Looking Back On My First Semester In College

When I first moved everything in, I wasn't sure how I would adjust to not being in Charlotte. I knew I would miss my family, my boyfriend, and my pets. I went home a lot throughout the semester to see them, so that helped me.
I had always heard that when you go to college, you tend to eventually lose contact with your friends from high school. I don't really believe that is the case for me. I will never lose contact with my best friends. Three of my friends from back home are actually moving up here next year, and we are all going to live in a house together. I am so excited about that!!
I kind of knew my roommate through a friend of mine, so I assumed that things would work out well. Boy, was I wrong. I am moving out at the end of the semester which I am really looking forward to! My friend, Kristen, that I went to high school with is transferring to Boone. I plan on moving in with her for the spring semester.
I came to college planning to major in Apparel and Textiles. Those plans have not changed. I believe that this is something that I would really enjoy doing, but only time will tell. A class that I really dreaded going to was English. I have never liked writing, and I doubt I ever will.
I wasn't sure if I would really meet anyone since the school is so big. But, I have met some good friends here that I plan to stay friends with forever! I can't wait to make more memories that will last a lifetime!

The Waiting Room

The play begins with three girls gathering in the waiting room to their doctor's office, each with a different problem. Victoria, an English woman, wears a corset and is suffering from hysteria. Forgiveness From Heaven, a chinese woman, had her feet bound when she was a little girl, which is causing her toes to fall off. Wanda, a girl from New Jersey, was having problems with her breast implants. She later finds out that she has a tumor in one of her breasts.

Throughout the play the three of them become friends. Victoria begins being treated for her hysteria, Forgiveness From Heaven receives surgery on her foot, and Wanda has her breast removed. Wanda will need to decide what she wants to do for continuing treatment for her cancer.

At the end, they are in the hospital laying with their beds side by side. Forgiveness From Heaven is on drugs to help with the pain, which was pretty funny. They are all talking to each other, when Victoria's husband shows up. He tells her that one of their children is sick and that he wants her to come home. She packs up her things and says goodbye to the other two girls. Wanda gives Victoria her breast implants in a jar for Victoria to remember her by. Wanda and Forgiveness From Heaven begin telling each other stories. Wanda tells a story about three girls who did things to change themselves to be beautiful. She looked over at Forgiveness From Heaven, and she had died. The play ended with Forgiveness From Heaven waking up to normal feet and doing a dance.

Overall I really enjoyed this play. It mainly seemed to be about the constant quest for beauty. The three women wanted so badly to be beautiful, but in the end they all had to pay for it. There were some parts that were really funny. However, I did feel that it lasted too long.

The Waiting Room Issues

The Waiting Room is a play that will be held November 19 at ASU. It has to do with certain issues including foot binding, hysteria, corsets, and breast implants. Below is a little information about each issue:

Foot binding is done on young girls from the age of four to the age of seven by their mother or grandmother. Foot binding is done so that the girls feet will not grow anymore. Typically the four smallest toes as well as the arch of the foot would be broken to make the foot binding process easier.

Hysteria was known to be a disease causing symptoms such as stomach pains and/or a yearning for education. Doctors used to give a pelvic massage as a form of treatment. This would cause the patient to have an orgasm. Eventually doctors began recommending vibrators to patients rather than having to spend so much time stimulating their patients.

Corsets were worn for medical reasons such as Scoliosis or to promote good posture. Some women wore them improperly causing problems such as broken ribs, damage to their organs, or deformation of their stomach.

Breast implants typically require three incisions. The implants are placed below the mammary glands and the major muscles of the breast. Capsular contracture, which is when the body forms a capsule to protect itself from a foreign body which is perceived as a threat, can be an outcome of breast implants. These capsules can create a lump on the breast that can be painful. There have not been any proven links between breast implants and diseases.

The Image the Media Portrays

What I find difficult about being a female is the image the media portrays as "beautiful". The media portrays beauty as being skinny and tan. I believe beauty consists of intelligence and who you are as a person more so than how you look. I am proud to be a confident, intelligent, and creative female. However I feel limited when the only comments I receive are based on my appearance. Women should not feel powerful about looking beautiful, but about something more important such as solving a problem. A time when I felt proud of myself was when I wanted to start a club in high school, but the teachers who were in charge of the clubs kept throwing up all of these road blocks. It seemed like they wanted me to fail. However, I answered each issue they had until finally I gained their approval to form the club. The club held a major fundraiser each year it was in existence. The first year we raised over $600 for Crisis Assistance Ministries. The second year we raised over $500 for Teen Health Connection. It was tough going up against three teachers, but I succeeded! A woman I look up to would have to be my mother. I look up to her for several reasons. My father lost his job 12 years ago, and my mother has worked to support our family. She has been able to provide well for us, pay for my brother and I to attend college, and give us memorable vacations. She also helps not only my family members when there are problems, but she also volunteers with several organizations because she believes in helping others.

My Weekend

Over the weekend, I went to my boyfriend's mountain house with him and his parents. It was pretty cold over the weekend, but overall I had such a great time. It's always nice getting to see my boyfriend, Pete, as well as his parents. Most of the time, we just sat around and enjoyed our weekend. We went on a walk on Saturday to this awesome waterfall near his property. Once we found it, we walked from the bottom of it to the top. There was a big flat rock next to the waterfall that we sat on. It was so much fun and so relaxing being able to sit right beside the water as it was flowing down the rock. That was definitely the best part of the weekend! The weekend, like always, went by so quickly, and I wasn't very happy when it came time to leave for another week of classes and work. I always enjoy getting to see my boyfriend! It is hard not being at the same school and not being able to see each other much. I'm looking forward to the next time I get to see him!

Myers-Briggs Type Indicator

I took the Myers-Briggs Type Indicator test in my first year seminar class. The result for my test was ISFJ.

I stands for Introvert. If i go out to parties, I do tend to speak mainly to my boyfriend, rather than numerous people. I tend to not speak up in class, and I think things through before acting. I don't prefer to communicate through writing, nor do I usually have a longer attention spans.

S stands for Sensing. I believe that this part describes me well. I like outlines, clean guidelines, and specifics. I tend to read questions two or three times to make sure I am reading it correctly. I like having things organized.

F stands for Feeling. I definitely tend to follow my heart in situations over my head. I strive for harmony in relationships. In the description, it says that Feeling types are often in professions that require helping others. I am majoring in Apparel and Textiles and planning on opening up my own boutique which will require me to help customers as well as employees. It makes me feel good when I can help others.

J stands for Judging. This part described me exactly. I like to control my own world. I am always well organized. I always meet deadlines for things. I am usually planning out what all I have to do so I'm not cramming everything in at one time.

I believe that overall the Myers-Briggs test was on point. There were a few things that I didn't really think described me, but for the most part I fell under each category well.

GATTACA

I believe the underlying message of GATTACA has to do with Vincent's imperfections. While having his heart problem, he still found a way to meet his goal in life. I think the world will eventually reach genetic perfection. There are advances in technology every day. If I were a parent who had the choice to predetermine how intelligent my child would be or fix the fetus of a baby who was going to be mentally handicapped, I would not take this opportunity. I would not change anything about the way God wanted my child to be. Intervention in natural processes is unethical.

The Sam Spady Story

After watching the video on the death of Sam Spady, I knew it would be really interesting to go see her mother, Patty Spady, speak. I was very surprised to see her talk about the death of her daughter without crying. She opened with talking about Sam's interests and her involvements in school. She went on to discuss the night of Sam's death and what happened.
Sam died of alcohol poisoning. Her BAC level was apparently a staggering .43. It is sad to think that this tragedy could have been avoided if she had received medical attention.
I would never leave any of my friends, or anyone in that matter, if they were so intoxicated that they couldn't stand or speak. It is sad to think about how people think drinking is a competition - that whoever drinks the most gets props for it. People should be more aware of the symptoms of alcohol poisoning so they can look out for their friends if they choose to drink excessively.

Photo Essay Of Me

Above is a picture of me and my boyfriend, Peter. On Sunday, we will have been dating for a year and eight months. He is my best friend, and I miss him so much!

I have met some good friends this year. Above are two of them: Caitlin and Cameron. It is nice to have a good group of girls to hang out with.


Here is a picture I took on top of a mountain in Boone. I think it is so gorgeous. I love getting to live and go to school in the mountains.

Brittany is my best friend. We have been friends for three years. She is so much fun to be around, and we have a lot in common. She lives in Wilmington now, and I miss not hanging out with her as much as we used to!

Alcohol in College

I believe that alcohol is a big problem in colleges everywhere. The majority of students in college drink. They think it is cool to get so drunk you can't stand up. It seems like it is a competition as to who can drink more, and they will be congratulated if they do. I read where one survey found that more students under 21 binge drink than students over 21.
Drinking in groups makes students feel the need to drink more. Lots of freshmen want to go out and party a lot since they are finally away from home and their parents. Students go out on the week nights and drink because they don't have anyone stopping them from doing so. Many students drink to relieve the stress from the workload in college. Drinking can lead to date rape, violence, and academic failure. I'm not surprised at how many police officers Boone has. It is noted that 1,700 college students die from alcohol-related unintentional injuries a year. This is including car crashes. More than 97,000 students are victims of some sort of sexual assault each year. Last year 2.1 million students drank and drive. These numbers are remarkable.
Something needs to be done about the excessive drinking. I understand a student wanting to have some fun and make some good memories that will last a lifetime while they are in college, but they don't need to drink heavily to do so. If you feel pressured to drink and you don't want to, be strong and just say no. If they have something to say about it, who really cares? What those people think shouldn't matter anyways.

The String Cheese Incident

When I first heard the name String Cheese Incident, I didn't want to give the music a chance. When I started dating my boyfriend, Pete, I began listening to them. Now they are one of my favorite groups.
I love every single one of their songs. They are all a lot of fun to listen to, especially live. All of their singers have good voices as well. The group consists of six members: Billy Nershi (vocals, acoustic/electric guitar), Michael Kang (vocals, mandolin, violin, guitar), Kyle Hollingsworth (vocals, piano, accordian), Keith Moseley (vocals, bass guitar), Michael Travis (drums, percussion), and Jason Hann (percussion).
After their summer tour this year, they broke up which was pretty sad because my boyfriend and I will not be able to go to their shows anymore. Luckily I got to see them seven times before they broke up: two nights in Asheville, two nights in Atlanta, and three nights in New York City which was part of their final tour. I always had such a good time going to their shows and will miss it a lot!

The String Cheese Incident Official Website

Appalachian vs. Northern Arizona

My parents came up last Saturday for family weekend and the football game. I tailgated with them and my boyfriend. It was a lot of fun. There were people everywhere drinking, dancing, listening to music, and playing games. My parent's friends brought their grill. They cooked hamburgers, hot dogs, and bratwurst. My boyfriend and I ate some Bojangles that my parents had gotten. It was neat having everyone come together to get pumped up about the game.

The ALE was walking in and out of the rows of cars with their ticket book attached to their hip. They were looking for people to give citations to. I witnessed a few people get citations. There was a girl and guy who went to pee somewhere in the parking lot since the porta john lines were so long, and the officer saw them. He gave the boy two citations: peeing in public and drinking underage, and he gave the girl a citation for peeing in public. There was another girl who reached in the cooler to hand her friend a beer. The officer came over to her and asked for ID. Since she wasn't 21, he gave her a citation for possessing alcohol just because she touched it. It was pretty ridiculous.

I had a lot of fun tailgating and going to the football game against Northern Arizona. Everyone gets so pumped for the games! We won 34-21. This was Appalachian's third win in a row, making us 3-0. I can't wait til the next game!

Immigration Issue

Over the summer, I read a book called A Home On The Field. It was about immigrants who moved to a small town in North Carolina called Siler City. Many people here were against the immigrants moving to the city, and did not want them going to their childs' school because it slowed down their education since they didn't speak good english.
A man named Paul Cuadros, the author of the book, wanted to form a soccer team at the high school. After much hard work with the principle of the schol, he was able to form the soccer team.
The team began playing against other schools, wanting so badly to win the championship game. Eventually, after trying for a few seasons to win, they finally did! They were so excited about it. Now they could have their team picture up on the championship wall at the high school, next to the football and basketball teams'. On their way back from the championship game, everyone in Siler City came out of their homes and work places to congratulate the team on their win. The soccer team in a way had brought the people of Siler City together, and caused them to look past the fact that they were Latinos.

I recently interviewed someone about the immigration issue going on today in the United States. The most important question of the interview was when I asked her if she thought it was fair that people today come to America illegally. She responded by saying that while in total support of others coming to the U.S., she is opposed to people entering illegally. She believes that there must be some sort of order and control to it, if nothing else, for our safety. She supports our country being a place where others can come to get a better life, but not at the expense of others born here. In others words, our tax dollars should not support them. I agree with what she is saying, because when they come here illegally, they get benefits such as health care, bus transportaton, even garbage collection which our tax dollars pay for. The more that come here, the more we will be overrun by this. Our tax dollars will just continue to increase. If there is some sort of order and control with immigration, we wouldn't be paying for their benefits.