woohoooooooo! finals week is done!

Yay! Finals week is now over, what a relief! I was lucky this semester and I only had 2 final exams, but instead I had a lot of final papers, group projects, and presentations. But I’ll take those over a final any time. So, as you could imagine, this week was a bit stressful and I am very glad to be free of homework, studying, and the library. I do love school, but finals week is always crazy (in a good way of course) it wouldn’t be finals week without a little stress right?

It is pretty funny actually. Someone started this tradition during finals week called “the howl.” And Wednesday of finals week at 10pm on the dot, everyone in the library breaks the silence, the monotonous pencil tapping, or the keyboard clatter and just starts howling like wolves. It is quite an invigorating experience. It definitely helps to get through the rest of a crazy cram night. And of course, its fun!

there's a video of it on youtube...take a look, it's pretty great

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dtE4BjkoQ9A

Tis the season to be jolly...

The week before finals has been as jolly as I could allow. I most certainly enjoyed attending the 2nd Annual Christmas Sweater Party hosted by some friends just down the street from me. It was quite a joyous and hilarious occasion. There was a $50 prize for the best sweater, $25 and $15 for second and third. and 4 $10 Firehouse cards that will be handed out to the fourth and fifth place winners. I just so happened to win 1st prize! Not only did I get a the $50 dollars, but the great honor of having the best sweater. Aside from the sweater contest, there was also a mistletoe "kissing zone", dancing, and of course a station for dance photos! Everyone had really great sweaters and it was just a blast, but I was clearly the champion. I even wore sweater pants and christmas tree socks, a wreath, mistletoe, and ornaments.

This week there was "Holiday Lane" where the student clubs buy a tree and decorate it so that it can be donated to families in need through the Cache Valley Head Start program.
There was also a little Festivus celebration (Seinfeld fans...) which included airing of grievances, feats of strength, and the Festivus pole. I was declared the victor (all of these victories for me..yay!) of leg wrestling. I definitely beat a boy and it was in the newspaper :)

Happy Holidays!

Thanksgiving Break :)

Happy Turkey day! We had a long weekend for the Thanksgiving holiday and it has been lovely! Utah State has an awesome location; it is the perfect distance away from home. I live in Salt Lake so it is far away enough that I have some independence and freedom, yet close enough that I can come home when I need to for special occasions, holidays, sweet concerts, or when I’m just a little homesick and want to see my family and friends. I spent Thanksgiving with my family and I really enjoyed my break, I really needed one. Over the break I saw Twilight, went dancing with my friends, did a little bit of homework, and of course, feasted on delicious food. Now I am refreshed and recharged for a crazy week getting ready for finals and such. It will definitely be an adventure! 

(This is my Xia xia and Pa pou (grandma and grandpa in Greek) and my sisters boyfriend at Thanksgiving dinner...it's kind of a terrible picture of me and I think i was saying something to the affect of "Why are you taking a picture right at this very moment when we are feasting for this day of giving thanks?" just maybe)

Diversity Week

This has been an amazing week full of diversity, dancing, and deliciousness! Diversity is such a big part of Utah State, so much that campus diversity is even a position in our student government here (ASUSU). It was created in 2002 to continue the tradition of Diversity Week, to promote inclusiveness and to give diverse students a voice and the opportunity to be represented. 

Chase Skidmore, the Diversity VP this year said that he wants students to know that “While issues such as ethnicity and skin color are a large part of diversity, it is not just our skin color or our cultural background that defines who we are. This year, Diversity Week will focus on race, ethnicity, culture, education, sexual orientation and diverse interests.  I think the overall hope I have for the week is a better understanding that we are all different and yet we collectively make up what it is to be USU.”

If you didn’t know Utah State has a VERY diverse campus. We have students from so many backgrounds and walks of life. We also have many international students, anywhere from China, Venezuela, Armenia, Saudi Arabia, or Tanzania, to Lebanon, Korea, Italy, or India. Anywhere you can think of really.

Having so many friends from all over has really enriched my experience here at Utah State, because as I have spent time with them I have learned about their countries and culture. It is such a beautiful thing to meet people from all over the world. I love it!

Some fun events for this week included “The World Sampler” cookout with food from all over (I loved the Indian food), the Unity Through Diversity Dance Show (featuring dances from all over), the cultural showcase and Mr. and Mrs. International Pageant.

We all live with the objective of being happy; our lives are all different and yet the same.” –Anne Frank

crazy-ish

This week has been a fun adventure! I made a goal this week to be super healthy and it feels great. I love being really active and eating my fruits and veggies haha. On monday night I did yoga, then hip-hop, then kick boxing (needless to say the next day i was sore...) Tuesday I did Piyo (which is yoga and pilates mixed), and wednesday was really stressful with projects and exams, so I did some relaxing yoga. Thursdays are my favorite because at 11:00 a bunch of friends get together and play dodgeball all night (it is so much more intense than gym dodgeball in fourth grade...it is legit! haha) On friday I did stairs, and then Saturday went on a jog/walk with my sister. It really feels great to be balanced with physically, mentally, and socially etc. It really enhances the whole college experience and life in general. It really is not that hard either, I love being well! Have a well week and a swell day :) here is me doing yoga..definitely a good stretch (it is kinda crazy but I like it)

Dance Battle and Poetry and a Beverage

So this weekend was so much fun! On friday night there was a university dance battle and there were dance crews from BYU Idaho, Utah State, BYU, Boise State, and some other people from Salt Lake and all around that came. It was put on by Best Buddies to raise money for the club that we have through the service center here at USU that pairs college students with handicapped/special needs people in our community. We stayed after and had a dance party and then after I met some of the dancers, it was cool! The dancing was amazing and it inspired me (and my awesome roommate) to make a lil music video. It was hilarious and I'm going to post it for your viewing pleasure. 

Saturday night was Poetry and Beverage, where people can come and read poetry or play songs they wrote, or basically say whatever is on their minds if they want, all while enjoying free and delicious beverages (this time it was italian sodas). It is basically an open mic night. I read a pretty poem about sunflowers and then did a ridiculous song with my friends. It was fun as always. Thats all for now :)

its on facebook here's the link

http://www.facebook.com/video/video.php?v=33548908558&subj=545028558

Halloween/the Howl

Hey hey! This weekend was Halloween yay! At Utah State we have an absolutely HUGE Halloween party everay year called The Howl. It’s the biggest party in the state of Utah and it is crazy fun! It went ffrom 8:30 p.m.–1:30 a.m. This year we had a haunted maze, movies and AWESOME dance performances by USU’s dance company Full Circle (they were dressed up all creepy and did some really cool dances and it was really impressive.) Some awesome bands came: Code Hero, Rock Bandits, Recycled Percussion and Love You Long Time. I was really excited about Love You Long Time cause I’m a big fan.
I volunteered at the Howl and I helped in the ballroom so I got to meet the band Recycled Percussion. They were so amazing and the guys were really nice. My friend Erika and I worked at the merchandise table during their two shows. The band dressed up for the second show and here is a sweet pic we got with them. I had to wear my volunteer shirt but I still dressed up like a cat and then I dressed up like a boy scout for a dance/costume party that was the night after. Hope you had  a happy HOWL-aween cause I sure did :) see ya at the Howl next year!

homecoming week!

Homecoming week is one of my favorite weeks of the year because it is so full of USU traditions. There is something fun going on every day. Monday is street painting, where all the clubs/groups on campus get a spot on the street and they have until midnight to paint something to represent their club. There is a contest 

but the best part is just participating in the tradition. There is also a really fun paint dance where everyone dances and gets covered in paint! Tuesday is free Aggie Ice cream and Moonlight and Music (a free concert that is really fun). Wednesday is the hilari

ous Mr. USU pageant, where selected guys compete for the title of Mr. USU. Thursday is a free movie (this year it was Kung Fu Panda), and finally on Friday is the homecoming pep rally, dance, and True Aggie Night. Saturday there is a 5K, the homecoming parade, tailgate party, football game, and dance party. It is such a blast!

I actually got a date (haha) and we went to the dance and had a fun fun time. Here are some pics :)

street painting (left) Mr. USU contestants (above)

all dressed up for the homecoming dance...

Fall Break!

so this week was fall break..yay! i went hiking with my friend and it was BEAUTIFUL! the trees in the canyon in fall are just gorgeous i love them :). we did the "crimson trail" which is known for the deep red color that the leaves turn along the trail, it is a really great hike. and then i went on a bike ride to great harvest and a sweet thrift store on a beautiful sunny day. i got sweet shades for 50 cents awesome blue spandex for 1.50 and my friend jess and i bought a dress and each paid 1.50 it was so great!

i also went to the Utah Bioneers Conference and had a really great experience there. We learned alot about sustainability, and living green in all aspects of life. i really enjoyed learning how to make a difference on this amazing planet with how i live and the choices i make. (and the food was so great, lots of organic, local produce and local companies..awesome!)

p.s. i can't wait, next week is homecoming week........woohoo (even though i don't have a date haha)

random!

so right now this very instant it is snowing! it is the kind the is fluffy and falls lightly and fluttery! i love it :) there isn't snow on the ground..it melts basically right when it falls, but watching it is peaceful. anyway this week Aggies for Africa counted most of the shoes that have been donated and so far we have 1,754 with more to come!! french club played german club in an epic soccer game on the hper field and it was so fun! i definitely got dirty slide tackling and such (although french club did lose, we demand a rematch haha). last night we had a sweet dance party (that pic is me dancing..) at my friends' house and had a date auction and a kissing booth to raise money for Aggies for Africa, it was so much fun!

those are the highlights, so i hope you guys have an awesome week!

Aggies for Africa shoe drive

so this week has been AMAZING! I have been so busy organizing and doing stuff for the shoe drive that has been this week for Aggies for Africa (which is a club here on campus that i am really involved in.) My co-chair and I have been really invested in getting everything ready for this week. our goal for the shoe drive is 1500 pairs of shoes to send to Cameroon in Africa. we put boxes all around campus and had barefoot days where "we go barefoot so they don't have to." i have been barefoot for 3 days in a row and it is so fun! we probably have close to one thousand pairs of shoes right now and we really hope to meet our goal. i'll keep you posted though! :)

hello!!

hey guys! so this week has been really fun. it started out with a little trip to crystal hot springs. it was a great little adventure; we drove just 40ish minutes away and had a fun time at these natural hot springs. (it was way sweet cause we got in for just a dollar cause they were going to close soon) and then my friends and went up the canyon and roasted smores and talked around the fire. and THEN we had a sweet glow stick dance party in our building and one of my neighbors was the DJ it was saawweeettt! :D