Well this is it! It is now technically Wednesday of exam week for the S109 semester. I am still awake because I have been spending the past couple hours going through old papers from the semester and beginning to set things up for next semester. I fortunately do not have anything to study this week because I have no scheduled exams so this is my way of preparing to finish the term papers that i have to write. this paper work though has been on my mind for weeks and as i've always said, i need organizaion in order to truly finish anything off. so now that i'm physically and mentally prepared i can focuse on doing my best job with finishing the term papers. tonight was the exam jam, so it was able to set me off in that great mood. i spent time with some good friends just relaxing and having fun. I was able to eat some free food which was served by the teachers, get a free AMAZING back massage, attend a session of 'blessing of the brains' from campus ministry in which you could join in meditation through prayer, and also we were given the opportunity to pie some of the RAs in the face. that was definitely amusing! oh and how can i forget the kareoke. i was able to witness some very interesting performances from some of my friends as they attempted to ...i believe sing... is the word several popular songs from the ages. it was definitely a fun night. and come saturday i will be able to travel home, again through the megabus, for just less than a month. i am hoping to work A LOT at home with my lovely ladies at Hallmark and to build closer relationships with my family! i've realized a lot this year how much i really would like to bond with my family more. i don't want to be cheesey, as some might think. but really, i do love my family. of course we fight and bicker and tease each other and oh my gosh do we get on each others nerves sometimes. but i love them. hey, family is the one thing that will always be there anyway! so whether i like them or not. i'm stuck. but i'm glad i'm stuck with this family. a big irish family in the southside of chicago is one of the greatest things ever known. i'm glad i'm a part of such a community!

 oh and i want an ipod and the twilight series for christmas ;)

 Merry Christmas and Happy New Year everyone! It's been a great semester!!!

well its coming down to it! there is less than two weeks left of this semester and i'm ready for it to be finalized! i don't know how i managed it but i have not had one test all semester and I have no schedulded exam to take. I have one final project, 2 final papers, and 2 more concerts, and then i'm done! my last event for campus minisitry was last night. I also had my first concert for college chorale last night. our final concert is tonight in the mater dei chapel at 7:30. we had our concert for mount singers on the wednesday before thanksgiving break and our final show will be next friday after the semester is over when we perform at the festival of lights. my final project is for my flameworking class and oh my goodness i am ready to finish it! i'll have a picture of it on here SOON! My final papers are for Ethics and Religion and they are both on their way to be done! I've got these next two weeks to focus on preparing myself for next semester: i can set time away for work, homework, exercise, sleep if need be, and clubs/organizations. I'm ready to start the next semester. I'm ready to take on new challenges. I'm ready to learn new material. I'm ready to further my education. I'm ready!

This winter break is going to be awesome! when i was home for thanksgiving break i was able to go in to my work at Hallmark from the summer and tell my manager about my availability for the winter break and she told me my name is still in the system! i'm happy! I need that job!

 only two more weeks left - I'm making it work!!!!

This semester has shown be a lot about work ethic. I've learned that no matter where life takes you, no matter what job you enquire, no matter what choices you make, no matter what team/company you work with/for, no matter who it is you are trying to impress - as long as YOU do YOUR best there will be good things to happen. I've said it many times before and i will say it many times again: EvErYtHiNg HaPpEnS fOr A rEaSoN!!!!!! there have been stages in my life where i have done a mediocre job and just got away with getting the work completed. and there have been times where i have done the absolute best i can possibly do and it has most definitely shown. and there are other times where i have done everything i need to do with the best of my ability and have completed additional jobs for other people when they cannot do their own - and it doesn't show at all. but no matter what, i have gained from it. i have learned that as long as i know i did my best that i will be okay.

as a part of homelessness awareness week with campus ministry, there was an event in which the leadership team had to prepare for a 'movie that matters' experience. the team got together, worked on getting the event ready, and made sure it was something to learn from. within the time of preparation, we communicated, researched, advertised, plus more, to make sure it would be best we can make it be. i know i did my best work with my job and i helped the very most that i could with my team members to make sure each job could be completed so that the experience would be very enjoyable. within the discussion part of the event, we had conversed about working for your place in the economic ladder. you must work your way to the top to show yourself what you are capable of. you cannot just do your job and expect everything to fall in to place. you have to work for your place and know that work ethic is crucial in surviving in such a world. things will get hard at times but as long as you work your hardest and keep communication with your team and do your research on your job to make sure you are fulfilling its potential, you will have success.

I have been awake since 6am this morning going through e-mails, papers, binders, folders, books, web-sites, phone conversations, and everything else possible! Lets start off with the first two hours of my day. I spent two hours this morning putting together information for an interview that I would have for Kiss 107 about my involvement through the Mount on www.collegeweeklive.com. I then got ready for the day and went to my 9am class. Afterwards I spoke with Cliff about the semester so far and picked up my the Flip Video Camera to start taking more footage for the video that will ...eventually... be up on this blog page. He also had mentioned some ideas for the phonathon job just so many hours later. I then had just enough time to stop up in my room to check e-mails again before my tutoring for ethics. My tutor helped me pitch some ideas for my last ethics paper for the semester. I finished tutoring and made my way up to the room to yet again CHECK MY E-MAIL for more updates for the day and this week. ((I feel like I get 10 e-mails every hour - I'm too involved.)) I then rushed my lunch in order to once again check my e-mail so I can be ready for another interview for the day. I was able to speak with Shane Fero for an hour today about glass art. He is the president of the Glass Art Society and has created some amazingly beautiful pieces and has been able to present, lecture, demonstrate, and teach the techniques of flameworking. I had this interview with him today because of a research paper that is due on Thursday for my flameworking course. We have to research the technique and history of the glasswork as well as an artist who uses the technique and their thoughts and experience with it. I chose Shane Fero because of his magnificent work but never expected to be given the opportunity to speak with him directly about his fabulous work! The best thing I got from the interview was this direct quote from him. His words are inspirational:

“Coming from a traditional background, you learn by practice. Somebody that is coming from a background doesn’t have to have huge skills to make something beautiful. You don’t have to have incredible flameworking skills to make incredible art.”

I've been in a great mood ever since! But still tired because there has been more to add on to the day. After the interview I had voice lessons and then had to rush up to the theatre lobby for the campus ministry leadership team bingo event. I was unaboule to stay for the whole thing however because of choir. Of course after choir, I went up to my room again to CHECK E-MAIL AGAIN before dinner in which i rush in order to get to work on time. Working the phonathon was of course slow tonight because its the last week of calling and we were calling some of the more difficult customers. We made it through though and ended up making it over our goal for the semester. So it overall was a big success. Well after work I had another meeting with campus ministry to talk about the bingo event earlier in the day, as well as the trick or treat for canned goods event. They were BOTH BIG SUCCESSES! We are really excited about it. We also began talking in to more details about upcoming events for the semester. This includes shanty town in which any of the mount students/faculty/staff etc. can build a place to stay for the night of november 19th out of cardboard boxes and sleep outside. it is a big part of our homelessness awareness week! we talked about more details within the week about movie events, speakers, and more. i'm really excited about it! we have more events coming up as well, including a night hike on december 2nd that is welcome to all. after the meeting i was finally able to come back to my room FOR THE NIGHT and get ready for bed. and so now i'm here. writing this blog, tired as can be, and still having to work on more homework, including that ten-page paper that my interview was for. thankfully i have more than enough information to feed off of. its just a matter of whether my brain is too fried to work on it much tonight before i sleep.

well either way, thanks for reading my blog again!

Well this weekend is the Mount's homecoming football game! We are playing the Franklin Grizzlies at 1:30 on Saturday. In celebration of the game, the school has several activities going on around the campus. The dorm wars began last night with a presentation of the flags. This past Monday I helped to decorate our floor's flag. We were given a dark green for our color so we decided our team's name would be the Ninja Frogs. A lot of creativity was put in to the flag and because of how much fabric we were given we were able to make headbands and wrist bands for every girl on the floor. I wasn't able to go to the flag presentation, but according to the pictures I'm pretty sure we had the best ! There were a couple other different activities last night to begin the dorm wars. They had a checker/chess tournement, talent show, puzzle making, and more!

There was another big activity on campus today, the Push-Cart Parade. Some of the clubs/organizations at the Mount were given an opportunity to decorate a push-cart to make it look like a float from a parade to represent their club with the Homecoming theme in mind - Monster Mash. As being on the Campus Ministry Leadership Team, I was able to help out with decorating our cart. We were able to find the perfect passage to use for our cart, Revelations 13:1-2: 

"Then I stood on the sand of the sea. I saw a beast coming up out of the sea, having ten horns and seven heads. On his horns were ten crowns, and on his heads, blasphemous names. The beast which I saw was like a leopard, and his feet were like those of a bear, and his mouth like the mouth of a lion. The dragon gave him his power, his throne, and great authority. "

How perfect is it that we the Mount Lions are playing the Franklin Grizzlies for our Monster Mash Homecoming? So our team ended up creating a seven headed lion with a MSJ jersey pouncing over a cowering grizzly bear. The parade today gave us the opportunity to see what kind of creatitivy the clubs have on campus. It was really exciting to see .

Tonight the games will include sand volleyball, knock-out, and cornhole. I unfortunatley won't be able to attend those activities due to my night class but I'm sure it will be a lot of fun! Everyone in the dorms seems to be really excited about the activities! I'm anxious for tomorrow's games because I will actually be able to participate. My roomie and I will be our floor's team for the 3-legged race so it will definitely be interesting! After the activities, we will be having our homecoming dance in which everyone is invited to dress up in Halloween costumes, and for anyone who doesn't already know me, I like pirates! And therefore I will be dressing up as a Pirate Wench !

Then the perfect way to end the week is with the game on Saturday. I'm more than anxious to see the Lions beat the Grizzlies in the best game yet! 

This past weekend was beyond words. I attended the Metanoia Retreat (Change of Heart) for the third time of my college career. My first year here at the school I had attended it because my friends said that it would be a fun weekend to get away for a while. This is when those friends became some of my best friends. My sophomore year at the school, I was on the team to lead the retreat, that was a great experience all in itself not only for the inner-faith aspect but for learning aspects of leadership. This year I chose to attend the retreat again due to the changes that have been made in it - each change was definitely for the better and was very impressive. I learned so much more about myself and about living life in general because each person had such an open heart. I had gone to Kairos in high school and loved it but didn't gain from it like the way I have in these retreats in college. Each person that I have had a chance to talk to through the retreats held by the Mount has become a new friend. This past Retreat Weekend, I have been able to make some new best friends. My heart has been opened up in to taking more chances and making my choices not only for my own sake of well-being but for every person around me. Every person in my life has had some kind of effect, whether it be for betther or worse, in the end. Every thing that happens is another life lesson, and therefore a good experience. My entire life I have been a firm believer in that everything happens for a reason. This retreat has made that belief even stronger. I have been able to open my heart to change and for believing every day is a new lesson in my life. This retreat has helped me to become a stronger, more relaxed, more faithful, and open to change kind of person. And last but certainly not least a much bigger fan of HUGS!!!

Thanks again for reading!!!

 THESE ARE SOME OF THE GREATEST PEOPLE YOU COULD EVER MEET!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Since I've been living in the dorm room setting for the last few years I've learned several key aspects of the DOs and DON'Ts of college life. My freshman year I brought just about everything I owned to my dorm and only used about half of it. Due to this, I have understood the meaning of being a pack-rat. I tend to keep EVERYTHING and throw away NOTHING. I've also have had several different roommate moments, good and bad. It all comes in the territory of dorming. So here are some hints: DO throw away papers from the 7th and 8th grade. That writing style won't do you much good in college. DO donate old t-shirts that you never wear. They may be in perfectly good condition but if you never wear them give them to someone who may need them. DO keep what's important to you. If someone wrote you a letter that at some point in your life gave you the biggest smile you could imagine, hold on to it, it may bring you that same smile again on a cold, rainy day. DO bring shower shoes. Our matinence team in the dorms are great people and do a great job, but you never know what could be tracking around on that floor. It's a matter of self-hygiene. DO NOT take over your room every time you want to be with your significant other. Of course you want some alone time and being in college, its some times more difficult to find shared free time for relationships. This does not mean your roommate should suffer. Work out ahead of time when you can have the room to yourself, with a significant other, with your roommate, or simply let your roommate have their time too! Also, set a rule of who can be in the room at certain study times and such. Your first priority for being here is to be a student. So that brings up another point. DO focus on school first. That is the reason you are here. Your friends should understand if you have a test the next day when they want you to go out for pizza with them! I am one of the first to understand procrastination so if you really do leave your studying time for testing the night before = take it! You will need it. In order to try to avoid procrastination, though, think of what you need to get done by certain times for each day. Like tomorrow I have a paper that I am going to work on with a teacher before the class starts [have I actually started that paper yet -> no, but this blog is due at midnight ] I am making sure that at least nothing will be late. But Do give yourself an earlier deadline than what was originally assigned. This way you can have it done in enough time to look over it, get your teacher, roommate, or someone to look over it as well. The more eyes to read over that 10 page paper you wrote in an hour the better! With the procrastination comes late hours - meaning lack of sleep! DO NOT overstress yourself. Working too late on papers can cause too much stress in addition to the lack of sleep that you will cause yourself for every all-nighter you pull. It's all bad - believe me! And of course you will need to keep yourself awake for every night you stay up in the lounges. DO NOT consume too many energy drinks either. You will then crash eventually and get in to even worse sleeping habits and won't be as attentive as needed in each class. Perhaps this is where I should make out the point that I have a pretty bad case of Attention Deficit Disorder. I get very easily distracted in classes! So here comes another hint. DO NOT get addicted to facebook. I am. And I tend to feed my addiction on an hourly basis. While it is a great communication device to keep in touch with old friends and to plan events and get involved with programs during a hectic semester of classes, it is also a horrible distraction (for example, considering how much i love taking pictures - i have over 140 albums). However, every time that I do check my facebook, I check my e-mail. DO check your e-mail as often as possible. When they say it is the main source of communication they aren't kidding. I get at least ten e-mails a day about events and programs coming up, in addition to e-mails from teachers and such about classes and activities that I am involved in. Which brings yet another hint. DO get involved. A lot of people tend to leave for the weekends because we are a 'dry campus'. That doesn't mean there aren't other ways to have fun. There are football games to go to - STUDENTS GET IN FREE! Campus Activities Board, is always coming up with fun events for the entire campus, not just dormers - that's right - commuters too! Campus Ministry works hard to put retreats together for everyone! Each floor in the dorms has weekly activities that you can join in on. The more the welcome - ALWAYS! 

Alright, well, I could go on and on with more hints but I think you get the jist of it! I hope you are able to gain from this and I will put more up as the semester goes along! 

Stay tuned for next week and thanks again for reading!!!

a look at my own dorm room!