I've never thought of myself as having much school spirit. Sure, I like going to BYU, but mostly because of all the friends I've met there. But during the last couple of weeks I've developed a great sense of pride for my alma mater.
Reason #1: The Honor Code.
Five minutes ago I was standing in our "living room" (it's more like an entryway with couches) combing through my wet hair, in my pajamas I should add. I hear a door open and expect to see either Kim or Lee-Wen walk by. Instead, the reflection I see in the mirror is masculine. What do you say to a boy who comes out of your roommate's bedroom at 9:30 in the morning? I said nothing. Now, I don't know that he did anything more than sleep on her floor, but still! I don't like having boys in my roommates' bedrooms, and I especially don't like them walking by me while I'm combing my hair. At least he didn't come out when I was walking from the bathroom to my bedroom in a towel!
Reason #2: Student employees.
I suppose that working at the Cougareat is not the most glamorous of jobs, but the people that work there don't seem to mind. They smile at you as you order your salad, telling them very specifically that you only want a little bit of chicken, and ask them to pick out the wilted spinach leaves, and woah, could you go light on the dressing. Here, however, most of the workers are NOT students, and not to bash them (after all, I did just write a post about how great people are, and I still think that) but they're not very efficient, and they certainly are not happy doing what they're doing. I somehow don't enjoy a sandwich as much when it's been given to me with a grunt and a glare.
Reason #3: Our mascot.
Our mascot is a Cougar. Their mascot is a Terrapin (in other words, a turtle). Need I say more?
Saturday, June 30, 2007
Tuesday, June 26, 2007
On bathrooms
The University of Maryland has a beautiful campus, and they work hard to care for it and keep it clean. It's an old campus, but they keep their facilities updated. For example, many of the bathrooms have high-tech features, such as automatic soap, automatic paper-towels, and automatic flushing toilets (maybe instead of "automatic" the correct term would be "motion-activated"?).
This is all very nice.
However to me the point of having automatic/motion-activated devices in bathrooms is to avoid the spreading of germs. If you have an automatic soap dispenser but no automatic water or paper towels (such as the bathroom by the concert hall), then you're recontaminating your hands. And if you have automatic flushing toilets but nothing else, well that didn't do you any good, did it? To me, the ideal is a bathroom with automatic everything--well, I could do without the soap actually.
Funny that I'm thinking about this so much. I'm actually not really one of those people that's paranoid about germs. I don't even open the bathroom door with a paper towel. I use my just-washed hands. I just think these bathrooms here are funny.
That's all.
This is all very nice.
However to me the point of having automatic/motion-activated devices in bathrooms is to avoid the spreading of germs. If you have an automatic soap dispenser but no automatic water or paper towels (such as the bathroom by the concert hall), then you're recontaminating your hands. And if you have automatic flushing toilets but nothing else, well that didn't do you any good, did it? To me, the ideal is a bathroom with automatic everything--well, I could do without the soap actually.
Funny that I'm thinking about this so much. I'm actually not really one of those people that's paranoid about germs. I don't even open the bathroom door with a paper towel. I use my just-washed hands. I just think these bathrooms here are funny.
That's all.
Friday, June 22, 2007
People
I'm taking the advice recently given by Jeanine and just writing. That's my disclaimer for this post.
I've been musing (can I say that?) about how interesting people are and especially my view of them. I find myself forming opinions of people rather quickly. And then I seem to change my opinions just as quickly once I get to know them. I think my opinions are often based on superficial things such as:
the way people look (pretty, plain, black, white, foreign, male, female, long hair, short hair, dyed hair, red hair, happy, depressed, shy)
what people wear (tight clothes, baggy clothes, trendy clothes, unflattering clothes, chic clothes, sporty clothes, body piercings, tattoos, makeup, jewelry, flip-flops, high-heels, skater shoes)
what comes out of their mouths ("hi", laughter, cuss words, complaints, high voice, sweet voice, loud voice)
and what I see people doing (talking, hugging, flirting, pondering, studying, practicing, reading, smoking, drinking, fellowshipping, smiling, frowning).
I think there's more to people than all that. I know as a missionary I felt like I truly saw people, but I sometimes forget. I know I don't want people to judge me based solely on these things. When I'm sick and grumpy, I hope people know that I'm just sick and grumpy. When I'm complaining or criticizing, I want them to know that in my heart I really love people and I often express more than I feel. In other words, I want people to give me the benefit of the doubt, but do I reciprocate?
People are amazing! Every once in a while I catch a glimpse of the divinity that is in all people. We all have different backgrounds, values, strengths and weaknesses. But I'm realizing more and more that despite our differences, there is good to be seen in everyone and we can learn from everyone around us. For instance, here at NOI (National Orchestral Institute):
there's Margo, my roommate--plays cello; strong family values; going to teach in New York; has a beautiful smile; kind to everyone.
there's Nick, the concertmaster--from Pennsylvania; introduced himself to me when I was being shy; always looks happy; seems to be friends with everyone.
there's Hyun Ji--a cellist from Korea; always asks how I'm doing and tells me I look pretty; turns out she's married and has a little son.
there's Kate--plays bass; always has a fun time; smiles at me from across the orchestra.
there's . . . a million more people. Each with their own story, their own set of details, things that I'll never know, no matter how hard I try to get to know them. And they each have potential that I can't even begin to comprehend. How can I get offended if they say something mean? How can I criticize them if they do something different than I would? How can I help but love them?
There's a quote (a very fragmented quote--I apologize) from C.S. Lewis that I love. "He said (in the Bible) that we were ‘gods’ and He is going to make good His words. If we let Him . . . He will make the feeblest and filthiest of us into a god or goddess, dazzling, radiant, immortal creature, . . . a bright stainless mirror which reflects back to God perfectly . . . His own boundless power and delight and goodness."
Even as I've had these profound realizations about people, I find myself still judging them, criticizing them, being offended by them. But I don't want to! I want to live by the admonition found in 1 John 4:7&12: "Beloved, let us love one another: for love is of god . . . If we love one another, God dwelleth in us, and his love is perfected in us."
That's what it's really all about, isn't it?
I've been musing (can I say that?) about how interesting people are and especially my view of them. I find myself forming opinions of people rather quickly. And then I seem to change my opinions just as quickly once I get to know them. I think my opinions are often based on superficial things such as:
the way people look (pretty, plain, black, white, foreign, male, female, long hair, short hair, dyed hair, red hair, happy, depressed, shy)
what people wear (tight clothes, baggy clothes, trendy clothes, unflattering clothes, chic clothes, sporty clothes, body piercings, tattoos, makeup, jewelry, flip-flops, high-heels, skater shoes)
what comes out of their mouths ("hi", laughter, cuss words, complaints, high voice, sweet voice, loud voice)
and what I see people doing (talking, hugging, flirting, pondering, studying, practicing, reading, smoking, drinking, fellowshipping, smiling, frowning).
I think there's more to people than all that. I know as a missionary I felt like I truly saw people, but I sometimes forget. I know I don't want people to judge me based solely on these things. When I'm sick and grumpy, I hope people know that I'm just sick and grumpy. When I'm complaining or criticizing, I want them to know that in my heart I really love people and I often express more than I feel. In other words, I want people to give me the benefit of the doubt, but do I reciprocate?
People are amazing! Every once in a while I catch a glimpse of the divinity that is in all people. We all have different backgrounds, values, strengths and weaknesses. But I'm realizing more and more that despite our differences, there is good to be seen in everyone and we can learn from everyone around us. For instance, here at NOI (National Orchestral Institute):
there's Margo, my roommate--plays cello; strong family values; going to teach in New York; has a beautiful smile; kind to everyone.
there's Nick, the concertmaster--from Pennsylvania; introduced himself to me when I was being shy; always looks happy; seems to be friends with everyone.
there's Hyun Ji--a cellist from Korea; always asks how I'm doing and tells me I look pretty; turns out she's married and has a little son.
there's Kate--plays bass; always has a fun time; smiles at me from across the orchestra.
there's . . . a million more people. Each with their own story, their own set of details, things that I'll never know, no matter how hard I try to get to know them. And they each have potential that I can't even begin to comprehend. How can I get offended if they say something mean? How can I criticize them if they do something different than I would? How can I help but love them?
There's a quote (a very fragmented quote--I apologize) from C.S. Lewis that I love. "He said (in the Bible) that we were ‘gods’ and He is going to make good His words. If we let Him . . . He will make the feeblest and filthiest of us into a god or goddess, dazzling, radiant, immortal creature, . . . a bright stainless mirror which reflects back to God perfectly . . . His own boundless power and delight and goodness."
Even as I've had these profound realizations about people, I find myself still judging them, criticizing them, being offended by them. But I don't want to! I want to live by the admonition found in 1 John 4:7&12: "Beloved, let us love one another: for love is of god . . . If we love one another, God dwelleth in us, and his love is perfected in us."
That's what it's really all about, isn't it?
Thursday, June 21, 2007
A Grand Substitute
1. Play the violin . . . check
2. Don't exercise enough . . . check
3. High-stress personality . . . check
Put together, these equal someone with chronic back and shoulder pain. Well, maybe that's a little dramatic. But I have had my fair share of bowling ball-size knots in my shoulders over the years. Unfortunately I'm not quite in a financial situation to have a personal massage therapist follow me around all the time. Lucky for me, I just discovered a cheap alternative. A tennis ball! (Now this is the part that was supposed to have a cute little image of a tennis ball. I haven't quite figured out how to do that yet though.)
For any who want to try it out, I just place the ball on the tight area, lean against the wall, move around a little (it looks ridiculous, so you may not want to do it in public) and . . . oh man. It works wonders! I tried it on the floor but didn't like it as well. So don't go blow your Christmas money on those electronic massage tools that hardly work. This is super portable too! I also recall golf balls working for the arches in my feet. Definitely going to have to stop by a sports store soon.
2. Don't exercise enough . . . check
3. High-stress personality . . . check
Put together, these equal someone with chronic back and shoulder pain. Well, maybe that's a little dramatic. But I have had my fair share of bowling ball-size knots in my shoulders over the years. Unfortunately I'm not quite in a financial situation to have a personal massage therapist follow me around all the time. Lucky for me, I just discovered a cheap alternative. A tennis ball! (Now this is the part that was supposed to have a cute little image of a tennis ball. I haven't quite figured out how to do that yet though.)
For any who want to try it out, I just place the ball on the tight area, lean against the wall, move around a little (it looks ridiculous, so you may not want to do it in public) and . . . oh man. It works wonders! I tried it on the floor but didn't like it as well. So don't go blow your Christmas money on those electronic massage tools that hardly work. This is super portable too! I also recall golf balls working for the arches in my feet. Definitely going to have to stop by a sports store soon.
Monday, June 18, 2007
Laugh a little!
Question: Is it just me, or do you think that people in general take themselves way too seriously? I know I fall into that category sometimes, but why do we do that to ourselves? Life is fun, hilarious, happy, sometimes sad, but I'm starting to believe that it should never, ever be so serious. I think we miss out on so much when we're so worried about things that we can't laugh at ourselves.
What's causing these reflections, you ask? Oh, just being around so many musicians for 2 weeks. Maybe I'm off-base, but when I screw up (which happens frequently) I smile, or I sometimes laugh. I don't see a point in sitting through rehearsal with a straight face, making sure I scowl everytime something goes wrong. Maybe I was like that at some point, but no more. Life is too short. I'm here to have fun!
What's causing these reflections, you ask? Oh, just being around so many musicians for 2 weeks. Maybe I'm off-base, but when I screw up (which happens frequently) I smile, or I sometimes laugh. I don't see a point in sitting through rehearsal with a straight face, making sure I scowl everytime something goes wrong. Maybe I was like that at some point, but no more. Life is too short. I'm here to have fun!
Sunday, June 17, 2007
What am I doing here?
Well here I am--the blogging world. I don't know that I have much to say--and even more than that, I don't know how any of this works (and I'm supposed to be part of that generation that understands technology. Maybe it skips a generation . . . or two). But even though I enjoy reading my friends blogs and check them EVERY DAY, and even though I feel like what I have to write is far less interesting than all of you, I guess I feel just a little left out. So I guess I will "join the others."
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