Thanksgiving

Tomorrow I am flying home for Thanksgiving!! I am so excited to go home--I haven't seen my family or friends since August!! My best friend's birthday is tomorrow, so I will probably see her as soon as I can.  Most of my other friends at college are coming home Tuesday night or Wednesday, so we will probably have a lot of get-togethers.  Thursday is Thanksgiving, and my family is all going to my grandma's house; she just moved, so I can't wait to see her new house!  I have four cousins who are all six and younger, so they are always a silly handful.  I work at American Eagle back home, and Black Friday is the busiest day of the year, so I will be working for eight hours on Friday, and then my other best friend's birthday is on Saturday.  Sunday I'm going to drive back down to Columbia...it's about a ten hour drive, so that will take pretty much all day.

Sustainability

I think that sustainability is being able to uphold the values that you feel are right or moral, and to not give in to things that you do not thing are acceptable.  I feel that I do live a sustainable lifestyle, even here at college.  It is definitely more difficult to do here than at home with my family, but I still think I do a pretty good job.  My grades reflect that my work ethic has not changed; if anything, I work harder because I am paying for college, and I know I need to do well and take the initiative to do my work--no one else is going to make me do it.  I also know that if I still want to go to law school after I graduate, I need to be near the top of my class in order to get accepted into a good law school.  To be more sustainable, I could make a greater effort to make it to church every Sunday here.  I really like the church I have been going to, but there are so many other things to do or work I have to get done that sometimes I put off church.  It's also hard though because I don't have a car, so I need to get a ride from someone else who is going...so if a driver isn't going, then I can't. 

Career Center Presentation

For Thanksgiving, I am going home for the first time!  I can't wait!!  I'm flying out of Charlotte on Monday, and I'll be home Monday night.  We are having Thanksgiving dinner at my grandma's house, but I'm especially excited because she moved to a new house since I've been here and it was still not even built when I left, so I will get to see it!!
Growing up I changed my mind about what I wanted to be all the time.  I first wanted to be a cowgirl, then a teacher and a writer- when I was younger,I used to write stories and parts of novels and then I got tired of them and would start a new one. 
I would definitely like to do an internship, but it would be hard to get one this summer, because I planned on going home for the summer, so I'm not sure where I would live if I got one here in Columbia, or how that would work.
I found the website and all of the links on resume building, job shadowing, and career counseling the lady showed us from the career center website.  I had no idea that there is that much personal attention and help that you can get from the career center-and it's nice that the building is so close to capstone too!

Financial Responsibility

I see myself as pretty financially responsible.  I currently do not prepare a budget because I do not have an income right now.  I also don't get an allowance or any money from my parents regularly, so it's hard for me to make a plan to budget my money.  Right now I have money saved up from working in high school and over the summer that I use to buy things, but I try not to spend too much of it. I hope to get a job either next semester or next year here at the University so that I will have some more money to budget, spend, and save.  I might begin working on an undergraduate research project and apply for one of the scholarships you can pay yourself with, or tutor next year.  When I graduate, I know I will have college debt.  Right now I have a scholarship to come here, but I still pay a good amount of money since I am an out-of-state student.  Additionally, I want to go to law school, so that will be another three years of graduate school after my four years here as an undergraduate student.

Stress Management

I get stressed out when I have a lot of school work, tests or papers all due at the same time.  I also get stressed when my roommate or my family and I aren't getting along very well.  This might sound kind of weird, but when I get stressed, it helps me calm down if I clean or organize things.  I also calm down if I take a nap, go to yoga class, or just go for a run.  When I have a lot of homework to do, I make lists and cross things off as I get them done.  This makes me feel like I have accomplished something, and it encourages me to keep working on all of the things I have to do.  My service site has not been stressful at all.  Each Wednesday when we go to the library to volunteer, we simply listen to music and put stickers into books.  This past week, I got to go on a trip with Cocky's Reading Express to Hand Middle School, but it was not stressful either.  It was great to see all of the kids excited when they saw Cocky and when they got to pick out their books.

Time Management

I feel like I have effectively managed my time this semester.  I have A's in all of my classes, and I also attend yoga, go to the gym, attend church, am part of the mountaineering and whitewater club, and I still have time to travel on the weekends.  It's nice to be able to travel because I am from Pennsylvania, so I haven't been down here very much to see the south.  With either Alyssa or my roommate, I have been to Charleston twice, Rock Hill several times, and Florida for the weekend.  In Charleston, we went to the market, out to dinner, we walked along the battery, we got tattoos, went to a costume party and we went to the beach.  I had so much fun!  In Florida, we went to Universal Studios and the Haunted Horror Nights.  I have had time for everything that I wanted to do this semester.  Next semester, I also plan to get involved in Undergraduate Research, which will require a bit more time management, but I'm sure I will be able to make time for it.  I may travel less, or simply focus some of my travelling on whatever research project I will be doing.

Capstone Social Event

I went to several hot cookie Fridays so far this semester.  The cookies are so good!!!  Dr. Hickey is often there as well, and it's good to have a chance to talk to him.  I have also gone to several Hickey Bytes days in Gibbes, but he is often talking with someone else or isn't there.  Everybody's Birthday party is also a great thing to go to in the study shack.  The cake is pretty good, but they run out unless you get there early.  I also went to the Halloween Party in the Capstone room.  It was called Rave to the Grave, and Alyssa and I went as Thing 1 and Thing 2 from Dr. Suess because it was a costume party.  There were prizes for best costumes and best dressed up floor, but we were the only people who went from our floor.  It was fun to see what everyone was going to be dressed up as, and there was food, candy, and soda.  There was also music and some dancing as well.  The best costume went to a guy dressed up as a skeleton, the best pair was Mario and Luigi, and the floor that won had a bunch of people all dressed up really well. 

Capstone Cinema

I went to the Capstone Cinema when we watched Zombieland.  Insomnia cookies and milk were ordered, and it was really fun to just be there with everyone with their blankets and pillows in the capstone room.  It felt like a big slumber party, and it was just a great experience.  It felt like the living and learning community that capstone is supposed to be, and I think that we should do things like that more often.  The movie was pretty funny, too.  It was about a paranoid guy who found friends, and eventually love and practically a family in his world that had been taken over by zombies.  Even though it was kind of gruesome and graphic with the zombie part, it was still a great movie.  I really enjoy living in Capstone.  It's nice to live with other students that I see often and that are in my University 101 class.  Events like the Capstone Cinema help to make the transition to college easier and make the living and learning community here in Capstone successful.

Capstone Conversation

I attended the capstone conversation at the very beginning of school.  Gene Luna spoke, and he told his story of how he was doing very poorly in college and eventually changed his habits.  He was really funny, and I liked hearing him speak.  I also went to the capstone conversation about the Ecuador and Jordan trips, and Gene spoke there too as well as another lady.  Gene Luna is leading the Ecuador trip again this year, and he spoke about how excited he was to go on the trip.  He also spoke about the details of the trip this year, and I am planning on trying to go.  I am applying for the Passport Travel Grant that he talked about, and if I get that, then hopefully I will be able to go for sure.  Gene Luna seemed like he had so many stories, experiences, and wisdom to share, and he really has an obvious passion for students-especially Capstone students-here at the University of South Carolina.  I think the trip will be a great experience, and I really hope I can go and serve in Ecuador this Maymester.

Healthy Carolina

I consider myself to be very healthy.  My mom was really into eating right and getting exercise at home, so I have good habits that I developed from home.  I keep health food such as juice, grapes, and vegetables in my room so that I make sure that I am eating healthy here as well.  In addition, walking to classes, going to yoga class, and working out at the gym also help to keep me healthy.  It is great to have a friend like Alyssa who helps support me and encourages me to go to the gym, and I do the same for her.  Also, we go to the store together to get groceries because I do not have a car here at the University of South Carolina, so we help each other remember to get healthy food as well as our "junk" food.  It is also good to know my yoga instructor, and she knows Alyssa and me.  This also encourages me to continue to go to yoga classes on Tuesdays and Thursdays of every week.

Spirituality and Religion

I believe that spirituality, religion, and faith are all different.  However, I do believe that they are all connected to each other.  I was brought up a Protestant Christian, and that is pretty much the extent of my “religion.”  I was raised to believe that Christianity is not so much a religion as it is a relationship with Christ.  I believe that spirituality is how in tune you are with Christ, and faith is your actual trust and belief in God.  My belief is that church is not necessary, but it is important if you want to grow in your relationship with Christ, and it is a good way to have fellowship with others who believe the same as you.  At USC, I have been attending Midtown church, which I really enjoy going to; it is similar to the church I attend at home.  The atmosphere is really laid back, but I still feel the connection to God and I learn something every week.