Final semester

As I enter my final week of college classes ever tomorrow, (if there is not a snowday), I will be rejoicing! :) I have had a great college experience, but, I am way past ready to be done and out in the real world working. People say I should wish my college years away so fast, but I can't wait to come home after work, and not have to do any homework! Having that time to myself to do whatever I please will be a welcoming change. As for finals week next week, I am not looking forward to it. I took 7 classes this semester, and have 5 finals, and the paper for this class. Busy, busy, busy. Friday, December 21st is my graduation party, and it cannot come soon enough. :)

Winter has begun!

Friday morning, when it started snowing at 8 am, I was ecstatic! Winter is my favorite season. Although driving during the conditions we had this weekend is not fun at all, after the storm is over the trees and yards are beautifully white. Friday night I got stranded at a friend's house. Saturday, the same friend had a birthday party for her twins - they turned one on Friday. So, last night, I was planning on driving back to school, when the blizzard began. I ended up getting stranded back in my hometown, and had watched a Law and Order: SVU marathon today before and after the Vikings game of course. PS: fantasy football playoffs this week and needless to say, I'm not doing so well.

Another wedding weekend

This weekend, my best friend from high school is getting married. Weather doesn't look all that promising with freezing rain and cold temperatures in the forecast, but hopefully it misses us, or pictures outdoors could be interesting. I am the maid of honor in her wedding and couldn't be more honored. Of course, I procrastinated writing my speech until Thursday night, but I think it is a heart felt success. We will see if I have enough confidence speaking in front of a couple hundred people to give it justice. It is going to be a beautiful fall/winter wedding. Her dream was to have snow and have a winter wonderland type theme, but she will have to do without the snow. I am so happy for her and her future husband! I am looking forward to an amazing, fun filled weekend with family and friends and helping her celebrate the best day of her life!

Law and Order: SVU

One of my favorite shows is Law and Order: SVU. It amazes me what is is going on in this world, and Law and Order portrays it. When I say it amazes me, I mean it in a way that makes me sick of what people are doing. Today I watched one from the 12th season that was on human sex trafficing of young children. The whole show made me sick and I was crying by the end of it. Crying, not because I am a lady and ladies get emotional during TV or movies, but because it was horrificly sad. Shows like this prove that things like this are going on in this world, because I don't think a normal story writer could just think up the story line for these types of things. What is this society coming to?!

Nebraska Trip

I had an AMAZING time in Nebraska this weekend! :D Friday's bus trip turned into a packed 15 passenger van, but we all survived. Upon arriving, after our multiple stops for a little break and a stretch, we went out for supper, and then proceeded to take a cab to party in downtown Lincoln. I would compare Lincoln to Sioux Falls, and we had a ton of fun! Saturday morning, tailgaiting started suuuuppppper early - 9:30 am. Wow. This led to a long day, but an adventurous one. Nebraska won, and many of you know, and the game atmosphere was perfect. Met some random people in our nosebleeds seats that made the game more fun than it already was. Lots of memories were made with our crew, and I can't wait to do it again next year. #GoBigRed

Gophers vs. Huskers

This weekend I will be attending the Gophers vs. Huskers football game in Lincoln, NE. :) A few of my girlfriends and I are going on a bus trip with some other people we know to the game for a full weekend of tailgaiting fun! We were asked to go with some of the people we know from the bar, where my roommate and I work. I am sooooo excited! Not only is this my first Gopher football game, but also my first time to a Nebraska Huskers game. My roommate is from Nebraska and an obsessed Huskers fan, so she has persuaded me to cheer with her against Minnesota. Since I don't really have a preference I agreed! We are leaving Friday afternoon and coming back Sunday so it should be a fun filled weekend. Look for my next blog post after the game and my experience!

November weather

This weekend's weather proves that Minnesota can jump temperature from day to day better than any other state. Yesterday it was 66 degrees out at one point and today it was below 30. Yesterday we went out for a bike ride in the late afternoon and it was a gorgeous November day; it just got a little cool out once it started getting dark. Today I wake up and go outside, and my door is frozen shut from the rain late last night. The wind is blowing like crazy in this windy city of Marshall, and it is back to hats, mittens, winter jackets, and ugg boots. If I were visiting here instead of living here, it would be very hard to pack for a week, not knowing what the weather is going to do! But, I guess that's why all of us Minnesotans live here, we LOVE IT! :)

Obsession

There are many, many people out there OBSESSED with sports team. I for one, do not have a favorite that I need to watch each week to survive. Others on the other hand, will schedule their lives around that one NFL game on Thursday, Sunday, or Monday. For example, one of my friends is crazy in love with the Bears. (By the way, I am blogging while listening to him scream at the TV.) I have always been a sports fan, and have played them all my life, but I am not one to cheer for one specific team or have to watch every time they play. I actually find it hilarious how into the games people get some days. Screaming at the TV, jumping up in the air in anger or in joy, coaching from the couch, etc. When the Bears fumbled twice in the first quarter, I found myself grinning as he was yelling, swearing, and pointing at the TV in disgust. Whoops :)
To all you obsessed fans out there, just know that you can be entertaining!

Hurricane Sandy

My roommate is a Red Cross volunteer for Disaster's at a National level. This weekend, she got called out to White Plains, NY to do volunteer work for the next 11 days for Hurricane Sandy! I'm so excited for her, and a bit jealous too! :) I think it would be so fun to be able to do that. A great experience, memories, and an awesome feeling knowing that you are helping so many people.

She is going to be keeping a blog about her experience on the East Coast, and here is her link if you are interested: http://christybernacchi.blogspot.com/

I will be looking forward hearing from her everyday, and with having a blog, all of her friends and family can follow what she is doing. I plan on doing the volunteer training that it takes to be able to be a volunteer like this ASAP. There have been a few around the Marshall area already but I have been too busy with classes to fit them in. The training is only 8 hours and you can decide whether you want to be a local, regional, or national volunteer. Then, when they call you, you have the option to accept or decline. I think this would be an amazing experience, and definitely something that would make you feel good about yourself!

Deer Opener

It was slug, deer opener in Minnesota this weekend. :)

I have been hunting deer, the first weekend of deer opener, since I was 12 years old. I always go hunting with my dad's side of the family. Grandpa, dad, my two uncles, and lately, my little brother is who our party hunt consists of. This year, Saturday morning consisted of me not making it up in time to go sit before the sun came up - I was wayyy to tired! :( BUT, I was the first one of our group to get one right after dinner, in the spot we call "The 80!" It was an anterless buck, meaning it had less than 3 inch spikes, so we had to use one of our doe tags, but still, it was at least something! It was the first one I had a shot at for the day, and I didn't miss so I was a happy camper!

In our family, the rule is, "if you kill it, you clean it" so we hauled it back to the farm, hung it up in our normal spot and I got ready to gut it. It wasn't my best job of gutting a deer, since I was a year out of practice, but I didn't make too much of a mess! :)

Saturday night was rainy, so I decided to not sit for sunset. Plus, already getting one convinced me that I wouldn't have to sit through the "crappy" weather and freeze.

Mr. Know It All

Have you ever had that professor that just seems to "beat around the bush" when answering your question? Professors like this are sooooooo frustrating to me! As students, we are their to learn, which means asking questions to make sure we understand the material. If the professor doesn't explain it well enough, we have the right to always ask questions to clarify. Do you agree? I seem to have a professor who thinks he knows it all and is too good at what he does to further the students knowledge. I'm sorry, but a 30 second explanation of an assignment that will take students at least 2 hours to do is not long enough. I understand the fact that we are supposed to do our own research and think for ourselves to find the right solution, but when we don't know the initial format, or the problem, or what we are supposed to be doing in the first place, it is quite hard to complete an assignment. I had this issue the other day when I asked a simple question and it took more than half the class period to give me a 3 second answer. If he would have just answered my question in the first place, we could have moved onto a different topic and avoided confusing the rest of the class. By the time we were done with the class, which by the way was 10 minutes over the time, all of us were more confused than we came into the class for the day and were assigned this assignment. Some professors need to understand the fact that they may be speaking way over our heads with all of the knowledge that they have. In order to be a good professor, they need to be able to break down their knowledge and teach it to the rest of us.

Sunday Funday

College kids + Sunday downtime = SUNDAY FUN-DAY! Mariachis was a perfect place for dinner. Their "Mariachis New Tacos" are defintely the best on the menu. They are pork tacos served with beans and rice. I recommend them to everyone! Not to mention that they have the best salsa in town! How is the new Mexican restaurant in Marshall? I have heard good and bad things. One, that their margaritas aren't good, two, that their salsa is weak, three, that they don't serve cheese with any of their meals, and four, that they food is really good! I will have to try that out here in the next few weeks before I leave.

Sunday Fun-Day also included talking about all of the festivities last night. I unfortunately had to work at the Gambler, but their were tons of people out having enough fun for me and then some. ;) We had the band IV Play from Mankato, who is always good! Check them out at http://ivplayrocks.net/

Wedding

I had another wedding this weekend - in the good ol' state of Iowa! I hadn't been to Iowa since I was little and I have no memory of it. The bride and groom wanted a small, immediate family wedding, so we were just invited to the reception. The reception was a "come and go" gathering, which I had never been to one like that before. This was nice because the food line was constantly short. You were able to eat when you wanted and go back for seconds if you preferred. Food options were: marinated chicken breast, pulled pork sandwiches, green been casserole, cheesy hashbrown bake, carrots, potato salad, and fruit. Delicious! The dance was a ton of fun! A 7 year old challenged a 24 year old to a dance off, which brought the whole crowd to the dance floor. It was a hoot seeing that little kid dance. I told his dad that he was going to be trouble some day. :)

PS: In Iowa they have a letter on their county road signs, along with the road number. Why is that? What does it stand for? For example, _____ County Road A30. I may have to use Google for this one.

Apartment Hunting

Over fall break I went apartment hunting in the Edina/Bloomington area. Wow! Stressful! I had an idea how much rent was going to be, but then to see what you are actually getting for that kind of money was depressing. In two days, my mom and I toured 10 places. Edina seems like a very "ritsy" area, so the farther out of there you got, and further into Bloomington, rent became cheaper. I still have not made my decision on which one to move into, so thank goodness I have little while yet before I move by January 1st.

One thing I did notice that is different from my days apartment hunting in Marshall, was that when I called to set up tours with the leasing offices, the people were so excited and eager to show you their property. In Marshall it seems like you have to twist their arm to give you a tour and you feel like they don't want to take that time out of their day. So, in that way, looking at places was very inviting, and made it feel like you actually want to live in the area and feel okay that you are paying those people rent.

Homecoming Festivities

Well my senior year homecoming has came and went. I had never partaken in the going out, mingling, and tailgating aspect of homecoming because ever since I came to school here, I have worked at The Gambler. So, yet again, I worked homecoming, it was CRAZY BUSY after the game and steady throughout the day. It was a successful day, considering I decided to make the money instead of spend it, plus, I didn't have to deal with the hangover today! :) The Gambler was in the parade, and 5 of us workers walked in it. We threw candy and can koozies. It was definitely the coldest parade I have ever been in! We all rocked the Under Armour, sweatshirts, coats, and mittens. A very extreme fall day, but I guess it is better than smoldering hot or a blizzard! Thanks to all who came out to party! It was a fun night of work getting to see everyone out!

Frustrated

Sorry folks, but I need a little bit of a vent session. Pointless assignments that don't have you learning anything, I don't see the point of. Don't worry, I'm not talking about this class. In another one of my classes we were encouraged to go to a job fair recently. I did not partake because, as all of you know from this blog, I have accepted a position to start when I graduate in December. Now what would I get out of a job fair that has numerous firms hiring for January? Absolutely nothing, so that is why I chose to stay home and study for a test that I had the next day. But, us students that have jobs, that didn't go to the job fair are being penalized by having to write a 3 page paper on why we didn't go. This is one of the most pointless assignments I have ever been assigned. Why do I need to explain myself in 3 pages? It is simple, "I have a job already so I did not go." I don't know what else there is to say. I don't feel that there was a reason to skip a day of classes, drive to the cities, spend money to go to the job fair, and miss out on study time for a big test the following day. So, needless to say in my paper, I vented, and argued the fact of, in the future, forcing students that already have a job, to go to a job fair.

Springsteen

Springsteen by Eric Church is one of my favorite songs. Even though it just became popular this past summer on the radio and on country music television, it was on his album "Chief" that came out on 7.26.11. This was the summer that I fell in love with the song "Springsteen." It is one of those songs that I crank in my car when I'm driving down the road. It is the perfect little summer love song that makes you think back to your own romantic 17 year old days. Here is the link to the music video where you can see for yourself - Springsteen Music Video. Eric Church is one of my favorite artists, and puts on a great show in concert! If you live the country/rock feel, he is definitely a must see! :) Enjoy!

Revenge

I became addicted to yet another show this week, Revenge. The first season was on ABC last year, with the second season starting tonight. I have watched about 15 episodes of the first season on Netflix in the last week or so and couldn't be more hooked! The show is about a girl to takes revenge on every person who was involved with framing her father for a crime he didn't commit. It is full of suspense, thrill, romance, and mystery. I don't recognize one actor or actress in the series, which surprises me. Not one of them has been in a movie or other TV show that I have seen. I would recommend this show to anyone! I started watching it because my roommate was getting excited for the new season to start, and I could not agree more with her. I will have to add this one to the DVR every week, just in case I miss one. :) Again, one of the best inventions in today's world for TV!

Gorgeous Wedding

I had my old college roommates wedding this weekend in Slayton, MN. It was absolutely gorgeous and loads of fun. For the grooms supper, we ate at Junipers in Slayton. We had roast beef, chicken, and the most delicious mashed potatoes, among a few other things. I had a homemade cream puff for the first time as well that night which was also tasty. The wedding day on Saturday started bright and early. The bride got her hair done at 7:30 am; I told her she was crazy! The rest of us followed around 10:00 am. This was the first time where I have gotten my hair done and didn't have to go home and "tweek" it from what the hair dresser did. I was impressed! It was a little cold for pictures outside during the day, but I would rather have it that way than all of us sweating. The bride walked down the isle at 3:00 pm and it was one of the fastest weddings I have ever been to - 30 minutes. She looked gorgeous and I had never seen her so happy! :) The party afterwards was also a great time. Hadley never fails to impress. Food, wine, champagne, beer, and food was all delicious. The DJ kept the dance floor full until the end. Overall, it was an amazing time and some very memorable moments were shared! :)

Days of our Lives

I have to say, I have an obsession - Days of our Lives. I know, the woman stereotype is that they love soaps and well, it holds true for me. Each character has enough drama on this show to have their own soap. It never fails that they leave the episode making me want the next day to be here already to keep on watching. It is like a good book, you just can't put it down. Thank goodness for DVR. With DVR, even if I don't get home right at noon to watch it, it is waiting for me when I get home. Plus, watching the recording makes it that much better ignoring the commercials. I know I'm not the only "Days Obsessed" woman out there. My roommates are even getting addicted. :) Question is, what man is Sammi going to choose? Is EJ going to find out about Nicole's baby? What is going to happen with Chad and Melanie? Is Beau going to take the pay cut? Are Daniel and Jennifer going to get back together? Where is Stefano? Are Nick and Gabby hitting it off? The questions go on and on, and I think that's whey I love it!

I love wedding season!

I had another wedding this weekend and it was an amazing time as always! It was great to get home again and catch up with so many friends. This wedding was very elegant and I have more ideas to tack on to the list for mine someday. My favorite idea was what they had on the welcome table at the reception. In the center it was a collage of their engagement pictures, but they also had the wedding pictures of both of their parents, grandparents, and great-grandparents. I had never seen that before and I thought it was a very unique idea that really makes your wedding personal to all of your guests. Plus, it is crazy to see the style changes over the years!

It also made me start thinking about the bachelorette party I have to plan for my high school best friend coming up in a month or two. I have been to ones where it was a theme party, scavenger hunt, just a supper and a relaxing evening at a house, and on a party bus and bar hopping. I'm not sure which one was my favorite but maybe I can incorporate multiple ideas into this one to make it extra special. Does anyone have any good ideas for games to play before the real party begins for the night? I'm always up for new ideas!

New Adventure

I took a huge step in life this week; I accepted a job in Edina, MN! :) Since I'm a very small town girl coming from a town, or more like a village, of 106 people, moving to the cities is going to be a big change in lifestyle!  No more large yard out in the middle of nowhere where you can hear all of the animals. No more being able to go out on the 4wheeler and drive around the country side. No more knowing everyone who walks down the street on a daily basis. Even though most of these things will be gone for awhile, I'm excited to try something new and "step out of my box." City life is going to be new, fun, exciting, and a great way to network with people. January can't come soon enough! Apartment hunting may be stressful, but I think I know what I want and I'm interested to see what all is open down there within my budget. This will be the first time I will ever be living totally alone, so finding the perfect place is going to be great. I can't wait to decorate, accessorize, and have my own space to relax. Not to mention, the going out life will be way more up beat. :)

What a weekend...

I had a busy weekend in Sioux Falls, SD with some great friends. I have some new recommendations. First, Spezia is an amazing restaurant in Sioux Falls! If you have never eaten there, they have some very tasty Italian food, delicious wine, and a cozy atmosphere. Secondly, I had my first experience with a bar, casino, gas station, cafe all in one, besides a resort and casino. Cheap Shots may look like a bar that you don't want to go in if you are more for the classy setting, but it was tons of fun in a small local setting. In working in a bar myself, I found some great ideas to bring back to my boss to see if we can incorporate them into our business.

I also saw something I had never seen before, kite boarding. A friend loves this activity and I had never even heard of it. Although it was a little windy at 30-40 mph, ideal wind is 25 mph, he was able to show me what it is all about. At times, it looked like he was getting his arms pulled out of socket trying to hold on and do jumps, so it was definitely a workout. It looked like it would be really fun, but I don't know if I would trust myself out there! He filled me in with all the ins and outs of kite boarding, and I participated by being the photographer.

First Blog Post EVER!

Fantasy Football season has started! :) This will be a new an exciting adventure for me. I love watching football but have never been involved in the fantasy football world before. Five other girls and I decided to start up our own draft, which was held last Thursday. Needless to say, I had no idea what I was doing so we will see how my team actually does! Thank goodness for my roommate and her keeping me updated on the things I need to do. Today I downloaded the app for my phone, which I think will make it much easier for me to remember that I need to check it a couple times a week to make sure my players are "O.K." to play. To my surprise, my kicker is projected with 0 points this week so I needed to change right away since the first game is tomorrow night. It is definitely a learning process but I am excited to see how this all works and to see if I have any skills with this at all. My team name is the "Mudhens" after my hometown's old amateur baseball team. I thought it was a fun name and knew that no one else would choose it. Wish me luck! Fist kickoff is tomorrow night at 7:30 p.m. where 2 of my players will compete against my match up team for the week, "Husker Nation."