An entirely too long recap of second semester
I know that I rarely write in here anymore, but don’t hate. Life is going way too fast as it is - sitting down to document does not fit into the schedule. But now that I do have time, I have written what just may be the world’s longest LJ recap. Feel free to skip around or skip entirely. But don’t read it if you’re going to hang out with me this week, because then I’ll have nothing to say to you : )
The major source of insanity lately has been school, surprisingly enough. My classes this semester decided to not be blowoffs and actually give midterms, which are like finals but more of a bitch because the rest of campus life doesn’t slow down at all. The worst offender was the oral section of my Spanish 305 midterm. We were given three scenarios, and we had to prepare five minutes of dialogue for each, memorize it, and perform one of them (randomly selected) for our teacher. This would be hard enough, but since my teacher has no soul and enjoys inflicting misery on me, he gave my pair an extra person, and told us that since we had an extra member (that we hadn’t ASKED for), all of our dialogues had to be longer. This would make sense if our third member had contributed 50% more, but he’s a football player. Super nice kid, but he doesn’t approach midterms with the same sense of urgency that I do, so myself and the other girl ended up doing most of the work. I was at Resco until 1:30 or 2:30 am every night that week, working on this awful project. The night after we presented, I had nightmares about being required to memorize Spanish dialogue and repeat it on the spot. (It is important to note that I hate Spanish and I am only minoring in it because I want to go to Spain and have a European adventure. And because my department head told me that if I want to get my masters in English, I should also be proficient in another language so I can do translations and whatnot. Ugh.) Other than that, my anthro class on Japan always does its part in keeping me away from my pillow, but I can’t complain because I’m taking it for fun and I get to sit next to my big sis, which brings me onto my next topic…
Pi Beta Phi! Yes, I did the unthinkable. I, Christina, wannabe intellectual and elitist nerd, have joined a social sorority.
This may be hard to understand if you only know Greek life from the media perspective or tales of Big Ten hazing, but at a small school, the Greek scene is a lot more important and a lot less scary. First of all, I was not hazed in any way. In fact, I was showered with presents by my Guardian Angel and my Big Sis throughout the duration of my new member period. Also, you have to understand that I did not fit in any good social communities at my school. While my band involvement does put me on the edge of the JCFA crowd and I am so jealous of all the good times that they have, I know that without being a music major I would always feel like I didn’t quite fit in. However, Pi Phi has a greater mix of people, many of whom are very smart and fun but not ditzy traditional sorority girls. I went through a lot of agony and debate over whether I wanted to do it or not, but when I got Ariel as my Big Sis, I knew it was going to be a good experience. Ariel was our New Member Coordinator, and she is absolutely amazing. She has been so supportive of me throughout the whole process and she’s such a positive and fun person, so when she and I talked about whether it would be a good choice for me or not, I valued her opinion. I have a feeling it’s going to be very busy, but definitely lots of fun. I may not be the most involved person in the house, but as long as I have good friends there, that’s all that matters.
Of course, this is not to say that I am in ANY way looking to limit how involved I am with Kappa Kappa Psi (my band fraternity). If anything, this whole process has made me realize how incredibly much I love all my brothers and TBS sisters. They really are amazing people and friends and I only want to spend more time with them and help the fraternity and band program even more in the next few years. Shout outs to my mom Joanna, and my Weasel family matriarch Marcy for being especially supportive friends. You ladies are fantastic and I am so glad to know you. I am also so excited that Brant and Eric are back from DC, because it is so great to have two more amazing brothers. Eric is my Big big big brother and so when we were matched up for the brotherhood pairing a few weeks ago we sat at Starbucks for like three hours just getting to know each other better and he is one of my new favorites. (I pretty much have the greatest families ever in the joint chapter and in Pi Phi… seriously, all of my bigs and big bigs and equals and beyond are just outstanding in every way.) Oh, and the Weasel family got new family letters and KFod, my TBS big sis, bought them for me! They’re so pretty. And the Weasel family is just hard core, which I love. All in all, we have tons of activities for KKPsi happening in the next two months and I am SO excited. SALSA NIGHT, convention, ARGGH! JCFA formal, retreat and more… it will be the best.
Speaking of band, in the last few months I have developed an undying passion for Basketball Band. Man, the first time I went and Jay made me do all the horn moves and stand up the whole time, I thought it was the stupidest thing I had ever done in my life, but now I am heartbroken that I don’t get to do it again until next year. I think a huge part of this is the outstanding nature of my section. THETA FOR LIFE, yo. I am so glad that I’ve gotten to know Ashlee and Knauff through BUBB because they are two amazing Pi Phis/clarinet players that I wouldn’t know otherwise and they have made the whole season so much fun. The clarinet section outdances the rest of the band; I think this is safe to say.
But really, why is Basketball Band so great?
BECAUSE THE BULLDOGS ARE THE BEST TEAM IN THE COUNTRY!
Well, not yet.
But we are seeded FIFTH right now! How hot is that?!?!?
I must now take a moment to express my love towards the team, specifically Drew, because he was in my Spanish class last semester, so I like to pretend that we’re friends.
I absolutely CANNOT wait for Thursday, to see the Dawgs (karma cap) take down Old Dominion on tv!! I will be cheering like the crazy fan that I am.
Seriously, Butler Basketball is the new highlight of my life during the winter. I am so sad that I don’t get to go to the tournament not only because I wanted to see the games but also because it makes me so sad that I won’t get to play with all the BUBB seniors again! I love you all to the max.
Hmmm… anything else new in my life?
I started working in the classroom for my job (tutoring at an inner city high school) and it is heartbreaking how behind these kids are and how messed up some of their lives are. It really makes me doubt whether I want to go into Education because the whole system seems so hopeless unless you’re at a rich suburban school district and you have college educated parents who could pay for private school anyway.
Also, my boss hasn’t paid me since October, due to banking problems. I really should have quit but I love the kids and my coworkers too much.
Next year I will hopefully get to work on campus in the Writer’s Studio or the Admissions Office. I really really want to work in Admissions because you all know how obsessed I am with college, specifically Butler, and I want to share that joy. That’s why I love BUSF (Butler University Student Foundation) so much. We mostly work with the alumni, but we’re also getting involved with prospective students this spring and I am so excited about it!!
I got to go to a conference in Madison with BUSF in February and it was SO great. I am kind of in love with Madison… a small part of me wanted to transfer all weekend! Maybe grad school? Such a cool town, and the memories I have from being there this summer made me smile! Anyway, the conference was absolutely amazing. In addition to learning about all the cool things that other student groups in the Midwest do, we had lots of bonding time. We got to go to a Wisconsin hockey game! OH MY GOSH. Their student section for HOCKEY puts the Dawg Pound to shame. They’re so much fun. Our unofficial UW host, Nick, taught us all the dances they do and we had a blast. We hung out with the Wisconsin and Indiana kids all weekend… such cool people! It was really great to meet new friends from lots of other Midwest schools. College kids are cool, no matter where you go. Some just have more fun than others : )
Anyway, the other great/sad thing about being in Madison was how much it made me miss drum corps! Seriously, sometimes I feel like that was a completely different person because my life is SO different now. It’s hard to stay close when you have so many people you love and they’re spread out over the whole country, but that doesn’t change the fact that you love them.
At this point, it looks like I will be marching with either Spirit or Troopers. I haven’t heard back from Spirit yet, but I went to a guard camp there last weekend and I really like the corps. They seem very laid back but at the same time more organized that Cap Reg was. Also, all the guard people were SO nice and friendly (and Scott Jamison’s girlfriend marches there! She’s super sweet.) I could really see myself having a good summer there. On the other hand, Troopers would be so much fun because I’d get to march with Chris and Brandon, two of my most favorite drum corps boys ever, and I would get to be with lots of my favorite staff members from Cap Reg including the wonderful Hainesaw and Chris Gow the ninja. I do have to say, though, I miss Gustavo and Karen SO MUCH. I know that no matter where I go, a part of me will always wish I could spend another summer with them.
I don’t even know anymore if drum corps is where I should be spending the rest of my summers. I’m not that good at it, and it’s not furthering my career, so I might not go all the way through my age out summer. That sounds crazy, but priorities change. All I know is that I cannot miss out on the 2007 coast to coast tour, so I will find a way to get out on that field this summer!
I should probably stop writing and get outside and enjoy spring break… Ville people, please give me a call this week!
LOTS OF LOVE to everyone!
Christina