what is left?

it has been a long couple of days.

we left friday afternoon for topeka after a grueling last day of classes. on a side note...i stayed awake for my last physics lecture of the year, but i was not very conscious for latin afterwards (luckily all we did was get our take home final...i think). we did some review in theology, but i still have the better half of the seven page review to finish before the exam on friday morning. biology was crazy because it was glow's birthday so we had made her cookies to celebrate that as well as the last day of biology. on top of that, burk was attempting to get through as much as he possibly could, so becky and i were furiously trying to get down all the information, while eating those amazing cookies. i went straight to work since we were leaving at 4:15 and i still hadn't packed a thing because we had been making cupcakes and cookies for glow on thursday night. i left work at about 3:20 after helping lily with a special pcr clean. i packed quickily and headed over to the old gym to get my spot on the bus. we then drove out to the lake to load the boats onto the trailer. and the we were off to topeka. we got to our hotel around 8:20 or so, dropped our stuff off in our room (me, scooter, and anna), and the walked over to long john silver's (blegh!) to get some food and sort of to celebrate the birthdays (dan and glow). mostly, we went over there to get dan out of his room so they could decorate it. after some nasty fries and cheesesticks, we had our varsity meeting in the lobby, which included an exorbitant amount of singing and eating of cheesecake and a big cakeie (aka cookie cake for those of you who didn't have a friend who worked at a place that sold them). and then it was bedtime after talking to brian who was at the avalanche game with jill (lucky!)

yesterday, we were up at 5 and out of the hotel at 5:30 to get over to the course to rig our boats and set up the tents, which were useful since it drizzled pretty much all day long. the coaches/cox'n meeting was entirely useless and ended up causing the regatta to start at least half an hour behind schedule. the first races were the two heats of the women's varsity eight. we won our heat over the drake B boat and a few others, and ended up with the second best time of both heats coming behind the drake A boat by 8 seconds (a lot closer than we were last weekend at the midwest championships). we didn't have much time before we had to head back out again for the final. we ended up sitting around at the start for over half an hour because of the way they were running the starting line. it was absolutely ridiculous and ruined our focus entirely. everyone was in a pretty bad mood by the time we started getting lined up, especially when we had to back it out multiple times because of the wind and seemingly incompetent officials. (it was a horrible idea for them to pull stakeboats before the regatta even started.) the official on our left was still aligning boats when the starter behind us called "attention...go" so no one was really prepared for it. the drake b boat on our right started early, so for a second we all thought they were going to restart the race, especially since the starter held up his flag again after he called it. luckily, i realized they were going to restart and kept calling out our start. it was horrible. kathleen's oar was stuck in the water for the first six strokes and then took her a few more to get on with the rest of the boat. we got through the start and were behind four of the boats. we were able to settle in and started making our move. we walked down the first one easily, and worked through the second (missouri, i believe) before we got to the thousand. we started moving past the drake B boat at the thousand and had them by a seat or two by the 1500. we walked away from them, but couldn't get the A boat. despite the ridiculous start and all of that, we raced our race and that's all we could have asked for. i had about five hours before my four went out, so kelley and i helped out with launching and docking boats, and cheering everyone on. after we launched and warmed up, we again sat around at the start, this time for around 45 minutes before we started lining up. we were prepared for the start this time, so it didn't come as a surprise when they dropped the flag. we got out in front from the start with missouri and drake. we walked missouri pretty easily by the thousand, so it was just us and drake for the second half of the race. we stayed within a boat length for the whole race, but we could never get much closer than that. it was still a good race though. that race was our team's last of the day, so we packed everything up, skipped awards, grabbed our medals, and headed back home. we got back to omaha around 9 or so and went out to the lake to unload and rig the eights for tomorrow's practice. it was a long day and the great plains rowing championships are now my least favorite of the season.

i got up this morning, took a shower, ate some breakfast, and started my laundry. while my laundry was going, i started working on my take-home latin final. i watched the avs game starting at 1, but had to run to my floor meeting between the 3rd period and overtime. luckily, meg told me what i needed to know for checking out and i was able to make it back before the overtime started. it was a pretty good game. the avs didn't play great, but still came out on top with a goal late in OT. goodbye stars. after the game, i called to talk to brian for a little bit since i didn't get to talk to him for very long on friday night since he was at the game and couldn't hear me. then i headed upstairs to eric's room to work on latin. we were completely done by 6, so i walked down to java jay to grab my usual grilled cheese. i ate while i watched a bit of last of the mohicans that i started last night before i went to bed after unpacking.

and now it is time to start working on something before i fall asleep pretty soon.

the schedule for this week of finals

monday:
practice 5:30-7:30
turn in latin final by noon
walk downtown to fill out application for benson

tuesday:
practice 5:30-7:30
physics with dr. duda 10am
physics review with dr. duda 3:30-5pm
biology review 5:30-7pm

wednesday:
practice 5:30-7:30
biology final 10-11:40
physics review with dr. seger 4-5:40pm (possibly)

thursday
practice 5:30-7:30
english lit presentations 10-11:40
physics final 3-6pm

friday
practice 5:30-7:30
theology final 8-9:40

my parents are driving my car out here friday night and will be here saturday morning. i'll hang out with them during the day and then i'll take them to the train station that night. and i'll see them again next thursday in philadelphia.

we will practice saturday, monday, and tuesday at the same time as usual. we're heading out for philly wednesday morning at 5 and should get there sometime thursday morning. we'll practice on the course on thursday, with our first races on friday and then again on saturday (knock on wood). we should be leaving to come back to omaha saturday night. and hopefully we'll be back sunday night at a decent hour so i can get some sleep before class again on MONDAY. ugh.

that's the plan. time to start the studying. and i really need to get to work on my english lit project.

one exam down

my hand hurts and i'm exhausted, but i think it went well. i don't remember the last time i wrote for 75 minutes straight (perhaps the AP english exams), but i won't be upset if i don't have to do that again for a few days.

what's left of this semester:
one last physics recitation (today at 4)
last day of MWF classes tomorrow (physics, latin, theology, and biology)
last mastering physics assignment due sunday at midnight
take-home latin final due monday
physics review session, tuesday at 3
biology final, wednesday at 10
english lit presentation, thursday at 10
physics final, thursday at 4
theology final, friday at 8

two more regattas
9 more days of practice before we leave for philly

8 days until erin and ashley move out!
17 days until class starts again
20 days until i move to davis

73 days and 17 hours until i'm back in colorado

three more days of class.

and just a few more big things to be done with before finals start.

1. theology final essay (just has to be proofread) - due tomorrow
2. english lit exam - thursday - dr. fajardo made my week today by telling us that our exam is just going to be an in-class essay instead of a take-home essay and an objective test in class like last time. plus, we got the essay topic today in class and we're allowed to bring in our notes, books, and an outline. now, i've just gotta get started on that.
3. english lit final project - presentation next thursday - i really need to get working on this ASAP

i had my final physics lab class today. our presentation went as well as could be expected, so i'm fine with that. i wanted to punch one of the guys in my group because he made it incredibly obvious that he had absolutely no idea what he was talking about. oh well. duda knew what we were talking about even if lyle didn't...but i still have the feeling lyle gave us a good grade (for some reason he's been really nice to me since i kinda yelled at him, and even nicer since i stood up for him randomly one day in class).

i can't wait for this semester to be over with. i need to do really well on my final exams, especially physics, biology, and latin. as long as i can pull out a decent essay and project for english lit, i should be fine since i had an a at midterms and haven't missed a single class all semester. and i think i'll be ok in theology, but i should probably do well on the final just in case.

i'm really excited for the four days after finals that it will just be the crew team out here with nothing to do put practice and hang out. i can't explain how ready i am for ashley and erin to move out. i'm also starting to get excited for the summer. i know it will be hard since i will be by myself most of the time, but i think it will be good for me to spend some time on my own and to be able to relax a little bit (if that's what you think taking classes and working two jobs will be).

there are a few things i'm really looking forward to:
- dad vails in philly
- seeing my parents in philly, and perhaps my aunt and some other friends who may come out
- getting my car out here so i can do free laundry at my aunt's
- hanging out with kate if she decides to stay here over the summer
- working at benson
- the chicago/huey lewis and the news concert at red rocks (june 20th)
- my trip to boston with jay to see dave at fenway
- finally getting to go home and be with ben, paul, and lara
- working at pinehurst again

it will be a good summer.

only 75 days until i'll be back in COLORADO!

a little more procrastination

after a day of sleeping and not much else.

i've decided that my sunburn from yesterday's midwest intercollegiate rowing championships is constantly draining my energy. i haven't been this burnt since the first day we were in hawaii when i was a sophomore in high school and when we were in okoboji for our family reunion back around 2000. it's definitely a good burn and i've been doing everything i've heard of to try to prevent it from peeling, including lots of aloe, vinegar compresses, and tea bags. i'm afraid of carrying my backpack tomorrow...

the regatta went fairly well. the eight was the first race of the day, which was probably not the best idea dan's ever had, but oh well. we weren't warmed up very well and hadn't gotten rid of our nerves yet. we raced our race though, that's for sure. i am confident that we would have gotten that tulsa boat if we'd had another 200 meters or so. oh well. we placed fourth behind smu, drake, and tulsa respectively. it was a good race nonetheless and by far was the best competition we've seen all year.
i had a long break after the eight before the fours. the lightweight four was a blast even though there was only one other boat in the race. the best part was that britt kept telling us that the ocu lightweight four was going to be awesome because that's what they really focus on. well, they had us by a seat or two after the start, but we had pulled even by the 1000 meter mark, and once we hit the 500, we were gone and beat them by 12 seconds. that was one of the more enjoyable races i've had in a four, especially since we'd never practiced that boat and wendy hasn't sat port (or stroked) all year long.
we chilled on the dock for a few minutes before hot seating for the varsity four b. this was another really awesome race. i haven't coxed that boat since our duel against smu after spring break, but they really have a lot of power. our start was not very good, so we started out in 4th or 5th place, but once we settled in, the power came out. we walked smu straight away and then went to work on the drake four. it was pretty similar to the lightweight four race. we broke even with them by the thousand, and then really made our move at the 500. we beat drake by 3 seconds, but were 12 seconds behind tulsa. it was a sweet race though and everyone enjoyed it a lot.
we ended up winning the women's overall points by just 31 points over drake and 33 points over tulsa. i think dan was really happy that we were able to win since we had just done the naming of the M2 after the education professor, karin levine. after awards, wendy and abby threw me in the lake. they weren't going to do it until they realized that i wasn't trying to get away from them. the water was as nasty as expected (being closed to swimming due to toxic algae and all), and was horribly shallow off the dock.
overall, the whole day was a lot of fun and was a great way to end our last home regatta.

we got back from the boathouse just in time to see the second and third period of the avs-stars first playoff series game. i freaked out when i saw the avs were losing 2-1 after the first period, but they rocked the second period. a rookie scored to tie it up at 2, and then two minutes later, my boy robby blake scored the game-winner. the final score was 5-2. the next game is monday night, still in dallas.

i didn't get any homework done yesterday, and i have yet to get much done today, so it is probably time i get to work on the stuff it would be nice to have done for tomorrow: latin quiz, theology essay (due wednesday), physics project presentation (tuesday morning), and studying for my huge english lit exam on thursday.

but before i do any of that, it's time to put more aloe on...

so much to do

tomorrow:
practice 5:30-7:30
class 8:30-12:20
work 1-4
meet at lake to load trailer, etc 4:30
boat meetings with coach 5:00
team dinner 6:30
asleep by 10

saturday's midwest intercollegiate rowing championships:
meet at carter lake 7am
coaches/coxswains meeting 7:15
team meeting 7:30
wv8 launch 7:45
wv8 race 8:30
wv4 launch 9:30
wv4 race 10:15
awards and boat christening 12:30
team lunch 1:30
clean up 2-4pm

big things to do for next week:
finish theology essay
physics project presentation (power point)
study for huge english lit exam
work on english lit project
finish reading utopia

it feels like friday

but it isn't. damn. despite that, i don't feel like starting any homework just yet, so i decided to bring things up to speed here.

i just got back from our playoff IM soccer game. it was a disappointing end to a sad season. we lost 3-2 to a not very good team that only had two good guys who were total asses and just loved going after me and mo. but hey, it's cool for huge guys to go after the 5 foot 2, 120 pound girls. oh well. we'll do better next season, i'm sure.

today has been pretty busy. practice was not very good for various reasons. we're really going to have to go out there and work hard tomorrow and friday before the race on saturday. i ran to breakfast and didn't eat very much because i didn't feel so good (probably a combination of actually not feeling well and being upset about practice). i fell asleep in physics, which was definitely not good because i do not understand this light through the slits stuff, so i'll have to go talk to dr. duda about it soon. i also fell asleep for a minute or two in latin (first time that's happened)...i really need to get my act together for the last two weeks of that class. i'm praying so hard for a take-home final. i think i did alright on my theology test, but i should have studied more. it pisses me off that i sacrificed some studying time to work on the introduction and outline for my paper, and she didn't even do anything with them today like she said she was going to! argh. oh well...we get to drop one, so we'll see what happens. i didn't get a lot of studying done during bio, but it worked out because i only went in to work for about half an hour and then came back here to study (and take a half hour nap). i don't really want to say anything about the bio test until i know for sure how it went. it could go either way, so i'll just wait until i go look at the key tomorrow.

i'm glad tomorrow is thursday. i'm ready for this week to be over with. i'm ready for next week and finals week to be over with too. i also don't want to have to do any of the work i have left. i've been procrastinating on my english lit project for a long time and it is starting to scare me a little bit. i also need to get the theology paper done with, hopefully on friday night...sometime this weekend at least.

i miss colorado more than i can say. thinking about home makes me incredibly depressed. i'm on to my next countdown until i'm home again...81 and a half days. and that's still sort of an estimate because i don't know when jay and i will get back from boston (dave concert at fenway...woo!). my guess is it will be around july 10th or so. the only good thing about that is that i will be back just in time for pinedaze...the best possible week of work - the same guys playing every day, big tips, lots of booze, lots of golf, and lots of partying. i can't wait. i'm sad that the only time i got to hang out with ben and paulie while i was home was when i was working with them at pinehurst. i guess that will just make seeing them in july all the better. i am so excited to go home and i hate everyone who will be back there in three weeks. i can't even guess how upset i will be if i do all this work and make myself miserable for all this time and i don't even get into med school. i guess i just have to stay positive about it. and work hard so it doesn't happen. what a shitty situation. working for something that may never even happen. and then what? continue to be miserable. ugh. anyway....

i'm pretty sure i have pinkeye now that i've had this same thing for over a week now and it hasn't been getting any better. i'll just have to try to make it into the training room to talk to joey sometime tomorrow.

and now it's time to take a shower, do some homework, and go to sleep.

what a day.

i miss you guys so much.

goodbye colorado

until july. at least i'll be back for pine daze.

it has been fun, but now i want to get back to school to finish off the semester.

a new record!

omaha to denver in less than 7 hours. woo...freddy and i rock.

its good to be home, but my eyes hurt like crazy.

i'm already not looking forward to the ridiculous family events that are already starting.

i might head over to pinehurst to say hi to the guys, but i'm not sure yet...especially since i'm not sure if i have clothes i can wear over there and i'm not digging the look of my swollen eyes. we'll see.

let the craziness begin...

less than 2 days

but now it is time to get to the physics. i really really need to do well on this exam tomorrow. tonight and tomorrow will be devoted to physics at least for as long as i can handle it, and hopefully a little longer than that.

the agenda:
run to dr. duda's office to ask him a few questions
work 1-4
physics review 4-6
grab some dinner
study physics
sleepy

and tomorrow...
practice
breakfast?
study physics
perhaps a short nap
lunch
english lit (unless i really need to keep studying physics since tomorrow's class is optional)
study physics
physics exam 4-5:10
work on lab project/paper

and once we practice and lift on friday morning, freddy, scooter, and i will be on our way to the big CO!

waiting for milo III to update

and then i'm going to bed.

it has been a long few days. the weekend was incredibly tiring, but a lot of fun.

highlights include (the short list because its time for bed):
winning first place in the eight and the four
spending time with my parents
seeing a few of my cousins and my aunt audrey
free laundry
free food that wasn't from creighton (specifically, red lobster, sonic, aunt audrey's house, regatta food)

i'll speak more of all that later.

cliche? perhaps.

I never knew
I never knew that everything
Was falling through
That everyone I knew
Was waiting on a queue
To turn and run
When all I needed was the truth

But that's how it's got to be
It's coming down to
Nothing more than apathy
I'd rather run the other way
Than stay and see
The smoke and who's still
Standing when it clears

Everyone knows I'm in
Over my head
Over my head
With eight seconds left in overtime
She's on your mind
She's on your mind

Let's rearrange
I wish you were a stranger
I could disengage
Say that we agree
And then never change
Soften a bit
Until we all just get along

But that's disregard
You find another friend
And you discard
As you lose the argument
In a cable car
Hanging above
As the canyon comes between

Everyone knows I'm in
Over my head
Over my head
With eight seconds left in overtime
She's on your mind
She's on your mind

Everyone knows I'm in
Over my head
Over my head
With eight seconds left in overtime
She's on your mind
She's on your mind

And suddenly
I become a part of your past
I'm becoming the part
That don't last
I'm losing you
And its effortless

Without a sound
We lose sight of the ground
In the throw around
Never thought that you wanted
To bring it down
I won't let it go down
'Till we torch it ourselves

Everyone knows I'm in
Over my head
Over my head
With eight seconds left in overtime
She's on your mind
She's on your mind

Everyone knows I'm in
Over my head
Over my head
With eight seconds left in overtime
She's on your mind
She's on your mind

lots of things to do.

the next on my list is sleep.

but, i must point out that i have almost finished my mastering physics assignment that is due tomorrow at 2. this is the first time i have sat down and worked on it for more than half an hour at a time (or so), so i'm pretty excited that i was actually able to not give up (today has been my day for double negatives) and actually understand a great portion of it. hopefully i will be able to do well on the quiz tomorrow since i actually worked it out on my own. we'll see.

and maybe i'll even try to get my english lit assignment read before class tomorrow in case we actually finish up on the canterbury tales (relevant side note about the class thus far: we are about two weeks behind the projected schedule for the semester).

the plan for tomorrow...

alarm goes off- 5am
leave for gallagher - between 5:17 and 5:19
practice - 5:30-7ish
breakfast with brian - whenever we get back from the lake
a little nap - whenever i get back after breakfast to about 9:30ish
finish mastering physics/english lit reading
shower
lunch (with steph?) - 11:45
english lit - 12:30-1:45
work on physics project with dan - 2:00-3:55
physics recitation - 4:00-4:50
dinner and friends - 5:00-6:00
homework - 6:00-sleep

another sunday

i've been back in omaha since about 2pm yesterday afternoon. it was amazing to feel the huge temperature difference three hours west-ish can make. when we left iowa city (really, it was coralville, but same difference), it was still pretty chilly and quite windy - especially after getting off the water after the race - but when we got to the lake to rig the boats, it was near 60 degrees. too bad we didn't have that weather earlier that morning, or perhaps last weekend when we were supposed to race tulsa. oh well.

the races went well. we raced our race, and that was what we were going for. we raced three eights - novice eight, jv eight, and the varsity eight. each boat got third place in their race, but considering we raced three big 10 schools, two of which are nationally ranked (wisco, iowa, and minnesota), that isn't bad. the girls all seemed content after we got off the water. dan was still on the water, so we didn't get to hear his opinions, but he seemed happy with the results too. i think i did a pretty good job. probably not the best i can do, but i steered the straightest course yet (buoy lines help greatly!) and the girls didn't have any complaints - except that i didn't call a 10 for myself...too weird though.

yesterday afternoon, kate and i spent a few hours laying out on the lawn in front of the kfc. we had intended to do homework, but we spent most of our time trying not to get hit by baseballs and frisbees, and talking about various things that we couldn't talk about on the bus with the rest of the team around. after that, i went over to kara's room to say hi. i ended up staying there until we went over to brandeis, but i don't regret it...we haven't spent a lot of time together in awhile, so it was good. we went to dinner with stephanie, and then came back here to watch wimbledon before we went out to coldstone. the trip out to west o was definitely worth it - i had forgotten how good coldstone really is. a horrible, overpriced corporation, true...but so good. ugh, we're all stuck in this dreadful system of consumption.

neither yesterday nor today have been hugely productive. i did my laundry at least. i also did my reading for theology from friday and for tomorrow, as well as a quick run through my pre-lab for physics on tuesday. i'm much more worried about getting our project done. dan and nick don't seem to be too worried about it though. i don't know what we're going to do. all i know for sure is that i need to get my portion of the paper (theory) done soon because next weekend isn't going to be conducive for homework and other things since we have our home regatta and my parents will be in town.


the plan for the next week or so:

monday: class, work, and weights as normal

tuesday: physics lab, english lit, bio lab (rat dissection practical), IM soccer game at 7:30

wednesday: theology test

thursday: english lit, physics recitation (i really need to do well on this week's quiz), mastering physics due

friday: mom and dad leave denver, team dinner?

saturday: carter lake clean up, hang out with family

sunday: upper midwest collegiate sprints, mom and dad leave for denver

tuesday: IM soccer game at 7:30

wednesday: bio paper due, theology test

thursday: physics exam, physics project report due

friday: practice in the morning, then drive back to denver with freddy

a few sidenotes:
- i need to stop buying so many songs from itunes
- it has been overcast and rainy here all day...i'd prefer it to be more like yesterday, but on the other hand, carter lake needs all the rain possible
- i'm still freaking out about this summer
- i still need to register for summer classes
- my schedule for next semester:

Monday/Wednesday/Friday
9:30-10:20 - Organic Chem - Gross
10:30-11:20 - English and American Literature - Ladino

2:30-5:20 - Organic Chem Lab - De La Cruz (Monday only)
6:00-8:30 - The Middle Eastern World - Calvert (Monday only)

Tuesday/Thursday
12:30-1:45 - English Literature II - Stafford
2:00-3:15 - Interpreting Texts - Zacharias

we'll see how those mondays turn out. i'm guessing i will be working wednesday and friday afternoons similar to when i do now, and perhaps tuesday and thursday mornings.