Virginia Beach

First off: Sorry I haven't written in a long time.

Second: I went to Virginia Beach for a couple of days! It was awesome. I left home at about 8:00AM and got to Regent in time to go to chapel at 12:00PM. After chapel, I went on a campus tour and got to see all the beautiful buildings. Next, I went to hang out with my dear friend Abigail in the Commons! Then I went to another dear friend Tianna's house. Did I mention that it was COLD?!

On morning number two, I went to get myself some coffee and pick up some job applications (that was really good coffee!). The rest of the day consisted of filling out said applications and drinking coffee. At three, I went to meet my friend Juana at the Ordinary for eggnog lattes! Oh, yeah. I also managed to get lost on the way there, in the daylight, with a GPS. Anyhow, it was fun; Juana had another friend of mine with her when I got there! Did I mention that Regent is a very small world? After coffee, I went with Juana back to the Commons where we both did a little school while waiting to got to unChapel. UnChapel was AWESOME!!

Morning number three consisted of me going to get coffee, finishing my applications, dropping off my applications, and doing some school. After that, CHRISTMAS LIGHTS!!! I helped put Christmas lights on Tianna's house; well, I didn't help very much. But it was fun...and cold!! After that, I went to watch Tianna in her play; it was brilliantly executed! After that, the three and a half hour drive home, on which I managed to get lost again. But I made it home in one piece at about 12:30AM!

Moral of the story? Regent University ROCKS!

Prayer

Over the past couple of years, I have been struggling with prayer. It never seems that I can settle down and pray for a long period (or even a short period) of time without my mind wondering to something else. Before I know it, I am lost in thought that does not even resemble what I was praying about in the first place. Today, I was reading ahead in a book for next semester's spiritual formation class called The Life You've Always Wanted. I was just reading the chapter on prayer when I came across the following words: "It may well be that when your mind wanders, it is wandering to what your heart most needs to speak with God about". That was when I realized that I was not praying rightly. I have been praying about the things that I think that I should be praying about. C.S. Lewis said that in prayer we must "lay before Him what is in us, not what ought to be in us". My prayer life has just been revolutionized!

Baking Update

The fudge ended up being pretty good. Every time I make fudge it seems like I do not enjoy it, though. So I pondered the question: Why do I never like the fudge that I make? Then I remembered that I have never really liked fudge in the first place!

As for the "truffles", that is a whole other story. I began by mixing the inner truffle. I peeled off all the royal blue Dove chocolate wrappers and melted the contents with some light cream and vanilla. After the filling was smooth as silk, I poured it onto the wax papered baking sheet and threw it in the frig to cool and harden. Next, I melted the semi-sweet chocolate for the coating.

I must note that the recipe CLEARLY stated that I was to leave the filling in the frig for 30 minutes. I left them in for an hour, just for good measure. When I took the filling out of the frig and tried to roll it into a ball, I immediately realized that it just wasnt't going to work. But being the culunary opptimist that I am, I decided to try. I rolled the first section into a little ball and threw it into the pot of hot semi-sweet chocolate.

Of course, the filling started to melt as soon as I put it in the coating. I took it out as fast as I could and threw it in the freezer (which the recipe did not call for). To make a long story short, after all was said and done, I had a sheet full of brown pancakes. It was very sad...

I had a great Thanksgiving, though!

Tis the Season...to Make Fudge!

My latest quest into the previously undiscovered world of baking is that of the perfect recipe for chocolate fudge. Today I realized that I have only one short month until that most joyous of days: Christmas! This year, I decided to get out of the habit of buying everyone gift cards and consumer products. I want to do something for everyone that I have to pour myself into. In other words, I want to give people the one thing that no one has enough of: time. In fact, this is the main reason that I decided to try the recipe for truffles a couple of months ago. But hey! Who needs a good reason to bake truffles? The recipe turned out to be absolutely delicious! But I have my worries about the truffles melting a little and bleeding through the confectioner's sugar coating. So, I found a new recipe that I will be trying tonight that has a hard chocolate coating, as well as a new recipe for fudge that I have only just finished and put in the frig to set.

Here is a picture of the mixture before I poured it!

The Little Things

I love the sound of the wind blowing through the leaves just as they are about to fall to the ground.

I love the way a poem can make my feelings fly with eagles, even when I don't understand everything it implies.

I love hot tea and a copy of the Norton Anthology of Poetry on a cold day.

A thing of beauty is a joy for ever:
Its lovliness increases; it will never
Pass into nothingness; but still will keep
A bower quiet for us, and a sleep
Full of sweet dreams, and health, and quiet breathing.


~John Keats

When Nothing Else Matters

Have you ever had one of those days that you feel so stressed and so overwhelmed that you are suffocating under the pressure. You feel like someone is literally holding your head under the water and you simply cannot breath. There is no hope, no light at the end of the tunnel--the tunnel goes on forever. In my experience, there is no imaginable pain that the body can feel that outweighs the pain of a mental assault. You pray over and over for God to take it way...or for Him to take you away.

I have been there many times over the past several months and, unfortunately, I still get to that point from time to time. However, I don't stay in that place as long as I once did. There was a time when I would stay in this dark and frightening world for days at a time; only sleep would give me a short escape--a time to catch my breath. Every time I entered into this darkness, I would ask God over and over: why are you letting we go through this? Why wont You just take away the struggle and the torment?

I still do not fully understand the answer to those questions; however, I am at a place now where I can pray away the bad feelings and thoughts. How have I done this? Well, I have not done anything. God has given me the grace that I need to get through a time in my life that is not meant to be easy--a time in my life when God is using the mental turmoil that I am facing to show me that He is the only one who can calm the storm in me. How can we truly know the power of God unless we feel it in our own lives? How can I tell someone who is going through a hard time that God is with them when I have not felt His presence in my hard times?

How did I reach this point? The darkness grew darker, the storm grew stronger, and there was no breath left in my lungs. I didn't even want to go on living my tortured existence. So I gave up. I got to the point where nothing else mattered but God. I just said, "God, I surrender. You win". That day, I felt that I was finally at peace, that I had died. And I felt that I was more awake to the presence of God. It is the single most invigorating sensation to be at peace in the presence of God. It felt exactly like George MacDonald's poem:

Thy fishes breathe but where thy waters roll;

Thy birds fly but within thy airy sea;

My soul breathes only in thy infinite soul;

I breathe, I think, I love, I live but thee.

Oh, breath, oh, sink--O Love, live into me.

Days Four and Five

Day four is a haze. The first place we went was the Bronx to help with the Relief Bus. Each of us did several different things throughout the day. We talked to people, prayed with people and handed out soup and bread. Again, it was fascinating just to hear the stories of the different people that came through. After we left the Relief Bus, we all went to minister to children at a shelter. These children were so very sweet and they had such a good time as we all made paper airplanes and talked.

That night, we all went to the Brooklyn Tabernacle for a prayer meeting. Can I just say that it was absolutely amazing (I say that a lot, don't I?)! The worship was powerful as was the prayer near the end. After that, we went to Junior's for some powerful cheesecake!

The day after, we had free time to see the city. I went with the group going to China Town and Little Italy. We had a great time shopping (haggling) and eating Italian food. Then came the long drive home. It was the experience of a lifetime, not just because of the things we did, but because of the brothers and sisters I met. It was amazing seeing what God can do through people when they surrender to His will.

Day Three; or, It's Only Been Two Days?!

The day started with me waking up at 5:30 AM for kitchen ministry. I don't know why, but I thought someone had woken me up, so I got up, got dressed, and was ready to go down stairs when I looked at my cell and realized I did not have to be down for another hour. So I went back to bed and was woken again at a quarter after six by a fellow team member. Unfortunately, I went back to sleep again and was ten minutes late for work. I was devastated and felt terrible, but I moved on with the rest of the day, a day full of surprises.

The first thing we did after breakfast was get in the van to go to cerebral palsy outreach; or so we thought. Where we ended up was a community garden. Why were we there? To sift through fertilizer, of course! It was actually a lot of fun. I had a great time doing this because it reminded me of when I used to clean stalls for our horses.

When we went back to NYSUM, some us took a nap (myself included). Next we started planning our service for the Bowery Mission Chapel. I, for one, did not know that we would be leading a service, so I was somewhat nervous. But, as was the case with absolutely every activity we undertook, my nerves were put at ease as soon as we got there and after seeing my fully competent teammates in action. The service went relatively smoothly for something that had been planned an hour before.

One of the main things that struck me about this day was that it seemed to me that I had known each of my teammates for weeks. I was amazed how close we had all become. I also became aware that the time passed by rather slowly. I even referred to something we had done only that morning as what we had done "yesterday"! It really seemed to me that we had been there for a week already!

Day Two; Or, Bright Lights

Today we saw the city. It was my first time walking the streets of New York and I was really looking forward to it. The purpose of the walk was to pray for the city. We teamed up and started walking the Brooklyn Bridge two by two. When we got to the midpoint of the bridge, the group came together and we prayed that God would brake the chains of the people in New York; we prayed especially for those women that are victims of the sex trade in the city.

To me, this prayer walk was significant because of the fact that, for the past several months, I had been thinking a lot about international sex trafficking and what I should do to fight it. I had been debating going to law school for the purpose of helping bring justice to those who buy and sell human beings for the purpose of sexual exploitation. This experience was a kind of confirmation for me.

Another reason this prayer walk was significant was the fact that Dr. Lyons had been teaching from Psalms 107 that very morning and the following words struck me: "He brought them out of darkness and the shadow of death, and broke their chains in pieces" (Psalms 107:14 New King James Version). Those words became my prayer for the city, and this prayer was echoed by other members of the team as well.

In addition to the prayer walk and the visit to ground zero, we did what every person should do when they go to New York City: New York Pizza, baby! And boy was that stuff good! Oh, and I forgot to mention in the last post that the night before, after we reached out to the homeless, we went to a street vendor for kabobs. They were the best kabobs I have ever tasted, and that is no exaggeration!

That day we also went to the launch of Hillsong NYC! It was off the chain! First we waited in line for a while--the line was really long. But we got into the second service (the second of three, that is). The music was very loud, but after a while I got used to it. Even though I did not know the words to most of the songs, they were really easy to pick up. All in all, it was a great experience and I would not mind going back to that church if I were ever back in NYC. Did I mention that the lights were REALLY bright.

Those were not the only bright lights that we would see that night. After we left Hillsong NYC, we went out to Times Square. A lot of what we did is a blur to me right now, but I do remember going to a four (or was it five?) floor Forever 21. That was kinda interesting. Can I just say that I am so glad I did not bring my debit card for this one. I don't exactly remember, but I think we went back to NYSUM after that. That was a great day!

Day One; Or, The Journey Begins

I don’t know what my expectations were going into this mission trip; all I know is that I was in a place in my spiritual life that I did not like. I felt isolated and secluded, not to mention the fact that I was in a time of spiritual starvation. I needed a way out right now. As I was praying one night, I went on the Regent campus ministries web page to look for devotionals and for some way to connect with other Christians at Regent; I knew that there had to be something there.

Then I saw it: Fall Break Mission Trip. I knew immediately that I was supposed to go, so as soon as I found out that there were some spots left, I signed up. But as the time approached, I realized that I had finals and finishing touches for three classes that I would have to complete in four days. To make a long story short, I was very close to dropping out. But I will thank God every day that he gave me the strength to press through and go on the trip.

Let me just say that I had never been on campus before last week, so I did not know where everything was. My mother and I drove past the parking lot because we were expecting to see a lot of vans where I was supposed to be; but as it turned out, only two vans were going. So we drove back to the parking lot and I jumped out and asked the small group something like, “Are y’all leaving for the mission trip?”. Little did I know that this small group was going to be full of some of the best people I have ever met—but more on that later.

We started out around 9:00 AM; I was in the very back of Dr. Kidd’s van sitting next to a woman named Crystal. After some time driving, we had a conversation about things that I haven’t talk to anybody about in a long time. It felt amazing—and foreign—to be able to open up to a person that I had only known for the past thirty minutes. And that was only a taste of the friendships that would develop over those five short—or rather long—days.

When we reached our destination, we went straight in to unpack and get ready for orientation. First item on the agenda: reaching out to the homeless. I cannot fully describe in words what happened on Saturday night. (Did I mention that I have never been on a mission trip before?). Our team was charged with the task of passing out items such as blankets, toiletries, sandwiches, and prayer. I wish I could write about everyone we talked to that night, but alas, this post is already too long.

One man that three of us talked to was a Vietnam vet with PTSD. It was definitely a learning experience to listen to him speak. At first he did not want prayer, but after the three of us listen to him for about twenty minutes, he said that since we listened to him, he would listen to us. That night, I learned that missions are not all about giving people material things and preaching at them; it is about forming relationships and listening to people the way we want people to listen to us.

And…

“The Father Is Glori-fied!”

I'm Back!

Wow! That is the best word I can find to describe the past five days. I met so many amazing people and do so many amazing things that there is no way that I can write it all in one blog post. So here's the deal: I will recount one day of the trip every day (or every other day) for the next week. So be watching!

Oh. Yes I did survive finals! Not through my own power, but through God's.

The Next Ten Days...

This week, I have so much to do that for the first time in my life I actually think I may not get it all done in time. I have my final for Global Problems which consists of five essays, a separate twelve page paper for the same class, a final exam for my Christian Mind class, and several other smaller assignments. Even though all of these assignments are not due until Sunday, I have to have them done by Friday at 5:00pm because my mom and I have to start to VA Beach so I can catch the bus for the NYC mission trip! I am not normally one to complain about stuff that happens as a result of my own decisions, but this is just crazy.

Please pray for me, and don't expect any more blog posts for the next ten days. When I get back from NYC, I will write a very long and detailed post about finals and the mission trip--if I'm still alive, that is.

FIRE!!!

We had to burn a pile of brush and wood the size of a mobile home yesterday!! It was sooo much fun! My brother Eli started the fire like a pro. Here are some before and after pics:

Eli standing on the pile





FIRE!!

A Lovely Afternoon

It may seem strange, but I love quiet, peaceful, chilly afternoons in which I can read poetry and classics with a cup of hot coffee. Today was one such day. I did have a short essay to write, but I got it done by 2:00 PM. After I submitted the assignment, I went straight to the coffee maker to brew a fresh pot of liquid bliss. As the coffee was brewing, I worked on my Russian (I did lesson three for the THIRD time!). Then I poured my coffee and sat down for a two hour read in Natasha's Dance: A Cultural History of Russia. OK, so it's not exactly a classic, but it was very interesting. I love learning about the paradoxical nature of Russian culture in the 17Th and 18Th centuries. To many, this may seem like an extremely boring day, but I enjoyed it thoroughly!

Russian

I absolutely love the Russian language! I started to take Russian at the beginning of the summer and found that it was much harder a language than Arabic (the language I was dabbling in last year). I don't know why, but when I was studying Arabic, everything I learned seemed to stick to my mind a lot faster than French (the language I spent over a year studying and cant seem to remember at all!). In fact, I still remember all of the conversations that I learned in Arabic one year ago; strange, I know. The ease with which I can pick up on Arabic goes to show that I am not taking the easy way out with Russian; indeed, I find Russian to be harder than both Arabic and French put together! I'm serious! Some of the sounds that one has to make while speaking this beautiful language feel completely unnatural and alien. I have to do each lesson at least three times before I can fully grasp the content. But it is a labor of love, and all the mental blood, sweat and tears are worth it in the end.

I'm Alive!

I did live through the worst weekend of my life! God gave me victory! I got all of my papers done on time. However, I did not do as well on them as I would have liked; they are definitely not the best papers I have ever written. Oh, well. I will do better next time.

But I have some exiting news as well. I will be going on the fall mission trip to NYC! I cannot wait to see what God is doing up there and I cannot wait to be a part of it. I have never been on a mission trip in my life, but that will change in one month! I am very, very, very exited!!! Or could you tell this by seeing all the exclamation points?!

Also, tomorrow I will go to my practical politics class and submit an actual political survey with my team! I love this class! I am really hyped about politics in general, so I decided to refurbish my political blog that I quit posting on about a year ago. Check it out: http://www.donkeysbtrippin.blogspot.com. Yes, I came up with the name. I'm thinking about getting it copyrighted.

The Long Week that Just Got Longer

First of all, I claim complete responsibility for my bad memory.

This week has been absolutely crazy! I have had a whole lot more work hours and a whole lot more school than usual. I am behind on my research project, I have only exercised twice, I am not getting good sleep, and I started a new class last week. This is not so bad, as it goes; I can deal with everything I just listed. In fact, it almost feels like my new status quo. But something else happened on Tuesday. I was about to read what I thought was an article that I had to get done in order to write an eight page paper, but I found out that it was a book. I almost started hyperventilating because the paper in due this Sunday!

As it turns out, it is a very short book (only eighty something pages). I am almost done reading it, thank heaven. Also, I do not regret starting this new semester long class (Civitas Institute Academy of Practical Politics). In fact, it is one of the things that I look forward to every week. Last week we had a class on basic campaign structure, and yesterday, we had a lecture on opposition research from a partner in successful campaign research firm. Then we talked about polling and we were given the assignment of constructing our own poll (which will actually be executed!). Yesterday was amazing, and I can't wait until next week!

In the mean time, I will be typing three papers nonstop for the next three days.

Nine Years

I was ten years old on September 11, 2001. When we heard that the towers had been hit, we were glued to the TV for the next several days. I suppose I did not fully understand what was going on, I just remember thinking that I was no longer safe. Even though I live in a small town that isn't even on some maps, for the first time in my life, I understood the meaning of mortality.

September 11, 2001 is the day that made me who I am today. It is the reason I decided to study international relations and foreign policy. Even though I know the world will always have dangers, I know that I have to do something to try and make it a safer place. I know that I have to do something. I don't like to sit on the side line and wait for something to happen. I will not.

This is who I am, nine years from that day.

The Dishes I Bought Last Week

The Results Are in...and...YUM!

Noelle woke up the next morning and decided to look at the substance that she had created the night before. She went to the fridge and opened the lid and...the mixture was exactly as it was supposed to be. To her surprise, it had hardened over night and was ready to rolled. So she started to roll the truffles into balls and then powder them with confectioner's sugar. After she had formed several truffles, she popped them into the freezer and waited. After an hour or so, she decided to try one of her newly formed truffles. They were very, very yummy! And she can't wait to try a new recipe!

Tomorrow, Noelle will tell you about the great finds she made on her last shopping trip. Oh, and she will tell you about it in first person.

Truffles

This story starts with my attempt to find a hobby that has nothing to do with politics, current events, or school in general. Where this story ends...I don't know yet. This story will be told in the third person and be posted in two parts (because I will not know the outcome until tomorrow).


Noelle Joubert is the type of person who cannot help but have a one track mind; until recently, she thought that she should only participate in activities that have something to do with her intended career. Over the summer, she realized that there was more to life than reading and watching the news. Once she realized this important fact of life, she went on an epic search for a hobby that she would find both challenging and enjoyable.

Her search was fruitless until one week ago when she decided that she wanted to bake truffles and other homemade candies for Christmas gifts this year. The night before last, she looked and looked in all of the cookbooks in the house until she finally stumbled upon two truffle recipes. She settled on one of them and then it was off to town to buy the ingredients.

About an hour ago, Noelle journeyed into the unknown world of baking. She carefully pored the heavy cream in to a saucepan, then added the chopped baker's chocolate and stirred until the substance was a creamy texture. She then added some confectioner's sugar.

Like most other people unfamiliar with the world of baking, she thought that if she followed the recipe exactly,it would turn out right. But like most things in life, it did not turn out the way she planned. It was way too thin, so she put in more and more confectioner's sugar until it was thicker. She will not know until tomorrow whether or not it worked...

A Morning at the Gun Show

What a day I had yesterday! My alarm went off at 6AM and so my day began. At 7:30AM it was off to the Greensboro Gun and Knife Show. My dad and I were volunteering again for another campaign so we made our way inside the Colosseum. When I stepped through the doors and before me was one of the most amazing, beautiful sights I have ever seen: guns and knives as far as the eye could see and a bunch of people exercising their Second Amendment Right by carrying their guns around over their shoulders!

Of course the guns were not loaded, but it would still be intimidating to the person who is not used to such practices. I, for one, was born and raised in the rural South and grew up around guns and shooting. But I had never been to a gun show in my life and it was an amazing sight that I will never forget. I also met some great people who were volunteering with the same campaign and we had some stimulating conversations!

Oh, yeah. Then I went home and wrote a four page paper. YEE-HAW!

No, I don't have a picture. Sorry.

I Finally Got a Camera!

My sister's new puppy! How cute is he?!

One of Those Moments

Today, I was feeling the stress and the tension building again, so I went outside and immediately felt the sun on my face. The sensation was so wonderful that I had to go down off the deck and sit on the swing in the back yard. Once there, I looked out on the rolling hills ahead; the green touching the blue of the sky. Then I closed my eyes and just sat there for several minutes in the silence, thanking God for letting me have this moment of pure beauty. I would not have given that little bit of beautiful peace for anything. The sorry truth is, though, that I could have a whole lot more moments like that if I would simply let myself breath;if I could just be still and know that He is God.

In other news, I got a haircut that I absolutely love!

First Day of School

Today went surprisingly well! I got up at 7 and did my coffee and exercising routine. I was able to do more of my reading for my Making of the Christian Mind class (which I love). At 10am I got to work, got more school done, and went home. Now I am sitting in my living room chilling.

I guess that it's just strange for me to actually have everything on my to-do list finished before 5pm. It is a new and wonderful feeling! I think I'm going to keep this up.

Tomorrow is Research Methods. I only have one chapter left to read plus my initial discussion post, so hopefully it will go as well as today has gone.

God, please give me strength.

Shopping

I know it sounds really bad, but I went shopping two days in a row. On Friday, it was digital cammera shopping; on Satureday, it was clothing shopping. I really didn't buy that much, but what I did buy, I absolutely love. I bought some shirts, but the biggest finds were the Cristal D'Arques Paris (drinking glasses)that I found for $8.99 (box of six). Unfortunately, when I got home and looked on the computer for the rest of line (Harmony), I found that it was discontinued. Oh, well.

On a more productive note, I finished most of next week's readings in all of my classes! Yeah! That means that next week will go slightly smoother. Warning, tomorrow's post may not be so carefree.

Music, Sweet Music

Music is one of those integral parts of my life; I can't imagine life without it. Today, I did not have to work, so I slept until 10:00 AM (no, I'm not joking). When I woke up, I started the coffee maker and finished some reading I wanted to get done for what I call my "Global Problems" class. After about an hour of reading about problems and negative issues, I decided that I needed to create some positive energy. So what did I do? You guessed it! I did some exercise! After that, I felt much better.

To continue on in this spirit, I jacked up some Family Force Five in the bathroom while I was showering. When I got downstairs, I fixed a cup of green tea and turned on the sounds of Michael Buble and thought about nothing important. As I write, I am listening to Norah Jones; next I will put on Owl City. Maybe later I will finish next weeks reading in Research Methods...

A Long Weekend

First off, the reason I have not posted in so long is that my laptop power adaptor broke. I was so mad because I just bought this laptop three months ago! Oh, well. Anyhow, I had a great Monday; I finally got my new checking account, bought my new cell phone (which I love), and got to look through my Research Methods course. I have a feeling that it is going to be my favorite class this semester.

As for my reading, I have not been reading my fiction like a good little girl; I have been reading ahead in my courses. I know that this is a good thing, but I know that I am going to want to read something entertaining as soon as school starts instead of wanting to do it in the summer when I should have. But such is life.

Please pray for me that I will not get so overwhelmed that I shut down.

A Much Better Day!

Today happened as it was meant to! I set my alarm for 7am and I got up, worked out, sat and drank coffee in the silence, got to work, read 75 pages of Atlas Shrugged, the first two chapters of Persuasion, got home at 5:30pm, and am presently enjoying The Princess Bride with a cup of green tea. All in all, this was a wonderful day that went as planned; I hope to see many more of these days in the coming semester. I am not under any kind of illusion that would make me believe that every day will go as smoothly as this one has thus far, but I am encouraged.

Is there anyone out there that has any ideas about good stress relief activities?

Also, I'm looking for a productive hobby; any suggestions?

Not My Best Day Ever

My day started with my dad knocking on my door. In a split second, everything that I had forgotten in sleep came rushing back to me. I had to be at work in 30 minutes! I jumped out of bed at lightning speed, threw some clothes on, ran down the stairs (without falling and breaking my head!), dumped some coffee in a travel mug, and headed out the door.

How did this happen? Well, I really have no definite answer to that question. But my theory is that my alarm went off and I subconsciously turned it off; I did set it last night and I did turn it on.

As of right now, I am researching and outlining an essay for a contest. I know, why the heck would I do something so stupid as to waist my last two weeks of summer writing about a 1, 000 page book that I am still in the process of reading? This is not my day for answers, so don't even ask.

Yesterday I started Pilates. Can I just say that it is not as easy as it looks. Wow, that is some kind of workout!

What happened to the word of the day thing? Like I said before, no answers today. This is what happens to me when I wake up late: I am in reactionary mode for the entire rest of the day.

I don't even know what this post is about!

My Happy Place

Finally! I finally got to go back to one of my favorite places in the world: Barnes and Noble. I could walk around that store for ages on end without feeling the faintest bit of boredom or restlessness. There, I have the two things that I need: coffee and books of all kinds. Even though I could have bought half of the books in the store, I only walked out with one: Persuasion by Jane Austin. I love this book above all of her others, including Pride and Prejudice (which is saying a lot). I think the reason that I love this book so much is because of the fact that the main characters, in spite of themselves, continue to love each other even after being apart for eight years. It is the constancy of affection that makes it, in my opinion, the most romantic of all the Austin masterpieces. And the masterpiece is finally mine; I have no idea why I have not bought it before today.

Over all, I was glad to get out of the Milton-Danville area for a change.

Thoughts About the Future

O.K., the past few days have been woefully uneventful. I have been doing nothing but following blogs, commenting, reading Atlas Shrugged, and thinking about the future. I am having the hardest time figuring out where I want to go to grad school and what I want to specialize in, whether I want to join the military full time before I go to grad school or part time while I go to grad school, etc. Being an adult has its perks, but there are also some drawbacks.

I feel like I should stick with my first area of interest within international relations: strategic studies. I have always been extremely interested in geopolitics and geostrategy; the first book related to politics that I read was The Commanders by Bob Woodward. I was about 14 and I remember being completely taken in by the complexity of the national security process. But even though national security and strategic thought were my gateway into the vast world of international relations, I have sense been interested in conflict resolution, international development, and area studies (Russia and the former Soviet Union in particular). The problem is that there are to many options.

I need some insight soon because I want to start making a reading list that will prepare me for my specialization. God give me wisdom.

My Ayn Rand Journey

I finally got into one of the novels on my reading list. It is called Atlas Shrugged and it is by a woman named Ayn Rand. So far, it seems that every other line is a philisophical question or statement. In the introduction to the book, it is made clear that Ayn Rand was an avid journal keeper. Appearantly, she journaled extensively on the subjects covered in Atlas Shrugged for years!

From what I have read in the first seventy pages (of one-thousand!), it appears that the story takes place durring a major economic down-turn and that the characters are each on a personal journey of self-discovery. Each of the characters that have been indroduced thus far are extremely caught up in their work and are trying to make sense out of the crazy world in which they live. It seems like the one thing they have in common is their tendancy to throw themselves into their work in order to cope.

I look forward to experiencing the lives of these extremely unique characters, especially Dagny Taggart. Here is an exchange that I found interesting:

--"I don't like the thing that's happening to people, Miss Taggart."
--"What?"
--"I don't know. But I've watched them here for twenty years and I've seen the change. They used to rush through here, and it was wonderful to watch, it was the hurry of men who knew where they were going and were eager to get there. Now they're hurrying because they are afraid. It's not a purpose that drives them, it's fear. They're not going anywhere, they're escaping. And I don't think they know what it is that they want to escape. They don't look at one another. They jurk when brushed against. They smile too much, but it's an ugly kind of smiling; it's not joy, it's pleading. I don't know what it is that's happening to the world." He shrugged. "Oh, well, who is John Galt?"

In closing: Who is John Galt?

A New Experience!

Word of the day: Alacrity-eager and enthusiastic willingness

First off, I must say that I would never work in a call center full-time with anything remotely resembling alacrity!

That being said, today I had the great--and exciting--experience volunteering for a candidate who is running for state senate down here in North Carolina. Our task today was conducting a phone survey that targeted unaffiliated and independent voters. There were eight of us sitting in front of high tech phones designed especially for the purpose of surveying and polling; they looked much more complicated than they turned out to be (thank heaven!). At first I was extremely nervous--talking to strangers all day is not my first choice for a fun weekend activity--but then I started to get the hang of things.

After about two hours, I was a robot; I didn't even have to think about what I was doing. After four hours, my mind was so numb that I thought I would pass out, but I got through it with my sanity in tact. At the end of the five hours, the eight of us combined had made over two-thousand calls!

Over all it was a great experience, and the best part about it was the sharing of funny statements that were made by the people we were calling. Here are some of my favorites:

- (In an EXTREMELY deep North Carolinian accent) "If this is gunna be some kinda politikin' I don't have time for it"

-Question: "Is this [name]?" Answer: "Not right now"

-Question: "Do you have time to answer a few questions for a survey?" Answer: "With what kind of slant on it?"

-Question: "If the election were today, would you vote for [our guy] or [not our guy]?" Answer: "I would rather vote for a blind bat with a cane than send [not our guy] back to Raleigh!"

-"I don't speak English"

Yes, working at a call center would be mind numbing as a full-time job, but working the phones for a few hours every now and then for a good cause can be a hilarious pastime!

Time Management

Word of the day: Acumen-quick, keen, or accurate knowledge or insight.

One of the most important success factors of online learning, and sanity in general, is time management. One of the first things I do a month before each semester is buy a student planner and a good pen (I have a thing for pens). I prefer buying the planners with the most space to write and the ones with a monthly calender before the start of each month.

Before school starts, I print out each of the syllabuses and write down major dates and assignments in the monthly calender sections. Every Sunday night after school starts, I set aside about thirty minutes to write out my study plan for the following week; this includes my assignments that are do and the amount of time that I will spend each day on each class.

In my effort to be more acumen, I will be trying a new time management strategy this year. I will be taking three classes the first eight weeks and two classes the second eight weeks. My plan for the first eight weeks is as follows (if the syllabus looks like previous ones):

-Monday: Reading and initial discussion post for Contemporary Global Problems

-Tuesday: Reading and initial discussion post for Research Methods

-Wednesday: Reading and initial discussion post for Making of the Christian Mind

-Thursday: All response posts for discussions, work on possible writing assignments/projects

-Friday: Writing assignments/projects

This is just a tentative schedule. I will most likely have to change it from time to time, but it is very important for my stress management to have a game plan. Many people prefer to do a little work in each class each day. There are several approaches that work well for different people. If you have a time management strategy that has worked well for you, please post a comment.

Being Productive

Word of the day: Accretion-growth, increase by successive addition, building up.

I find myself completely taken aback as I look over what I have accomplished over the past three weeks of summer vacation, not because I have done great things but because I have done nothing. I was so very stressed out after I finished my summer courses (Statistics and Intro to Government) that I have literally been laying around all day long letting the rest of the world go by.

I am one of those people who always has big plans for her summer. This year, for example, I was planning to get through the first level of Russian, start studying for the GRE, and read a whole list of fiction and non-fiction books. As of right now, I have only gotten through three of the thirty lessons in Russian, studied thirteen of the who-knows-how-many GRE vocabulary words, and finished only one novel. I still need to finish Atlas Shrugged, both volumes of The Gulag Archipelago, and the third book in the Sword of Truth series (Blood of the Fold).

I am determined to right the wrongs of the past three weeks and get through my books, keep up with my vocab, and try to get to lesson twenty in Russian before the start of the fall semester. I will also start my reading for "Contemporary Global Problems" which, by the way, looks completely interesting.

My bad habits must end now before the start of the new term. I cannot be in reactionary mode for the entire year. I will be responsible with my time. However, I will not try to make everything change at once, but the change will come by a steady accretion.

God give me strength!

Hello Everyone!

I am extremely exited to be blogging as a member of the Regent online community. When I chose to be an online student, I knew that I would miss out on many of the perks that come with being on campus; but I know that having a Regent blog will help me feel connected to my fellow students.

This year I will be a junior studying government and international relations online. I love to read, write, drink (and smell) coffee, watch musicals and adaptions of Jane Austin's great works, look at shoes, and meditate in the silence. But most of all, I love to seek the truth and wisdom that can only come after the fear of God.

I will be writing on many subjects that include, but are not limited to, my spiritual life, life in general, my course work, news, and economics (for more posts on economics,see my Tumblr blog). Another subject that will most likely spill into my posts will be my passion for reading novels (fantasy especially) and my GRE prep vocabulary words.

In all posts, I will endeavor to refrain from negatively in all forms and strive to be encouraging to all of my readers, especially fellow online learners.

Farewell until next time!