Shifting Schedule

Today I went to the academic counselor to talk about officially changing my major from English Education to the composite major of English Education/ Creative Writing.  I've been planning on doing this for quite some time.  As soon as I heard that the composite major would be offered I jumped right on that wagon.  I had some concerns about changing catalogs, because when I started at SUU it didn't exist yet.  I like to plan my future.  I mean, this isn't weird in and of itself.  Lots of people go to get counseling about their academic careers, right?

The weird thing is I have spent hours upon hours pondering my schedule for the next 2 1/2 years.  I should be graduating after the Fall semester of 2013 if all goes according to plan.  (Woohoo!)  Anyway, I have a color coated schedule that I organized that tells me what classes I will be taking what semester so that I can graduate by then.  I created the original schedule about 1 1/2 years ago, but it has undergone many revisions.  I just can't go with the flow.  I have to know what I am taking when!  I didn't need any prompting at all to create this schedule.  I just did it.

My problem is that as soon as I decide on this schedule, some loophole is thrown in my path.  Usually it is a schedule conflict.  I love SUU and all, but at times it drive me crazy.  Because of the small size of the school, classes (except for the GE classes) are only offered one time; if you can't do it that one time, well then, no class for you!  Of course, there are also tons of great benefits of having such a small university.  But when it comes to my organizational ways being disrupted, I forget all of those benefits and just want to pull my hair out.

Another problem that disrupts my planning is that I just want to do too much.  If I could I would go to school for forever and just keep learning and learning and learning.  I want to do more than just the basics while in school.  I want to get the best experience possible.  This results in my schedule being full and sometimes overflowing.  I haven't had a semester with less than 17 credits.  Am I crazy for that?  Maybe.  But I'm okay with that.  I love being busy.

Anyway, I pray that the schedule I have now will not be disrupted again.  My brain can only handle so much change when it comes to my school schedule.  I am also planning on making an effort to keep my extra curricular activities to a manageable level so I don't fall over and die of exhaustion while working on school.

Joy in the Simple Things: A Night of Fun

Yesterday, one of my best friends, Kya and I had a absolutely fantastic night.  We decided that we wanted to go see one of the plays at Utah Shakespearean Festival.  I had already seen two of those shows, A Midsummer's Night Dream, and The Music Man (Thanks to my awesome roommate Emily.)  The options of shows to go to were Noises Off and Richard III; we decided on Noises Off, a comedy about a play in three acts.

The first act chronicled the dress rehearsal where the characters were completely underprepared and the director pulled them through the rehearsal slowly but surely.  The second act was after they had been on the road for about a month.  They all had drama between them and it showed the backstage action that went on while they tried to pull of the show.  The third act showed how the show had deteriorated to a point where no one had any clue what the original show was supposed to be.  Kya and I enjoyed it thoroughly.  We laughed, along with everyone else in the audience through the entire thing.  One of my favorite things about it was hearing the young girl next to me giggle hysterically as the actors ran around the stage with their pants around their ankles.  Brilliant.

After the show, I still had tons of energy.  I'd like to say, I was high on life!  So, I suggested to Kya that we go swing.  I've always loved swinging since I was young, so we went to an elementary and started swinging.  It is the closest I can get to flying for free, and I adore it!  I looked up at the sky, filled with stars sparkling, and acted like I was up there with them.  After we finished swinging, we played on the playground and then ran around the field acting like airplanes.  I laughed, lived, and loved the moment. After that we still walked around Cedar City and talked about life. it was such a simple night of absolute bliss.

It's amazing how such a simple night full of fun could be so wonderful.  I often think about going and doing big, exciting things, and don't focus on the moment.  If I live in the moment and enjoy the small things, life will be so much better.  Last night was a reminder of that.

Dad and Celine (The Final Cut)

DAD AND CELINE

I bought my first CD

not knowing my dad liked it too.

Since then many a drive 

we've listened to her songs.

Celine Dion.  The Power of Love.

If Walls Could Talk.

Her music brings back memories

of a late night drive.

I look out the window

at the thousand lights of a city

sparkling like diamonds 

against the surrounding darkness

then the dark trees line the

pavement.  That's the Way It Is.

The melodies of her songs

massage my ears.

my dad starts singing along 

as dreams start to cross my eyelids

I know that my 

dad is there next to me.

It's All Coming Back To Me Now.

the music.  my dad.

Poem 4

Mushroom Goop

the slimy texture
inside my mouth

the bitter taste
assailing my tastebuds

i want to spit it out
but i'm being watched

so i take another bite
of the caserole on my plate

the smell makes me
want to vomit

yet i keep eating
to make sure i don't get slapped

every bit it seems
come back up

still i eat and eat
the mushroom goop

Poem 3

Clothes

We wear them everyday
They can teach us
alot about a person.
But not enough.
Because one day you
may meet a person.
Who knows if they are wearing
sweats becaus it's a
bad day or it's their
everyday apparel.

Yet so many people judge
others on their clothing.
They notice the
brand names
or the cheap Walmart brand.

It's all about the clothes.

Poem 2

A Moment

The red mountains stand aflame.
It's the time of day
when nothing is quite sure
The sun appears on
the horizon. The
day is not yet finished
nor the night arrived.
It lasts for a just a
moment. While it
lasts the beauty stands
unsurpassable. It's my
favorite time of day when
the red mountains stand aflame.

Poem 1

Dad and Celine

I bought my first CD
not knowing my dad liked it too.

Since then many a drive
we've listened to her songs.

Celine Dion. The Power of Love.
If Walls Could Talk.

Her music brings back the memories
of late night drives

the dark trees line the
pavement. Yet I feel

Safe. I know that my
Dad is there next to me.

It's All Coming Back to Me Now
the music. my dad.