is Daffodil, so what could go wrong?
3. Creative Non-fiction. I seem to be in that class with largely non-English major underclassmen. In fact, most of them seem to be pre-pharm. So that's different. Not bad, though. I enjoy creative writing and the stuff we've had to read so far is really engaging. Actually, probably some of the best I've read in college.
4. American Lit. It's an upper-level so this class has a lot of English majors and honor students and whatnot. The stuff we have to read is also fairly easy to move through, comparatively speaking. And I've had this professor before last semester and my first semester as a freshman for my FYS class. So we go way back. He's brilliant and funny, though I'm not sure he always means to be.
5. Entomology. A non-required science class. Amazing, right? Entomology is the study of insects and even though I'm the only non-science major in the class (lots of environmental science, pharm and pre-pharm, biology and chemistry), I seem to be keeping up fairly well. I'd like to take this opportunity to thank Mr. Weber, my seventh grade science teacher, for teaching me what a phylum is. We get to go collect bugs and then identify them and all sorts of cool stuff. It's good to get a break from writing and challenge a different part of my brain.
Considering it's senior year, I'm not feeling anxious like I was expecting to. I'm not worried about finding a job after graduation. I'm smart and bold, I've gained a lot of valuable experience in not a lot of time, and I'm good at my job. And I've largely come to terms with the fact that it's not likely that I'll be working in publishing after I graduate. But that doesn't mean I won't be working. I'm good at the alphabet so I can file like nobody's business. And if that's what I have to do to pay my rent for a while before I can sneak in to the magazine business somewhere, then alrighty. There's no shame in it.
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