Who would've known...

Yesterday, I gave my second speech in COMM 210. Let me put this out there: I hate giving speeches. I don't know why, but I do. It gives me the shakes and heebie jeebies. Anyway, it was my time to give my speech, and when I finished, I felt a little bit better. When I sat down, the girl behind me tapped me on the shoulder and said "Wow, you did a lot better than you did last time. Good job!" Words can not explain how much that meant to me. I felt great the whole rest of the day because of that. I wish she knew how much better she made me feel the rest of the day.
What she did was a random act of kindness. She did not have to tell me she thought I did better, and she most certainly did not have to do it with a smile on her face; but she did. I think that it's a good thing to be kind to people. This makes me remember what my psychology teacher used to tell us. He always told us to perform some sort of good deed for the day. I think that, with our hectic lives, that we seldom come to think of helping someone else. Whether it is simply opening a door for a mother with her hands full, giving someone a confidence booster, or helping a disabled student, no good deed goes unpunished.
Moral of the Story? Help someone out today, you never know how much it might mean to them.

Homecoming - Far Away

Saturday night marked the 3rd year of me going to the Homecoming Dance with my boyfriend. Each year, they have a photographer take free photos of everyone, and here are mine:

Year One:

Theme: Clue (You know, like the board game)
We didn't know that the pictures were free, so we didn't get it taken until near the end of the dance...so he is kind of sweaty gross -.-

Year Two:

Theme: Grease
We were smart this time and got it taken at the beginning of the dance :] I'm not sure why, but this is one of my favorite pictures of us :]

Year Three:

Theme: Superheroes!
Dramatic appearance difference between us both, mainly in the hair aspect. His is longer and mine is dark. But I still like it a lot!

I find it really amazing that we have made it so far in our relationship. There aren't too many people who can say they have had a really long relationship in high school and have made it into the transition to college. Plus, who else can say they have gone to three of the same dances with the same person? If I could still magically go to the dances at my old high school, we could do the same thing at those too xD
I love going to school dances. They are great ways to socialize with friends and have a good, safe time with your significant other. I personally love slow dances. They give me time just to look at my boyfriend and think about how much he means to me.
Unfortunately, one of the songs they played was "Far Away" by Nickelback, and the song made me think about how much I hate being away from him. It made me think about that so much that I almost started crying right there. The chorus states, "I miss you, been far away for far too long. I keep dreaming you'll be with me and you'll never go, stop breathing if I don't see you anymore." This statement made me thing about how I still have a hard time only getting to see him every other weekend. When we first started going out, this was normally how our schedule of seeing each other was. But since then, our relationship has grown to a different level of compatibility. At the end of the song, it says "I wanted I wanted you to stay
'Cause I needed, I need to hear you say, That I love you I have loved you all along. And I forgive you For being away for far too long. So keep breathing 'Cause I'm not leaving you anymore. Believe it, Hold on to me and never let me go." This is the part that almost made me lose it right there in front of everyone. I feel like this is a conversation between the two of us. He is telling me he wants me to stay and he forgives me for being away. Then I tell him the last half of the song.
Needless to say, I am not going to be able to listen to this song for a very long time.
I hope everyone had a great weekend!
-Emily

Technology draining human contact?

This week was the first week I tutored for SVS. On Monday, I went to Ross Community Center. There were about 6 children there. They got to choose which tutor they wanted to work with. A sixth grade girl chose me and she looked at me and said, "I picked you because you looked cool." This made me feel, well, cool. So I helped her with some worksheets and we talked about some things, like how she was getting a new cell phone and she was excited to be able to text her friends better. Uhm, excuse me, but NEW cell phone? In 6th grade? I didn't get my first cell phone until I was in 8th grade...and this girl was already on her second phone. It amazes me at how much technology is being used, even in the younger ages. What ever happened to the days where we wrote notes to each other and passed them around the room and then we watched the other person read it while the teacher wasn't looking?
I may sound really non-conforming here, but I think texting gets in the way. I have a good reason, I swear! It bugs me when people are out on their cell phones texting other people while I am hanging out with them. It's really hard to have a face-to-face conversation with someone when they are paying attention to their phone and having a different conversation with someone else. I'm not an attention hog, but if you're hanging out with me, I don't think you should be talking to someone else. It makes me feel like either you don't want to be there or you aren't interested in what I have to say at all. So, if you expect me to hang out with you just to talk and you're gonna sit there and text the entire time, don't expect me to hang out with you, it's just not worth it. Also, if you're gonna text, please don't do it while you're driving. I've had a friend total her car because she was texting while driving. It is dangerous for obvious reasons. Unfortunately, she never learned this lesson, and I don't really know what it will take for her to learn this.



yeah, I coundn't find any pictures that really related to it...so this is as close as it's getting.
Anyway, have a nice day!
-Emily

A little help goes a long way!

This may be the only time you will ever hear me say this, so pay attention:
I had a great week at work this week.
I think it all started when I met our new cashier, Jan. We started talking, and I informed her I was one of the students on the Presidential Scholarship. She was proud of my intelligence and proceeded to ask me my major, so I informed her I was majoring in Elementary Education. I was expecting the same response almost everyone else would give me. "You're so much smarter than that!" They would say. "You could do anything else and make so much more money that what you would on a teacher's salary!"
She gave me the normal surprised look, but the words that came out of her mouth were different.
"I would never be able to do that! You are one brave person. I admire you for that. Many people underestimate the influence and impact of teachers." These words made my day. Well, at least I thought they did, until some very special guests came to eat.
About a half hour later, some disabled students came to eat at the Retreat. They needed help getting their food, so I decided to help them. They seemed so grateful to have someone help them with tasks that we normally take for granted. They were polite, caring, and all around good people. It was a pleasure to help them out. I had a genuine smile on my face the whole time, which is very hard to come by from me.
On Wednesday, I did my job as assistant cook, and my happiness from Tuesday carried over, which led to me having a more positive attitude and being more social. When I got off work, I went to get a F'Real! milkshake from the machines. A few people behind me in line was another disabled student. Obviously, there was no way he was going to be able to get his F'Real! drink on his own, so he began to ask for help. I don't believe anyone else would have helped him, and without missing a beat, I began to ask him what flavor and what thickness he wanted. I put it in the machine for him and I asked him a few more questions. I then gave him his caramel frappachino and proceeded with life. I feel really good about helping him out like that.
When I think about these students, I admire them greatly. Despite their physical disability, they are still going to college to pursue their dreams. They are not letting it get the best of them. These people are willing not to confide in other people financially. I have a cousin with spina bifida, and he definitely let it get to him. He dropped out of high school, he drinks, and he confides in other people to take care of him, because he expects people to feel sorry for him.
Helping out these students these last couple of days made me remember all over again why I wanted to teach in the first place, and I couldn't be more thankful.

A touch of home.

Right now, I am helping a few bands from my hometown by creating a flier for their upcoming show. They gave me a background, the band logos, and the information they wanted on the flier, and this is what I have come up with so far. I am going to try out a few different types, but this is the first one. I would like to know what everyone thinks about it and what I could do with it.
These are grindcore/metal bands, and my boyfriend is the lead guitar for the top one (These Counterfeit Smiles).

Thank you for your help!
-Emily

9/11 - A Day of Service

On September 11, 2001, a tragic act of terrorism was bestowed upon this country. The twin towers collapsed, the pentagon was crashed into, and many innocent people were killed. America has not been the same ever since. The pride we hold for our country has been uplifted, in a sense. Since this, we have had a sixth sense - patriotism. More people wave their flags and are able to say they are proud to be an American. I have met more and more people willing to go into the armed forces to defend their country in hopes that someday, we will be at peace again.



On September 11, 2009, Student Voluntary Services held a day of service. Having to do 50 hours of service for my EDEL 100 class, I figured it would be a good way to get some hours in. From 2:30-5:30, A few people and I volunteered at the Boys and Girls Club. When I signed up, I thought we were going to be working with the children in educating them about 9/11 and how they should be proud to be living in a country like ours. In reality, it turned out we were cleaning out a locker room which they were storing as a storage closet. I was rather disappointed, but it still felt good to help someone else out. The building looked slightly ran down, but it was still definitely usable...it could just use a slight renovation. I think that with a possible renovation there, it would look more cheery for the children and nicer equipment would make the kids more excited to use it. I think that, in the very slim chance I become rich by some miracle, I want to donate it to Boys and Girls Clubs of America.
I hope everyone did something worthwhile to their country this week!
-Emily

Tuesdays = Deathdays? A Very Possible Theory.

Sorry about the delay. I keep forgetting that I saved this one as a draft instead of posting it.
If you couldn't tell by my title, I find Tuesdays very long and stressful. I go through four classes (aerobics, English, math, and speech) in the course of six hours, work at The Retreat in Noyer Centre until 8, make my own dinner since I worked the entire dinner shift, and hopefully have time to eat before my hall council meeting at 9. Afterwards, I do my homework and go to bed. This past Tuesday seemed to be ongoing and did not seem to go my way. I had to give my first speech today, and I feel like I didn't do too hot on it. I sort of have this fear of public speaking, especially about myself. Afterwards, I went to work. It actually did not seem too horrific this time.
Once I was done at work I rushed to make and eat a pizza and get to hall council by nine. It was election night, and my R.A. asked me to run for RHA Representative for Menk Hall. I did, and I lost. She then told me to run for Publicity Chair...and I lost that one too. I guess I am not meant to be an important hall member...oh well. My R.A. decided to make me floor rep afterwards. Later on, the vice president came over to my room and told me how shocked she was that I lost the RHA position. Apparently, the person I was running against brought all his friends to hall council with him so they would vote for him. I think I learned a lesson through all of this though. I learned that I should never give up. As the famous saying goes, don't let the fear of striking out keep you from playing the game.

Okay, so I find the quote in the picture partially true. I know that I will never be 6 foot tall (actually, I will probably never be five and a half feet without the help of some VERY high heels), and I know I will never be 5 years old again. When it comes to realistic goals, I do not find the word impossible an option. Anything realistic according to my standards, which most things are, is very possible.
How does it relate to this post? It relates because I still find my realistic goal, which is becoming an R.A. in the future, possible. I thought being in RHA would be a good way to start out. I will never find it impossible to be in RHA because, as the vice president told me, there is a chance that our floor rep may want to quit, thus giving me the position.
This quote will also help me later in college, and even in life. I believe that if I want to reach my goal of becoming an elementary school teacher and eventually a counselor, I will be able to do it. Sure, there may be times where it gets rather hard, or I may just want to give up, but if I just keep remembering the two quotes I have mentioned today, I will refuse to give up.
That is all for now. I need to go to math. Have a glorious day!
-Emily

Take a picture, it will last longer!

Right now I am sitting at my friend Jeff's computer because I'm pretty sure I will not be at home in time to have this posted by midnight.
Today, Cale and I went to eat at Christo's with my best friend that goes to Purdue so we could all catch up. She asked if she could invite this guy named Greg, and I said she could. Greg talked about himself constantly, Abbie talked about herself and her new friends a whole bunch, and I did not even get a word in edgewise. Afterwards, we went to her dorm for a little bit so she could show me what it looked like. I got around to looking at them, and I saw one of the frames that I got her that had a picture of us in it. She had taken out the picture of us and put a different picture in of her and another girl. Normally, I would be okay with this, but she has been one of my best friends since 7th grade and she didn't have any pictures of us in her room after she said she would, while I have a whole bunch of us in my dorm room. I left shortly afterwards to make sure I didn't blow my top or anything. I went to Panera with Cale afterwards to get some potato soup and I have been at Jeff's since.
I'm coming back to Ball State tomorrow, and we are leaving around noon or one. I'm going to come back to write a speech outline and do the peer reviews for English, which I don't think will be too bad.
I should probably get back to being with Jeff and Cale now. I hope everyone has had a great three day weekend!
-Emily

There's no place like home!

Three day weekends are possibly the best.  It's only halfway into Saturday, but it already has been so amazing!  On Friday, I got picked up to go home for the first time.  My mom and boyfriend came around 5:30 and we went to get food for the lovely 2-hour car ride back to good ol' Lafayette.  I went to see Halloween II with my boyfriend and a couple of my friends.  I had to have a lot of concepts explained to me because I had never seen the first one.  But we still had a good time catching up.  Today, I went to lunch with my mom at El Rodeo, which is one of my favorite restaurants.  Afterwards, I went to the park with my friend, Vince.  We finally got to catch up, since we did not get to before I left for Ball State.   I am really glad I came home this weekend.  I forgot how much I liked it.  It's not over yet, but I am sure I have still have a great weekend.