Just a bit on Christmas

I've written before about Christmas.
About songs that annoy me and some present mishaps.
But past all the tinsel that's actually pretty easy to clean up, there's something else.
Why do we buy gifts for people?
To prove we love them?
Because it's socially demanded?
In hopes that they bought you something at least as cool / useful / expensive as you bought them?
Or because we really want to give them a gift as God gave us a gift on Christmas?

There are people who are having skinny Christmases this year.
There are people giving gifts of meals, partial tuition, car repairs, and new clothes for work or school this year.
There are people who literally have nothing to give to the ones who mean the most to them.
But we can all give something.
This thing isn't material.
It costs you nothing, so it fits any budget.
And it won't be forgotten by New Year's Day.

Give the gift God gave us.

Give the gift of sacrificial love.
(And I'm not just preaching at you, I'm talking about me, too.)

Love the people who love you.
Love the people who annoy you to death.
Love the people who make your life more difficult.
Love the people who are a bit prickly.
Love the people close to you, because you see them every day.
Love the people you'll probably only see once, because it means more than you might know.
Love the people who think they are unlovable.

We certainly were.

"While we were still sinners, Christ died for us."
Romans 5:8b

If you won't learn from your own mistakes. . .

. . . at least learn from someone else's.

Namely, MINE.

Okay, freshmen, listen up: no, you don't want to cram your first two years full of gen-ed classes because you don't want to be slammed with whatever classes are required for your major. 

You'll go crazy.

But don't slack on your gen-eds . . . Like I did.

Namely, I was really good in taking my foreign languages while they were still fresh from high school.

I waited about four years to take my math.

I waited about five years to take my sciences.

Ten out of ten would not recommend!

So if you're one of those stubborn people who doesn't learn from your own mistakes, at least learn from mine.

(Oh yes, and I also have to take speech; ironically after I've given the bulk of my class presentations.)

Confessions: I pronounce everything wrong.

This is really embarrassing to admit as an English major and a bookish person in general, but I really do butcher the art of the spoken word.

It's the reason I took Spanish instead of French.

French people should thank me for that, because they would have murdered me.

But I seriously am horrendously bad at pronunciation. 

Point en case:

Friend of mine lost her school ID a few months ago, and our decals expire every year.

She got her ID, but then couldn't get a decal for a while, because they moved the office or whatnot.

Well.

She ended up getting a parking ticket - hey, there are only so many "visitor" spots - and mentioned it to me.

I mentioned to her that someone had said that if you didn't pay it, they wouldn't send you a bill or anything.

Then I said, "I guess it makes sense; I mean, they're not city or munsiple police".

She just stopped and stared at me.

"Alyse. Do you mean municipal?"

"Yeah. . . yeah, that's it."

She looked at me and laughed.

"You know what you are? You're one of those people that read a lot but never say the words out loud."

Yes.

Yes, that is exactly what I am.

That, and a dummkopf.

And actually, I can pronounce that right.

When the last final's done. . .

. . . we all like:

No, really.

That's what we do.

Oh, and by the way, I'm officially a senior now.

Senioritis

This is a Public Service Announcement.

Many college students suffer from senioritis.

This debilitating illness has many symptoms, but the most common are fidgeting in class, daydreaming while having purposed to finish homework, boredom, and itchy, watery eyes that mimic the symptoms of spring fever. 

Senioritis doesn't only affect those in their fourth year of college: it can affect those as fresh and new as those in their first year.

But this doesn't have to be your reality.

To counteract the symptoms, pop in a classic Disney movie. 

Take them bowling.

Feed them.

Offer any and all distractions.

They'll know instinctively when it is time to return to the grind.

Senioritis is real.

Don't let it be you. 

Sleepy Saturday Link Up!

I love Saturdays.

Like, really.

I really love Saturdays. 

Way more than I used to.

It's the one day I can sleep in, though I find myself jolting awake at 8ish and thinking "OMIGOSH I NEED TO GET TO CLASS NOW!"

It's a rude awakening, but the realization that I don't have to get out of bed is a beautiful thing and almost makes up for it.

Almost.

So this Saturday, I'm doing boring stuffs, namely schoolwork.

I've got a paper to start.

A book to read in its entirety. 

Research a presentation.

Look into internships.

Apply for a job.

And . . . I'm sure there's something I'm forgetting, but oh well.

What are y'all up to this loverly Saturday?

A Duck Day

I know it's unusual for me to do two posts in one day, but it's my blog and

.

So.

I feel like this has been my motto today:

.

"Why?" you ask?

Okay, you didn't ask, but I'm anticipating your asking.

Because I just knew it was going to rain today.

And I wore flats.

My feet were SOAKED within an hour.

My jeans were SOAKED six inches on the bottom.

I made sure my umbrella was in the car when I left the house . . . and then forgot it in the car at school.

I ended up sloshing through grass and unavoidable puddles.

Ugh.

I love beaches.

And pools.

And water in general.

But not rain.

Not while I'm not inside.

Because I do care.

And I'm not a duck.

But renaming this "The Daft Duck" might get the point across.

I won't; I rather like this name.

But still. . .

Pointless Fun

This post is pointless. 

Seriously.

I'm just going to tell you something I did that was really fun:

I JUMPED UP ON AN ELEVATOR GOING DOWN.

Ooooooooooooooooooooooooooooomigosh it was so fun!!!

It's really weird because if you wait right before it starts to drop and then you jump, you feel kinda like a superhero, or a Jedi, or somebody from Inception or something for a split second.

It's really cool.

You ought to try it.

But I would suggest not doing it with a 25+ pound backpack. 

Just sayin'. 

And yes, I am a responsible 20 year old adult.

BOSS STATUS: RE-ACHIEVED?

Last semester I signed up for six classes.

I dropped one at the last minute and only took five.

I lost "boss status".

However!

This semester I signed up for seven (only 19 hours, though).

I dropped one a few days ago - I didn't want half my course grade coming from volunteer hours at events. And it wasn't what I thought it was, anyway.

I added another, but it was only one credit - that put me at 17.

Then, last night, I checked over everything to make sure it was all set. And what do I see? One of my classes I had really wanted had been cancelled!

That put me down to 14, but it's okay.

But still . . . I really wanted that class! 

Anyhoo, I figure I'll just keep the "textbook" (it's more like a style book).

And, for those of you going into college or in college, you'd be robbing yourselves if you didn't join Amazon Student. 

Just sayin'.

Be Still and Know

Psalm 46:10

"Be still and know that I am God. . ."

Sunday, one of the songs we sang in church had to do with trusting God and being still in His presence. 

Monday, a dear family at our church buried their three month old daughter. One of the songs at the funeral was about being still and worshiping God. 

The funeral shook me up quite a bit, and afterwards I went for a drive, just to think and pray alone. 

I ended up at a beach, just staring at the waves. 

And that's when I realized (again) what being still with God really is.

You know when you're with that friend and you don't need to say anything to fill in the silence because it's a comfortable one? I think that's what being still is. It's sort of like a lull in the conversation, where you've poured out your heart, and you're just waiting on Him to speak to you.

It's really nice. And very comforting. 

And it isn't something you only do when things are hard.

It's something we should be doing all the time. 

It's hard. I know it is. There are so many distractions, from school, work, friends, obligations, technology (hey, I admit this freely, and I love my gadgets).

But God gave us the time we have . . . shouldn't we "spare" some for Him . . . ?

Finals Week - Day 2 through le Fin . . .

So, I suppose that since I didn't post daily updates it can be safely assumed that I studied my butt off and did fantastically, right . . . ?

Oh . . . not?

Oh. Okay.

But I did study hard . . . and I did pretty well.

Finals Week - Day 1

Oh my word.

Finals are here already . . . ?

This isn't technically Day 1 as my finals are all on Tuesday and Thursday, but hey, I'm working on papers and studying today. 

And tomorrow. 

And right before they tell us to clear our desks . . .

Oh dear . . . 

Acorn Minefield

Note to self: always bring in your shoes from the car.

Why?

Because when you're running to your car to get to your 9:25 class at 8:43, the acorn minefield will get you.

I promise.

Don't try it.

Bring in your shoes.

Though I suppose to an extent it won't matter, because those squirrels will drop acorn torpedoes on your head, trying to murder you.

NaNoWriMo

NaNoWriMo starts tomorrow and I am sooooooooooooooooooooo excited!!!

Last year, I fell epicly short of 50,000 words by about 47,500 words.

Yeah . . .

But this year I have new hope!

No, not Star Wars I/IV. 

Hope that I'll get ahead in my school work and crank out a 50,000+ word novel!