The semester has been pretty great! I've been through about two sets of midterms now.
The first wave of mid-terms were staggered about one class a week, which was very nice because it gave me time to prepare individually for each one. These first tests were extremely important. I hadn't taken a test for over two years and I was nervous that I would be a little out of the swing of things. I also had a great deal to prove of myself. I was heavily leaning on these tests, every second of my life has seem to have been dedicated to preparing for this. Depending on how I did would greatly affect how I thought of myself. Do I have what it takes to be an exceptional student? Or am I missing some vital characteristic that others have? Will I just be average in all things?
The first test came and I studied very hard for it (Music History). Came out with a 96%! But I knew I couldn't let my guard down. I very cautiously put in extreme effort for my next exam (Child Development) and came out with 94%! Then we go into class the next day and the professor tells us that she's going to give us some extra points for badly worded questions. wow! So at this point I'm feeling pretty good about myself! But I knew that my hardest exams were yet to be taken. The next exam was in Doctrine and Covenants. Now this was a class to be scared of! I had been putting in so much effort into my other classes that I had skirted some of the readings for D&C. I crammed hard before taking it and WHAM, 92%. Not bad at all. Then came the American Heritage test. I've heard horror stories about this class and so to be honest, I don't think I've ever studied harder for any test I've ever taken. EVER. So I go in with my heart pounding and feel great about every question! I hand my test in and walk down the creepy stairs and the testing center to check my score. 90%!!! I got an A on every midterm!! Every class!! PLUS American Heritage is graded on a curve. I found out later that the average for the test was a C, so my A will be rounded up to... an A++?
Things were tough that next week. I thought that now I had taken my first midterm for every class that I would then have a little break before having to stress about another test! I was wrong. The next day my professor reminded us that our exam opens today. WHAT?! Not even one day to breathe. I had spent so much time focusing on these exams but at the same time all the classes are continuing on to new units. I realized that I need to learn how to prepare for tests throughout the semester so that way I don't need to spend the extra time the few days before and exam. I need to study all my classes evenly and consistently. Well that weekend was General Conference and so I didn't get much studying done. There was an enormous announcement made by President Monson and I'll talk about that in a minute!
My calling as Elders Quorum President has taken up a little bit of time too, but I've actually got a pretty lucky break with very few church meetings this month (temple dedication, stake conference, general conference...). I started to feel a little sick on Sunday and that made me very nervous. That was NOT the week to get sick. But I got some extra sleep and I felt super blessed to be feeling good the next day! I crammed hard the next two days and managed two high Bs. I don't want to score that low again though. A huge essay was due at the end of the week and I managed to get that written without losing much sleep. Phew. It made for a crazy week. There have been a few other tough assignments and essays, but I've done well. A couple days ago I had to stay up late to finish a big 7 page essay. I ended up with only 4 hours of sleep before having to wake up for work.
Now I have about 2 weeks of a break from exams, but then all five classes hit nearly at once. They're not staggered like they were at the beginning of the semester. This worries me that I won't be prepared enough when they all hit. I've been spending my whole life on school that I don't know the ward extremely well, but that's okay. It doesn't bug me too much and it's worth it. This last week has been a bit better though. I've spent a little more time with the ward. Sunday was spent revising the Home teaching list. It took about 3 hours with my counselors! It felt great to get them done once and for all.
I spend lots of time with girls from before the mission and some from class. The only time I hang out is while I'm studying, on Fridays, or at football games. It's also funny that a lot of my friends right now are freshmen since I'm taking general classes and class time is my social time. Whoever I sit around. I've gotten some really close friends this semester even with the amount of time I spend with work and academics.
The announcement in General Conference was monumental. I had just gotten back from my normal Saturday schedule of laundry and shopping and I timed it perfect where I was back just as it was getting started. Within the first few minutes President Monson tells us that the missionary required ages are being lowered to 18 for men and 19 for women! We couldn't believe it! This changes everything! BYU and church culture will completely change now. My work at the MTC will change, BYU dating will change... everything will be different. This affects the family a lot! My little bros will be able to see each other in between missions instead of the 4 year gap that Ty and I won't see each other for. I'm amazed at the response from the girls at BYU particularly. And I suppose world-wide too! There is such an excitement for missionary work right now and about 90% of the girls I know are putting in their papers. It's great to see that this is the caliber of the youth in the church. I love it.
...at the same time though, there go all my friends! Pretty interesting change of dynamics here at BYU.
Wednesday, October 17, 2012
Wednesday, September 5, 2012
Don't Fall Behind!
Things have gotten super stressful! I really find all of this online course stuff to be so confusing. Each class is a maze of where to find what and how to know what's due when and how to guess at exactly what the professor is looking for. Today was just full of things not going quite right. But I keep telling myself that my perspective is wrong.
Things that stressed me out:
I've somehow gotten behind in all my readings. Two assignments were due today with another couple of writing assignments due very soon. Found out that a few quiz deadlines were today so I had to take the online quizzes blindly without having studied sufficiently. I couldn't figure out one of the study rooms where you can get help from a TA. Biked quickly back to the Riv to check and see if my rent was paid. Turns out there were major problems with payment and I had to jump through hoops and hidden fees to figure it out before the late fee hits. Then I rushed back to class for a long waste of two hours of "career development." At this point I would drop the class if I didn't need the credit hours.
There's a bit of a story behind this, but turns out I just barely missed getting into Men's Chorus which was a serious damper on my spirits. At the same time the football game, little time for sleep, and not getting into choir was happening, I got bombarded with huge amounts of reading assignments. I'm swamped!
But I think to an extent I have a poor perspective on things. I've had some amazing luck and success lately.
If I try and look for the blessing behind all of these things: I gained valuable experience from the auditions. Now I don't have to worry about an hour of choir practice every day (imagine how much more swamped I'd be!). If I hadn't remembered to talk to the Riv and if I hadn't written it in my schedule, I would have had to pay a late fee!
So I guess there's always a choice to have a positive attitude and to be happy. Sure is hard sometimes.
I really need to figure out how to speed read and to balance things when surprises come up that ruin my schedule.
Things have been fun though. I've been meeting lots of people. Trying to find time to see people for short periods of time. Ashley, Josie, and Rachel.
This weekend looks booked already especially because of the football game in the middle of the day. How can I still get behind when nearly every second of my life is devoted to classes?!
Things that stressed me out:
I've somehow gotten behind in all my readings. Two assignments were due today with another couple of writing assignments due very soon. Found out that a few quiz deadlines were today so I had to take the online quizzes blindly without having studied sufficiently. I couldn't figure out one of the study rooms where you can get help from a TA. Biked quickly back to the Riv to check and see if my rent was paid. Turns out there were major problems with payment and I had to jump through hoops and hidden fees to figure it out before the late fee hits. Then I rushed back to class for a long waste of two hours of "career development." At this point I would drop the class if I didn't need the credit hours.
There's a bit of a story behind this, but turns out I just barely missed getting into Men's Chorus which was a serious damper on my spirits. At the same time the football game, little time for sleep, and not getting into choir was happening, I got bombarded with huge amounts of reading assignments. I'm swamped!
But I think to an extent I have a poor perspective on things. I've had some amazing luck and success lately.
If I try and look for the blessing behind all of these things: I gained valuable experience from the auditions. Now I don't have to worry about an hour of choir practice every day (imagine how much more swamped I'd be!). If I hadn't remembered to talk to the Riv and if I hadn't written it in my schedule, I would have had to pay a late fee!
So I guess there's always a choice to have a positive attitude and to be happy. Sure is hard sometimes.
I really need to figure out how to speed read and to balance things when surprises come up that ruin my schedule.
Things have been fun though. I've been meeting lots of people. Trying to find time to see people for short periods of time. Ashley, Josie, and Rachel.
This weekend looks booked already especially because of the football game in the middle of the day. How can I still get behind when nearly every second of my life is devoted to classes?!
Monday, August 27, 2012
Start of Sophomore Year
Quick post before I head to bed.
Well here I am in my new apartment! It's... uh. Interesting. My first impression... I walk in and the carpets are filthy, my roommates are from Chile and have been to the US for only 4 months or so... don't speak English very well. I go to the kitchen and there are PILES of dishes and bowls and plates full of food from the day before. I get everything into my room and sit down for a minute... a fly whizzes around my head. I sweep off the dust on the shelf above the desk. I notice an ant crawling on the desk. I smash it. Yup! That's about it! So I've basically resolved to stay in my own little corner of the apartment.
Another roommate moves in and I'm so excited that I have someone who I can speak English with! ...until I find out that he served his mission in South America. It's pretty funny! So this past week most conversations are right over my head. Apparently this was the latino party house before I got here so a bunch of latinos in the area come over frequently. They're all super nice and return missionaries! Now more then ever I wish I spoke spanish. It's been fun though. My roommate Alex is pretty cool. I've been getting to bed super early though (9-10pm) so that way I can get up at 5am for work. The roommates think I'm crazy, haha!
We had a freshman reunion yesterday and it was just fantastic! Weird to see everyone from freshman year. Most of the kids were great to see again and others... make me glad that Freshman year is over. Most importantly, I got to reconnect with Ashley! She's great. We're meeting up tomorrow for a little bit to study and talk. It'll be nice. I've kept a good study habit so far. I followed my schedule and stayed at the library for four hours after my last class. I love feeling on top of things. If I had even one more course though I don't know how I would do it. Even now I feel like I'm tight for time. I wonder if I could learn to study faster.
WELL I love it! Love working at the MTC love feeling a bit more independent, love going to class and learning, love feeling accomplished, love meeting new people, love having friends. LOVE BYU FOOTBALL!! WOO-HOO!! THIS THURSDAY!
Well here I am in my new apartment! It's... uh. Interesting. My first impression... I walk in and the carpets are filthy, my roommates are from Chile and have been to the US for only 4 months or so... don't speak English very well. I go to the kitchen and there are PILES of dishes and bowls and plates full of food from the day before. I get everything into my room and sit down for a minute... a fly whizzes around my head. I sweep off the dust on the shelf above the desk. I notice an ant crawling on the desk. I smash it. Yup! That's about it! So I've basically resolved to stay in my own little corner of the apartment.
Another roommate moves in and I'm so excited that I have someone who I can speak English with! ...until I find out that he served his mission in South America. It's pretty funny! So this past week most conversations are right over my head. Apparently this was the latino party house before I got here so a bunch of latinos in the area come over frequently. They're all super nice and return missionaries! Now more then ever I wish I spoke spanish. It's been fun though. My roommate Alex is pretty cool. I've been getting to bed super early though (9-10pm) so that way I can get up at 5am for work. The roommates think I'm crazy, haha!
We had a freshman reunion yesterday and it was just fantastic! Weird to see everyone from freshman year. Most of the kids were great to see again and others... make me glad that Freshman year is over. Most importantly, I got to reconnect with Ashley! She's great. We're meeting up tomorrow for a little bit to study and talk. It'll be nice. I've kept a good study habit so far. I followed my schedule and stayed at the library for four hours after my last class. I love feeling on top of things. If I had even one more course though I don't know how I would do it. Even now I feel like I'm tight for time. I wonder if I could learn to study faster.
WELL I love it! Love working at the MTC love feeling a bit more independent, love going to class and learning, love feeling accomplished, love meeting new people, love having friends. LOVE BYU FOOTBALL!! WOO-HOO!! THIS THURSDAY!
Saturday, August 18, 2012
Catch Up
If you don't have a good set habit of writing a journal it's so easy for time to pass and then you have to play catch up on all the great things that have happened since you last wrote!
A highlight from the week after my last post was Megan Gee's Sleeping Beauty musical. I went with Sarah and Marie and boy was I excited to go! She played Maleficent and she was AMAZING! It was fantastic. Tons of family was there and it ended up being a super important opportunity for me to talk with family. I saw Ryan for the first time in years and met his wife. We've decided to get an All Sports Pass together so I'll get to know them a lot better this football season. We couldn't find any other friends or cousins to join us but that's okay. I hear the seating isn't too strict anyway so I can go sit with new friends some of the games.
I've loved living with Grandpa and Grandma. They are just too sweet and are great examples. Grandpa never stops working and Grandma is a sweetheart that will never say anything negative about anyone. It's amazing to live with them! I've tried really hard to find things to help out with and the do them before I'm asked. It's fun to surprise them. A few of the things I've helped out with since I've been here are mowing the lawn, watering the flowers, cutting down weed-trees in the "forest" hill in the back, changed light bulbs, done dishes, and put together grandma's office chair...
The past few weeks I've been very focused on preparing for school. I want to do SO well with grades. I've gotten all my textbooks early and I've started working on different things. I've began recording my textbooks and putting them on my Ipod so I can study as I travel on my bike or during other down times when I can't use my hands (ex- meal time). We'll see if it's effective. It might not be worth the time and I tend to zone out in the middle of chapters. It's making me pretty anxious to actually start school. I have try outs for BYU Men's Chorus next week so I've also been preparing for that. I've always had a dream to be a part of it and I think I have a good shot at getting in. There are three total auditions which is kind of daunting. And check out these stats:
" The choir has performed at the ACDA conventions, and performs frequently to sold-out audiences. Over 400 men audition for the choir yearly, with between 75 to 150 of them chosen to join the choir."
http://www.youtube.com/watch?
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/
crazy!
I finally started working at the MTC this last week! It's so nice to be working. The job isn't quite what I was expecting. It's a lot of set ups and constant lifting. You're constantly on your feet and I get pretty tired by the end of it! I work from 6-10am which will be perfect for once school starts. I'll need to get to bed just past 9 every night if I'm to get enough sleep during the school year. I really want to become completely independent. It's a bit weird at work because everyone I work with is married and with a kid!
This week has also been Education Week and I got "kicked out" of my room for some awesome second girl cousins. They're great and it sure was a fun week. It was sad to see them leave this morning. We all really connected.
Last week Kristin left for the MTC! Kristin and Kate also took over my room down there. The first night they were here I got a warm welcome from them when I first came in and I'll never forget the way Kristin looked over and said, "Josh!" Made me feel really cared about. We stayed up that night talking until 1am! It was crazy but just so fun. I was lucky because I didn't have anything to wake up for that week.
Well things have sure gone by quick and it looks like I'll move into my apartment within the next few days. I'm excited but it sure is going to be a big change and a big step toward a new phase of life!
A highlight from the week after my last post was Megan Gee's Sleeping Beauty musical. I went with Sarah and Marie and boy was I excited to go! She played Maleficent and she was AMAZING! It was fantastic. Tons of family was there and it ended up being a super important opportunity for me to talk with family. I saw Ryan for the first time in years and met his wife. We've decided to get an All Sports Pass together so I'll get to know them a lot better this football season. We couldn't find any other friends or cousins to join us but that's okay. I hear the seating isn't too strict anyway so I can go sit with new friends some of the games.
I've loved living with Grandpa and Grandma. They are just too sweet and are great examples. Grandpa never stops working and Grandma is a sweetheart that will never say anything negative about anyone. It's amazing to live with them! I've tried really hard to find things to help out with and the do them before I'm asked. It's fun to surprise them. A few of the things I've helped out with since I've been here are mowing the lawn, watering the flowers, cutting down weed-trees in the "forest" hill in the back, changed light bulbs, done dishes, and put together grandma's office chair...
The past few weeks I've been very focused on preparing for school. I want to do SO well with grades. I've gotten all my textbooks early and I've started working on different things. I've began recording my textbooks and putting them on my Ipod so I can study as I travel on my bike or during other down times when I can't use my hands (ex- meal time). We'll see if it's effective. It might not be worth the time and I tend to zone out in the middle of chapters. It's making me pretty anxious to actually start school. I have try outs for BYU Men's Chorus next week so I've also been preparing for that. I've always had a dream to be a part of it and I think I have a good shot at getting in. There are three total auditions which is kind of daunting. And check out these stats:
" The choir has performed at the ACDA conventions, and performs frequently to sold-out audiences. Over 400 men audition for the choir yearly, with between 75 to 150 of them chosen to join the choir."
http://www.youtube.com/watch?
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/
crazy!
I finally started working at the MTC this last week! It's so nice to be working. The job isn't quite what I was expecting. It's a lot of set ups and constant lifting. You're constantly on your feet and I get pretty tired by the end of it! I work from 6-10am which will be perfect for once school starts. I'll need to get to bed just past 9 every night if I'm to get enough sleep during the school year. I really want to become completely independent. It's a bit weird at work because everyone I work with is married and with a kid!
This week has also been Education Week and I got "kicked out" of my room for some awesome second girl cousins. They're great and it sure was a fun week. It was sad to see them leave this morning. We all really connected.
Last week Kristin left for the MTC! Kristin and Kate also took over my room down there. The first night they were here I got a warm welcome from them when I first came in and I'll never forget the way Kristin looked over and said, "Josh!" Made me feel really cared about. We stayed up that night talking until 1am! It was crazy but just so fun. I was lucky because I didn't have anything to wake up for that week.
Well things have sure gone by quick and it looks like I'll move into my apartment within the next few days. I'm excited but it sure is going to be a big change and a big step toward a new phase of life!
Thursday, August 2, 2012
Temple Thursday
I've only been here a week in Provo with Grandpa and Grandma and I've already missed out on writing about so much that has happened! Today started early at 5:30. It's Kaytlyn's "Temple Thursday" which we sort of coined in our letters to each other while I was on my mission. This was my first time to be a part of it and I absolutely loved it! It was still dark out and the sprinklers were going as I waited for her to pick me up. We then drove down the hill from the house. The sunrise was peaking over the mountains with the moon large and glowing and then there was the Temple all prettily lit. It was an incredible way to start off the day. This was my first time to ever perform the Temple ordinances and it was extremely special for me to do Kaytlyn's confirmations and then baptisms. I'll never forget it. You know a girl is special when she gets you to go to the Temple with her.
The rest of the day was pretty eventful. Read the Book of Mormon, then mowed the lawn. Rode the bike to Cambria's and did P90X yoga in her apartment. Oh boy, what a workout! Phew! It was pretty intense. We want to start the actual program but I don't know if we can make it. Went to campus together after that and I walked into a Test Preparation workshop I thought I would try out since I'm not working at the MTC yet and have about a month before school starts. It ended up being one of the best things I've decided to do! It offered great advice and I got to meet some new people. I was the only guy there which was kind of weird, but there's sort of a funny moment I had with a girl named Rebecca.
I got home and helped Grandpa make some grape juice from the grapes in the backyard. And now I'm just working on my list of things that I had planned to do. Sometimes the list is a bit overwhelming especially when I'm so tired from that workout and when I spend too much time talking on facebook and email!
The rest of the day was pretty eventful. Read the Book of Mormon, then mowed the lawn. Rode the bike to Cambria's and did P90X yoga in her apartment. Oh boy, what a workout! Phew! It was pretty intense. We want to start the actual program but I don't know if we can make it. Went to campus together after that and I walked into a Test Preparation workshop I thought I would try out since I'm not working at the MTC yet and have about a month before school starts. It ended up being one of the best things I've decided to do! It offered great advice and I got to meet some new people. I was the only guy there which was kind of weird, but there's sort of a funny moment I had with a girl named Rebecca.
I got home and helped Grandpa make some grape juice from the grapes in the backyard. And now I'm just working on my list of things that I had planned to do. Sometimes the list is a bit overwhelming especially when I'm so tired from that workout and when I spend too much time talking on facebook and email!
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