Weekend Recap

Hey Everyone!
This past weekend was super relaxing and really fun, so I thought I would just write a quick recap of that.

On Friday Scott and I hung out in the afternoon, then Friday night was Live Band Karaoke! This is one of my favorite events on campus and this was the third year in a row we were able to have it. We bring in a live band and they have hundreds of songs to pick from - you pick a song, then sing away with the band right there to back you up. Karaoke is always fun, but when you're able to sing with a live band, it adds a whole new excitement! They were here for about three hours - we had such a good time! I sung a couple of songs and had a blast listening to everyone sing. It was so great because there was a lot of people there and it was so good to see everyone having a good time.

After Live Band me and seven other people went to the Flying J truck stop - we go there a lot late at night because they're open late and it's fun to just go and grab a little something to eat and chat with people. So, needless to say, it was a really fun, but really late night.

I slept in on Saturday then spent the rest of the day just hanging out. Me and the girls here in our hall watched movies and laughed a lot, then later that night we went over and played cards with Scott and his friend. We were up late that night too, so we slept in on Sunday and then Scott and I spent the day together just hanging out and relaxing. We had some really great conversations, so it was a lot of fun and good to just get some rest.

I love weekends like this at college. It is so much fun to just hang out and have nothing to do. Live Band was a blast, then the rest of the weekend was just full of great times spent laughing and catching up with friends. I love those days when we can just watch movies and be lazy college students. I am trying to soak up these times, knowing I only have a few more weeks to do that...

Here's to lazy weekends,

Mary

pic: a friend singing at Live Band Karaoke

A Beautiful Place

So, Bluffton is definitely a beautiful campus. I love all of the trees, the way the sidewalks gently wind through the campus and the way everything is laid out in a way that makes it feel like a nice little community, not a crowded campus with thousands of people crammed together. There are so many times at Bluffton when I sit back and think "wow, this place is gorgeous." Those times are especially present when the leaves are changing in the fall or when the snow falls and blankets the campus. With that said, my favorite spot on campus is the bustling residence hall lobbies. Last night Scott and I were sitting in the lobby of my hall doing a puzzle (that is going to be amazing, by the way... I will post a picture when we get it done) and before we knew it, there were 5 other friends that just popped in to chat and ended up staying for a long time. We talked about everything from doing puzzles to the recent May Day/Baccalaureate Speaker elections to the concert many of us had just attended on campus. We laughed together and just caught up on life. And the other day... I was putting up a bulletin board in my lobby and ended up in there for a couple of hours watching some tv and just being with people...and later that night some difficult situations were talked through in the lobby. I love the way of the lobbies... there's no doubt that laughter will happen and people will connect. Not all residence halls have happennin' lobbies - some of them are quieter and those fun times just happen in everyone's rooms. Due to the nature of where I live, the lobby is generally the hang out place, but that's not true everywhere. But, no matter where your "lobby" is - people at Bluffton love to be together and have deep discussions, light-hearted discussions, and everything in between. I had no idea that college would connect so many people. I have gotten to know people I never would have expected because of random movie nights or chat times in the lobbies or in my friends' rooms. I love the connection people are able to make to each other and I find the most beauty on this campus in that. The community here is unmatched and unlike anything I could have expected or even understood before I got to campus, but it's by far my favorite thing about college life. There is so much physical beauty on this campus, but I find the real beauty in this community and the connections made in the lobbies, rooms, classes, and just walking on the sidewalks. What a beautiful place.

Here's to finding the beauty inside,

Mary

pics: a few of the random hang out times...

Spring Break!

Well, Spring Break '08 has come and gone... good times. It was a pretty eventful break and I had a lot of fun. I was here Friday night and Scott and I just went out to dinner and hung out since we were just about the only people around! Saturday morning we got up early and headed to his house to meet up with his sister and the three of us headed off to North Carolina. It took us about 11 hours to get there, but it was fun to see that part of the country because I had never really travelled out east before. The mountains were beautiful and it was fun to see the mountains. We got to North Carolina and just spent the next few days hanging out with Scott's brother and sister-in-law. We rode around the area, visited Duke and UNC, did a little shopping, went out to dinner, and even spent a day on the beach! The water was too cold to actually swim in, but we stuck our feet in. Scott and I took about a 3ish mile walk on the beach too, which was one of the highlights of the trip. We had a good time playing games and just soaking up some sun on the beach. On our last day there, Scott and I just played cards and we made dinner for everyone, which was fun. On Wednesday we made the long trip back home and settled in for a few days at home. I spent Thursday and Friday just hanging out with my parents - did a little shopping and just relaxed. On Saturday I headed back to Scott's house for a wedding. It was fun to catch up with his friends and just dance and have fun at the wedding. I was there until Sunday morning and I headed back home to spend the day with my family and finally came back here last night. It was a great break because I got to spend it with a lot of different people. Everyone seemed to have a pretty good time on random road trips and times with family and it was really fun to just come back and hear about all my friends' breaks.

Now that I'm back from break I feel like I need to hit the job search really hard - graduation is just around the corner and I have a feeling it is going to sneak up on me! I'm sure right now for you you're feeling stressed in the same way about choosing a college, but don't worry, it will all come together. There are a lot of questions that need to be answered for you to make the right decision for you and my advice would be, don't be afraid to ask those questions. Admissions counselors are there to help you on your college search and there is truly no such thing as a dumb question. Don't be afraid to call your counselor at the schools you are looking at and ask them whatever is on your mind. Getting these questions answered is very important and whatever is on your mind is important to those schools. Wow, that was a bit of a tangent...

Anyways, I hope your Spring Break was great if you've had it, or I hope you have a fun break to look forward to if you haven't had it yet. Soak up those times with family and friends... life is moving pretty fast.

Here's to Spring Break,

Mary

p.s.: check out that second picture... I got all my hair cut off!

Being a Kid...

So, I'm trying to not just write about what I do in my daily life at Bluffton because, to be honest, that gets boring for you. But tonight, I just can't help but write about playing in the snow on Monday. Wow, what a good time. Playing in the snow at various points in my college career have been some of the best memories of college and Monday was no exception.

It had snowed a lot around here and it wasn't super cold, so it was that sticky kind of snow that was perfect for snowballs, snowmen, snow angels, sledding, and all sorts of other snowy activities. Well, Scott came over to help me film my audition tape for "Don't Forget the Lyrics" (don't worry, I will let you know if I get on!) and all my friends were around when he suggested playing outside. Of course we were interested. Me, Scott, and two of my friends went outside and immediately became little kids again. We rolled up giant snowballs to make a ginormous (I learned from Jeopardy that "ginormous" is actually a word these days... it was recently added to the dictionary) snowman. Some of Scott's friends came over and helped out a little bit too and we made one awesome snowman. Then we saw someone sledding, so we went over and ended up snowboarding and sledding with him for quite awhile. After that we rebuilt our snowman because it had gotten knocked over, and finally called it a night after being out in the snow for a couple of hours. phew, what a good time.

It's funny how college kids can become little kids in a matter of minutes. It's so nice to just let go of all of the job, midterms, papers, projects, meetings, stress and just not worry about life for awhile. That happens a lot in college and it's something I'm so thankful for. I started thinking about things and just realized that all to often people get so caught up in busyness and forget to have fun sometimes. I never want to be "too old" to go and play in the snow or go sledding. Those activities can go a long way and really improve the quality of life. I don't like the thought of getting too caught up in the hustle and bustle that I don't have time to slow down, so I'm trying to make time to slow down and realize that the important things in life aren't the things that I sit and work on at my computer - it's things like going outside and playing in the snow with friends.

Here's to remembering to be a kid again,

Mary

Advice

Hi!
So, I realize that you did not ask for my advice, but being that you may be reading this as a high schooler looking at colleges, I figured I might as well talk to you a little bit about picking a college. It's hard. I will be the first to admit that - you get what seems like hundreds of things in the mail, each saying that their college is the best - big, small, private, public, close, far, etc. There are so many factors that seem to go around in your head and trying to sort thorugh it all is difficult. To add to that stress, there are family members and friends that all have their opinion on where you should go. My first piece of advice is to calm down. It will all come together in due time and you will end up at a good college. Trust me. And if you don't like where you end up, it's not the end of the world - people come in and out of colleges all the time, not just as first-years.

My advice for picking a college would be to first narrow down the major factors. Do you want a big school or a small school? Do you want to be close to home, or move far away? This is crucial and will make a big difference in what mail you keep and what mail you toss away. Having the entire college spectrum out there to look at is overwhelming and narrowing it down to a small or a large school that is close or far can help a lot. After you make those decisions, decide what is important to you. Is it important that it's a Christian institution? Is it important that they have a leading program in your intended major? Do you want there to be Greek life on campus (fraternities and sororities)? Are you looking for a certain athletic program? Figuring out the answers to some of these broad questions can prove to be helpful early in the college search.

After you answer some of these "big picture" types of questions, visit, visit, visit!! Visiting a
college campus allows you to really get a feel for what the school is like and experience the campus atmosphere. To be honest, all schools look pretty great in their admissions brochures - that what those things are for... but visiting a school gives you the chance to talk with people and learn more about what makes each place unique. If you enjoy your visit, plan a time to spend the night on campus with a student. Living in the residence halls is a huge part of college life, so staying on campus for a night can really give you a taste of what that is like.

Don't be afraid to apply to several schools - there is certainly nothing wrong with that. Once you apply you can check out what kind of scholarships or other financial aid you may receive and what colleges you are accepted to. If you're accepted to several schools, great! This is a great time to visit a few more times and visit with more people - talk to professors in your intended area of study and learn as much as you can about each institution. Once you make your decision, you can put your deposit in and start planning what color sheets you're going to get.

Picking a college is a big decision, but it doesn't have to be stressful. Start early to ease that pressure, and let it be fun... visit lots of schools, talk to lots of people to get a good feel for each school and what it has to offer you. Try and savor each moment of the college search - it's not something you do every day for the rest of your life, so remember that it is exciting.
Here's to picking a great school for you,
Mary

A Shoutout

Howdy!

Well, I am back on campus after being gone for a couple of days. Scott and I went to Indianapolis to see my brother and sister and their families and also to go to a job fair. We had a blast hanging out and catching up with my family! My niece and nephew think Scott is their new best friend, which is really fun. I loved hanging out all day just relaxing with them. Then on Wednesday we had a job fair in downtown Indy. It was a total bust - there were only 12 companies there so we didn't have much luck, but it was an adventure nonetheless and we had a great time. We came back to Spiritual Life Week here on campus with great events happenning. The speaker is Tony Campolo, and he has been a very impactful and wonderful speaker, so it's been great to hear him speak a couple of times the past two days. I won't say too much about SLW, it's amazing, but I'm thinking someone else will write on that, so I don't want to repeat too much.

I am going to devote the rest of this blog to two of my favorite professors. This seems lame and a weird thing to write about, but hey, good professors deserve a good "pat on the back" of sorts. Dan Fultz, my academic advisor and my professor in several communication classes, has made a big impact on my life and certainly on my college career. Bluffton is an amazing place because your professors are not only your teachers, but they quickly become your mentor and friend. There have been a lot of situations in college where I was unsure about what to do next and Dan has been right there to listen and help me out. He's great at giving his opinion and helping to present a different perspective, while still letting me make my own decisions. I have appreciated him so much and expect to keep up with him when I graduate.

Another professor that I have appreciated in college is Bill Lyons. Bill is a business professor here and I have had him for two courses I have taken for my business minor. Bill is a little abrasive at first and I wasn't always sure how to handle his classes and expectations, but I quickly got to know him and learned more from him than many other professors. He teaches in a very practical way. The projects we do for him are often somewhat time-consuming, but they teach us skills we will hopefully use in our careers down the way. His practical application is motivating and he does not just teach right from the textbook - he teaches us stuff he knows is useful and we will find helpful in the coming years. Dan and Bill have both inspired me in my time here at Bluffton and I am just so thankful for the way Bluffton encourages those relationships and the classes are set up in a way that makes them small enough to where we can get to know our professors and they can get to know us and mentor us. I feel like this is one aspect of Bluffton that is pretty unique, and something I cannot imagine college without!

Here's to good professors,

Mary

pic: so, I don't really have any pics of my professors, so these are just some random ones of fun times

Opportunities

Hi!

This past weekend was pretty long and definitely different than the normal weekend at Bluffton. We had the opportunity to participate in conflict mediation training here on campus and I was urged to participate in it by the director of residence life since I am a Hall Director. I knew that it would be really valuable for me to go through the training, but I will admit that I was not looking forward to it since it was a little over 20 hours of training over the weekend. It was 4 hours on Friday night, 10 hours on Saturday, and 8 hours on Sunday... phew! I wasn't sure what to expect, but I was excited because I have been through some similar training in the past and had a lot of fun with it. Luckily three of my really close friends were in the training too, so we knew that we could get through the crazy weekend together! It was a lot of information really fast, but it was exciting at the same time. Bluffton is working to help with restorative justice across the surrounding communities and it was nice to learn some of the tactics used to facilitate mediation among people in conflict. The trainers came from Pennsylvania and are very well versed in performing these mediations and teaching on this topic, so it was great to have them there to share with us. There were times when it was really long, but the time went quickly overall and I am genuinely excited to have this knowledge under my belt. The weekend concluded with one of our professors coming and talking with us about how we could use this on campus and in the community as well as ways that we could alleviate tension and hardship on campus. It was great to have a casual, yet serious conversation with a professor and feel her heartfelt hope that she could hear our concerns and do something about our feelings. I am so thankful for opportunities like this on campus... I may never have been able to go through something like this if Bluffton hadn't made this available. Weekends like this one make me feel better prepared to face the real world that is approaching very quickly.

I'm also excited about the next couple of days... Scott and I are going to Indianapolis on Monday night thru Wednesday for a job fair and he has an interview. I am anxious to really get out there and see the job search happenning. I'm also very excited, though, to see my brother and sister and get to spend time with them and their families. I really miss them since I haven't seen them since Christmas, so I'm sure we'll have a good time.

I just feel very blessed by the opportunities I have.

Here's to those opportunities,

Mary

pic: me and Scott after we won FIRST PLACE in "the couples game" (so yeah, there was only one other couple in the game, but we were still proud!)