First Four Weeks of College

Whenever I have nothing to blog about I resort to telling you about college so far. College has been a great experience, and I love everything about Wartburg! The only thing that I have disliked is the fact that I feel so disconnected with the outside world, but that is just an effect of college (I should probably watch the news more, as well). I come home to find out that there has been many big subjects in the news that I have not even heard about! Anyways, time to change subjects. Last week was crazy for 1st year Biology majors! I had a Bio 151 test, a Chem 113 test, and that lovely IS paper. I'm surprised that I was able to complete all of my assignments on time! I believe that knowing that I was going home on Friday pushed me to get everything done quickly and efficiently. Overall, the first four weeks have been great, and I would not trade them for anything! I enjoy being pushed to my maximum potential, and college is doing a fantastic job at that! :/

Last Weekend

The weekend of September 27, 2013 was the first weekend that I was able to visit home. I left immediately after classes on Friday and was in Riverside, IA around 6:30. As soon as I arrived I went to my high school's football game against our rivals, Lone Tree High School. My cousin starts varsity so I was able to watch him play. We lost, mainly because our football team is sub-par, but I sat with my aunt and uncle, who asked many questions about college. After the football game I went to Buffalo Wild Wings with my brother and one of his friends, which concluded my Friday night. Saturday morning I went to my high school's cross country meet, which was a blast! I was so excited to see my coach, and my old teammates! Although they didn't do as well as planned, it was still fun. Saturday night I picked up a shift at my job at home. It was a concert night, and the band Foreigner (I assume that you know of them) was playing at the casino I work at. After work I went home and immediately fell asleep. Sunday morning I left to head back to good ol' Wartburg!

Writing Blogs

What to write a blog about? This is a question many new bloggers (including myself) ask themselves before writing. Due to the fact that my mind was spacey, I had no ideas! I decided to ask my roommate Andrew (not Andrew Jordan), and he said that I should write a blog about writing blogs. So here it goes. People who read blogs do not want to read a novel--make it short and sweet. When blogging, the thing you needs to worry less about is grammar. Only worry about grammar when you have a English professor grading your blogs. Luckily I have a science professor reading mine, so grammar is not an issue...right? Next, try to be comical, but not overly funny. Unless you are blogging about Wartburg squirrels, EVERYTHING they do is funny! Lastly, don't overthink your blog post, write it nonchalantly as ideas pop into your head. Blogs seem to be more exciting and amusing when they are written this way. That concludes my blog about writing blogs. Tune in next week for two more blogs, both just as random as this one! (Warning: These tips will not improve your blogging ability. In fact, they may make it worse...)

Biology Lab 9/19/2013

Last Thursday in biology lab, my lab group took a field trip to the Cedar River to investigate what kind of macro invertebrates were present. We used a tool called a mini-surber sampler to catch the macro invertebrates. This tool works very similar to a regular net, but you have to make sure that the bottom of the mini-surber is touching the bottom of the river, and then you disturb the rocks and soil immediately in front of the mini-surber. This causes the macro invertebrates to be pushed with the current of the water, directly into the netting of the mini-surber. Next, we put any macro invertebrates that we caught into a one gallon tub that was filled halfway. After rounding up a diverse group of macro invertebrates, we used forceps or a plastic dropper to move the invertebrates from the tub to an ice try for identification. Lastly, we identified the organism using a small poster with many different macro invertebrates on it, and recorded what we found. I really enjoyed this lab, because we did something outside of the classroom, and saw some pretty sweet looking bugs!

First Two Weeks of College

Transitioning into college was a rough, but interesting ride. Now that I am all settled in, I am ready to take in the whole college experience. The first two weeks of college have come and gone (faster than expected). I have met so many new people and reminisced with some old faces. So far my classes are going well and I oddly really enjoy French class. But, who doesn't enjoy the language of love (or whatever French is called). I am also debating whether or not I want to spend may term out of the country. I was told about a trip to a small country in Africa during may term through Wartburg, and am very interested. Although I cannot remember the name of the country, I have always wanted to travel to Africa with Doctor's Without Borders, and help out the African people. This trip would be a stepping stone toward that goal. I believe I have got off subject, and rambled enough for one blog. The moral of the story is that my first two weeks of college have been very interesting, and I have learned many new things!

What is the value of an educated life?

An educated life can mean the difference between an individual reaching his/her goals and passions. An educated life means abundant knowledge and usually higher chances of success. Personally, education is a necessity, and those with an education should be overjoyed with the opportunities they were given. Many people are unable to obtain an education due to social standing and limited resources. An educated life also helps many get their dream job, while for others, lack of education is the single most important roadblock standing in front of their dreams.  We are all here for a reason, and I hope that working the drive through window at McDonald's is not our reason for existence. An educated life helps many find their reasons, whether it be a doctor, teacher, etc., most professions require an educated life. An education is not something to take for granted, and is a key factor in many individual's callings.