Lil tid bits of everday living...

Right now, at this very minute, it's 4:26 here in Michigan; however back home, it's 2:26. Presently I live in two diferent time zones and I think in two different streams. My body is here in Michigan, but my heart is forever in Idaho with my friends and loved ones.

The weekend before this one, my roommate Jeni went home for the first time. It was milifilous to have time completely to myself, to share a space with no one, but in the end I will have to admit it made me think of my friends and family back home more than I had before. (Especially, because the weekends are so quiet here, most students live relatively close to the campus, and are able to go home often) I wanted to run away back home also. Although I survived the weekend, it wasn't the best weekend; I found myself in a few situations (by my own accord) that afterwards I thought...'perhaps I should've thought that through a lil bit more'...

In the past two weeks, academically, I have given my first speech in my speech class (A group presentation, in which my part consisted of covering the topic of 'current roles of women in the household and the working world' - not exactly my hot topic, but I made it out alive) and I recieved my grade results back this week, getting a full 100%...I was pretty darn proud of myself. I also have taken my first offical college exam. It was for my REL241 class (Old Testament), coving the principles of Scripture interpretation, a few maps, the canon, and various other subjects....I'm still waiting to see how I performed for that test.

Something else that excited me quite a bit, was in package that I recieved from my parents, full of miscellaneous items from home that I didn't manage to get packed into my bags. Included was the main sheets and books of piano music that I play out of. I was simply delighted to find a piano and play my heart out...good release of emotion when you don't feel comfortable talking to anyone around you about the turbulent emotions inside of you.

Urgh, I almost forgot to mention my new 'job'. I was awarded work study, and all campus jobs pay $7 to $7.40 an hour except for one, Phone-a-Thon, that pays $10 an hour. I chose to apply for that job, and what do you know, I got it. Jeni did also. So every week, Monday thru Wednesday from 7:00-8:30p.m. Jeni and I place ourselves in office chairs over at the Earhart Manor where we place phone calls thanking people for past donations to the university, and the inevitable, asking them for more 'green moola' contributions. It's not the most exciting job, but it's not dificult and it works well with my schedule. Besides, I'm working on my social and communication skills.

Da-da-dun! I am indeed playing softball for CUAA. Needless to say I'm pretty ecstatic about it....I'm really out of shape though and once pre-season trainging starts, I'm going to be a little whipped. College sports are definately different then high school though, that's for sure. I feel like I might be in a lil bit over my head, but I'm sure going to try and swim my way to the surface. Sad to say though, after I decided I truly wanted to play and talking to the coach about walking onto the team, the team took a blow to the mitt. The current softball coach resigned and took a different position somewhere else. So for the past two weeks, the team tried to haphazardly conduct some practices together. But luckily, on Friday we found out that a coach has been hired, and hopefully we will meet her sometime next week and our team will get practicing, hard core. :)

This weekend Jeni went home again (She had some duties as Ms. Edwardsburg to perform) and I was left to my own means of entertainment. I spent the weekend watching movies with Ben, Mike, and various other people from the Miriam dorm. I went to a party with my suitemate and friend, Lindsay. (It wasn't my scene at all, fortunately we didn't stay long. The highlight was getting off campus for a tid bit and stopping at a bagel shop...which was delicious by the way. Oh, and p.s. I had my first 7/11 slurpie last night, that also was tip-top) I'm finding that I'm more of a low-key entertainment kind of girl, rather then constantly doing something and being a stupid college kid...blowing bubbles is enought excitment for me, ask the people around me.

(This picture on the left, depicts me trying to learn how to sit the way that Jeni is required to sit for all her pageant interviews and such...I have a lot of practice ahead of me attempting to look suave and lady like.

Hmmm...so I'm pretty much exhausted 24/7. ( Many people around campus have been catching colds, but I have seemed to luckily escape their grasp) My current bedtime has been midnight or later, and I'm really sleepy. I'm going to work on getting more sleep this week, because the bags under my eyes are getting out of control, lol.

At the church that I have been consistently attending Sunday services (University Lutheran Chapel - ULC for short) there is a coffee shop downstairs called 'The Common Cup'...ha ha ha. Anyhow, Jeni and I make it a weekly ritual to go for a coffee date run, as a getaway from campus, and a roommate bonding procces. Upstairs, behind the chapel is a room full of couches, chairs, tables, a piano, a t.v. & stereo etc. It is set up as a study room, and Jeni and I have visited it since for peace and quiet.

Jeni, really really likes as she say's, 'OBNOXIOUS' colors and pattern, she's a huge fan of zebra print and even made her own senior prom dress, using zebra print material with a lime green sash. The first weekend she was home, she brought a car load back...my favorite objects being a futon for our room (which has encouraged people to come and visit our room a whole lot more, and which is also an easier/more comfortable place to work on homework than in my little cave under my bed or up on top of my bed where I consantly get my back all cramped up) and a bottle of 'Turned Up Neon Turquoise' nail polish. We both painted our toenails...not finernails though because this particular color would look garish on any one's fingernails, even in the Halloween season.

This weekend she brought home a Bonzai tree, his name is Frederick. He's pretty peachy, I think he'll grow on me, but not literally. (Plus, any added oxegyn to the room is wonderful)

This week, Jeni pulled a funny little trick and locked the keys of her car in her trunk.( I thought of you Mom, :) She was miserable without her ride until the spare keys that her parents sent in the mail arrived.

Isn't her lil bug look so darn cute...? The black stripes were a new addition by her uncle right before she made her way to Ann Arbor. I do miss driving (especially the independence that comes with a car, when I'm in the mood to run away and be by myself, on the road with the music blaring, just me, my thoughts, and God).

To the right are pictures of family and friends that I have put on my wardrobe, a daily stop when I'm in my room to gaze at the good times and miscellanious memories that I brought here with me. (Mary, Francie, & Elizabee, I have all your letters, cards, and drawings/colorings pasted up also. I just couldn't fit them in the picture...keep them coming though, I enjoy showing them off to my roommate and anyone else who will appreciate your letters of love.)

Basically, I'm still acclimating to the whole 'being on my own' and all the joys, hardships, freeomds, and responsibilities that come with it. I wish I could stay connected to the computer with my fingers furiously typing away the stories that I have....but my homework demands my attention this beautiful Sunday afternoon. So for now, I will leave you with a smile, hoping for your thoughts, prayers (and letters would also be nice), in return.

P.S. Anticipate another blog soon, full of pictures of all the new people that I am meeting.

Until then, farewell my beloved friends and family!

When I get around to it...

So, it's me again...busy as a bumblebee. Seriously, I have six classes (18 credit hours) and I have homework EVERY night. I haven't gone to bed before probably midnight this whole week...partly due to the fact that I still get distracted very easily, even at the slightest twitch...which definately slows down the whole productive thing. :)

Anyhow...over the past two weeks while I have been acclimating to the whole college experience I've been having an assortment of new experiences. The most shocking one (we don't have these back in Idaho, at least none that I know of) being that my roommate, our suitemates, and a bunch of boys from the Miriam dorm got all dolled up and went to a club called Necto. (After the experience, my roommate deemed it Nect-NOT....she's not much of a dancer, and I just pretend I am) Since then, I have been to the club once more, and it was a good time, but it will probably never be my regular scene. (You get a work out dancing for hours on end, in close promiximity with people, sweating your body fat off, lol).

Jeni's mother sent us a basket of fruit, and it made us all warm and fuzzy inside. Later in the week, I received a package from the Traftons with homemade snicker doodles and zucchini bread, it made mine as well as my roommate/suitemates day...

Another important fact is that Jeni's and I's room stinks, literally. We don't know what it is, but a few times during the day it just smells...bad and then we go on an 'ousting' spray phase, and then we taste oust in our mouths for the next 15 minutes just so we don't have to plug our nose. (Maybe I'm being slightly dramatic but it really does reek at times, and we have to spray.) We think that something might be in the vents, but we don't call maintainence because that would mean having to rearrange all our furniture and that would mean a lot of hard work.

One night, we just felt like being silly, so we were climbing our doorways, making funny faces, and taking pictures.

Let's see....so far my favorite class is probably my PSCYH101, I find the subject intruiging and my Professor is very easygoing and laid back. My worst classes consist of Intermediate Algebra (Although we just took a test this Friday, and I think I passed with flying colors...hopefully) and Speech Communication...(I hate talking in front of people, and in a moment I will be preparing my part of a group speech that I have to give on Wednesday in class.

This is the view from my window. We hav ea perfect view of everything that goes on in our circle drive, and it's not too bad having the boys dorm right across from ours. Up in the left hand corner of the picture you will see Christmas lights...our window's decoration in the month of September, it's pretty spiffy if I do say so myself.

Anyhow, our dorm Sarah is made up of a lot of the freshman girl athelets while the boys' dorm across from us, Miriam, is made up of a lot of the freshman boys atheletes on campus. Our two dorms get along really well, and for the past two weeks we've spent a lot of time together. (As soon as I have pictures, I will put them up of all the new & exciting people that I'm meeting.

The biggest issue, as of yesterday around noon is the fact that my hair...is decidely shorter than what it used to be. Yesterday, Jeni and I decided to go grocery shopping and also go to Great Clips. (She wanted a trim, and I wanted a lil different style, but not a lot of length lost) Needless to say, we both came out very unhappy because our hair had been butchered. She lost two inces, and my hair has shelfed hair and choppy layers, and it's only to my shoulders. Royally pissed off we are....but what's done is done, and I just keep telling myself it's not that bad and that it will grow out....hopefully really fast. I could ramble on longer about how the hairdresser shouldn't be certified, and that I could've cut my own hair for what I got, but we'll just leave it as a bad experience.

It is raining dreadfully here. On and off all week it has been a down pour. Don't get me wrong, I love rain and I'm enjoying the lush green vegitation, and the moisture...but the rain makes it constantly hot and sticky in the air. For the past two days, the windows and doorways of the buildings are fogged up and nothing even slightly promiscuous is going on behind them...hooray for humidity. All my clothes feel damp to me, and taking a shower is a thought running endlessly through my mind. (Oh random fact, I was told that it will rain if you step on a daddy-long-leg...there are a lot of daddy-long-legs here all across the sidewalks...and squirrels, but I don't think it rains if you step on them, ha ha ha.)

Hmm... I think that is all for now. I'm going to go over to the Miriam dorm and hang out with a few of the guys, Rocko (A sweetheart that reminds me of a big teddy bear like my two best friends back home, Kade & Porter...I MISS YOU GUYS...and your HUGS!), and Morgan, a kid from Texas who recently got bit on the lip by a spider and has an adoreably huge lip now.

Oh snap! That's not all. Have I mentioned that I LOVE being surrounded by so much Christian fellowship. I've been overwhelmed by it, but strictly in a good way. In that sense, I do feel at home here at CUAA. I love the two different church services that I've visited off campus, a lot of college students, and a contemporary worship style. I'm not going to lie though, I miss playing the piano for my own home congregation. During the week, there are so many ways to worship on campus: daily chapel services, dorm devos 2x a week, night worship services, etc. It's so glorious!

Let's see...any more random tid bits, yes, I believe so. I miss hugs from friends and family. I've had about three hugs since I've been here, I really really miss hugs. I also miss telling and having people tell me they love me. Over the phone with family and friends just isn't the same. I miss my mom's home cooked french fries...and any other homecooked food for that matter.

Indeed, I do miss a lot of people and things from back home, but so far I'm having a wonderful experience here at college.

Don't forget about me, and keep in touch.

Always and forever, Lexi.

My Life In Michigan...so far

So...

On the the 26th of of August, I left my home of 18 years, good ole St. A, Idaho. I have swam to a whole different fishbowl here in Ann Arbor, Michigan...doggy paddling with the big fish for sure.

But anyhow, before I get ahead of myself, this is my room the morning that I left Idaho; my drawers are empty, my bed is stripped, and my 5 bags of belongings are stationed at the end of my bed, ready for takeoff.

Next topic of discussion...things that made me a lil more comfortable about my new environment was some of the scenery that my mother and I found on the backroads when we went for a joy ride to find supper. They remind me a lil bit of home. Country style.

And just for your information... It is really hot and humid here. I always feel like I need a shower, my hair is frizzy and untamable, and jeans are impossibly sweltering at this point and time in Michigan. There's a lot of new things to get used to, I'm definately not from around here, and people have already noticed that. (Which...I haven't ascertained whether that's been a good or bad thing for me)

My room here at CUAA is small, quaint, and pretty rad, topped off by my roommate Jeni Bollenbacher. We just rearranged it yesterday, lofted our beds (which created little caves for us to study underneath....pretty awesome if I do say so myself) and I'm trying to add little touches of my own pictures and collages to make it feel more like my home instead of a cement walled dorm.

So here my room was before the renovations, just barely, don't judge us for our lack of organization at first. It was a chaotic day. Oh and p.s. that's my stellar roommate Jeni, if I haven't already mentioned.

And now...without further ado. Is my side of the room...at the current moment. Jeni's side is setup exactly the same, but with her stuff. It took five girls, and during the process we managed to drop the bed onto a girl's head (she's got a pretty strong noggin)...but it was all in good fun right? But after that hefty process, I think we're all done with rearranging our room for a long while. Which is fine by me.

So many things are changing in my life right now. The scenery, the people, everything. Everyday I have become a little overwhelmed at times, wondering to myself whether I am strong enough to be on my own at this point and time. With God, anything is possible right?

That is one thing about Concordia that I loved from the moment I walked onto campus. I may not be able to call this place home, but I feel at home in Christian fellowship. It's a wonderous feeling to be surrounded by so many people that share the same faith as me. Completely heart swelling right there.

Tomorrow is my first day of classes, when the college schedule really begins. To be honest, I'm scared, anxious, nervous, and excited all in one. I just don't know what to expect. I'm super worried that I won't be able to balance my life the way I need to. It's difficult for me right now to be stranded half way across the country and completely alone. I liked my lil bubble...and it's been officially popped.

Three days into the college experience, and I am as of yet undecided as a whole. There are things I know I will love, and there are things that I'd rather run away from, and most of all there are things that I'm completely uncertain of. God has me in the palm of his hands though, and as long as I keep remembering that, I'm not too worried. I just have to learn to trust outside of myself.