Showing posts with label school. Show all posts
Showing posts with label school. Show all posts

Saturday, July 31

Really, housing? Really?

I'm moving for my junior year of school into a new apartment complex.

I just found out a parking permit for one semester is $30! At my last complex, parking was free. At this new complex, we can't hang things on the walls unless you use puddy or something. And my roommates know me very well when I say I'm not very happy about this. I love pictures and things that you hang on the wall. LOVE THEM. This was my room last semester before it got messy:


Do you see the thousands of photos and the many things on the walls?

This is going to be a problem. From what I've read on the website, their are a lot of unnecessary rules, too. If we are going out of town and will not be in our apartment that night, we must inform the manager. What, are we going to be on your conscious if we die? I understand the honor code and will not break it, but I came to college to have more freedom as a young adult... as in not having to report to another adult whenever I want to do something.

I don't know why I decided to live where I am going to this September. Oh wait... it was close to the Benson building. How many classes do I have in that building? One. One in the Benson, one in the Taylor (which is thankfully next door), and the rest are at the Livestock Center which I drive to as it's 4-5 miles from campus. Oh man.

And I already signed a contract! For two semesters! Bummer!

Who knows, maybe I'll love it. It's not like I'm a terrible kid and go around looking to rebel. My scheduled roommates seem nice and I do get to room with Whitney again. Love that girl.

May I'll be proven wrong. At least it's pretty, right? And it is right next to Subway... yum.


Thursday, July 8

I really dislike hiccups.

Exciting news!

No, not hiccups.

I received an email from the head advisor of the vet tech program at BYU-Idaho today. I just need to confirm my interest in the program and I think I should start classes this fall! I have no details on the situation though, unfortunately. I'm at Girl's Camp all next week when I should be registering for classes. I can get away on Thursday morning for it, so I hope everything falls into place for me.

And it's 80* outside right now. And it's 10:45 PM. What's wrong with this picture?

Monday, June 28

Agriculture is my major. What's yours?

This is part of a paper I wrote for a scholarship.



Declaring a major never went easy for me. I had so many possibilities and yet I had to narrow it down to just one. That one major would majorly affect the rest of my career in the future and I wanted to enjoy what I had coming. I trust in the Lord to keep me happy and safe, but the responsibility still rests with me in what path I follow.
Growing up, I got involved in the 4-H program at nine years old. What started out as a small poultry project, turned into a way of life for my family and me. Our livestock become our family and to understand our family, we witnessed the toll agriculture takes on the human body. Our goats were able to produce fresh milk that we could turn into so many different products and give us the satisfaction of knowing we did it ourselves. Our chickens gave us fresh eggs that are so many levels above eggs in the cardboard boxes down the street. Our rabbits gave us manure to place in our vegetable garden, which gave us the opportunity to be self reliant for the dinner table. On top of farm life, the domestic pets within the house provided an unconditional love and support every day. Seeing any of them in pain broke my heart since they constantly healed mine every other day.
I cannot describe the thousands of life lessons my animals have taught me growing up, but I do know there was a change that took place, and I believe it was for the better. As I imagine the animal products in the market today I think back to the spirits that gave them to us. I think back to that chemistry class and see how the enzymes and lipids are so important to our health. I want to end animal cruelty and embrace the most efficient and effective way to become healthier by beginning with the basics. For the first time in history, our nation is overweight and starving at the same time. Being educated in nutrition and agriculture can change that.
The sad part comes to the conclusion that many people live in ignorance of the beauty of agriculture. Milk does not come from the store originally, and neither do the eggs. In fact, the beauty of life and the creations that God has given us play such a crucial part to our survival, and if we rid ourselves of the farm land and knock out small family farms, we’ll lose them forever.
In hopes of having my dream come true by becoming a veterinary technician and educating myself about agriculture, animal science, and nutrition within a bachelor degree, I can make a difference to last a lifetime. I want to change lives through my desires and passions. I want to see this world stay green. I want to see our bodies treated like the temples they are. I want these animals to be cared for correctly. Agriculture is my major. What's yours?

Saturday, June 26

I have finally found what I want to do with my life! ... besides the usual temple marriage and stuff

Slowly but surely, I have been finding more websites that fascinate me. If you look over to my left hand column and see my list of links, you'll see a lot of new ones concerning Real Milk, Nutrition, and farm life. This is becoming a part of me. My passionate side is coming out of hiding and I think I found something to focus on, since my love life is done for the time being (that's a whole other story).

Let's back up a bit, though. For the longest time throughout high school, I had no idea what I wanted to do with my life as far as a career went. I knew I wanted to go to college and I knew I wanted to graduate with at least a Bachelors. I was interested in music for a while, and I can give credit to my wonderful high school choir director for that. I have found that I really don't have a brain for music theory, and as a good friend of mine once told me, I don't want to ruin something so beautiful with the mechanics behind it.

Science is cool. Biology was sort of ruined for me my freshman year due to the teacher. He never actually taught. He didn't even lecture. I did love Physics and Chemistry was alright. I loved math and I aced my AP calculus class my senior year. I wanted to make a difference. What better way than to teach and mold young minds? And what better subject than math since not very many understand it? Once I started looking into it, my desire and passion diminished. I wanted to enjoy my life, not dread it.

Finally, my senior project came around. I had been a part of 4-H ever since I was 9. We had the classic 4-H family farm: various breeds of chickens running around, a full blown rabbit breeding project, and family friendly goats who could have been mistaken as dogs. I loved working with my animals. The thrill of the fair was intoxicating for me, and being able to be responsible for life, and then brag about it, had me hooked. I birthed my own does and had kids running around every spring. Kits (baby bunnies) came along every month and those fluffy little cottonballs were fun to snuggle with. The medical side was fascinating for me; I didn't understand much, but I wanted to. I job shadowed the local vet. I wasn't too thrilled. My research led me to the conclusion that 8 years of dedicating my life to my studies and not being guaranteed a doctorate, and then assuming I did manage to come out on top, I spayed and neutered all day long, was not desirable.

Kids were fun. I enjoyed kids. Their laughter and smiles were able to brighten the darkest day for me. But the rational side of me came out and I told myself "I don't need to spend thousands of dollars to learn about kids, my own family will do that for me one day".

Then, I went to the chiropractor.
And no, I do not want to be a chiropractor.

However, this particular chiropractor is one of those fabulous people who does not buy in to the lies of the marketing industry. He tries to find the truth about nutrition and health and how our bodies are affected by the world around us; money wasn't really a factor in the truth. One thing led to another and he shared several minutes of my appointment of nutrition, dairy products, cholesterol, and where to find true information. On top my my mother's obsession with keeping healthy via fruit, veggies, and whole grains and my brother's obsession with creating new and exciting meals in the kitchen, I could finally fit into my own family.  (hehe)

Here's an example: many people don't know the difference between simple carbohydrates and complex carbohydrates. Simple carbs are things like sugar and white bread. Complex carbs are things like whole grains. Imagine a wood stove. When you put in splinters and newspapers, and light them up, what happens?

They light up really quickly but then go out.

When you put in a seasoned log, and light it up, what happens?

It takes a bit to light up, but then it is slow and steady and lasts for quite a while.

There's an example of energy.

I find it fascinating. I am all about comfort, and if my body is happy, I can feel better about it. Besides, my body is a temple and I must treat it like such.

Here's where I express my excitement about my new found fascination. I'm studying Animal Science right now, but I hope to add an Associate's Degree as a Veterinary Technician to my current study of agriculture and animals and how it affects our health and nutrition.

It's mind blowing, really. And the best part? It's affects EVERYONE.
No, sorry, you're not special.

My dream is to understand and make a difference in animals' and their owners' lives by working as a veterinary technician. I want to be able to teach them about their own health and describe how greatly agriculture affects us all day to day. I want to have a farm of my own at home. I want to be able to be self-reliant with a garden of vegetables, a barn of goat's milk, and a coop of eggs. I want to be able to know the animals around us and help others. I want to breed, raise, and train dogs. I want to own horses and understand more of the nature around us on horseback. And, I want to teach my children about the importance and beauty of animals and agriculture, not just how to earn a quick buck.

There are so many things animals can teach us, and all we have to do is look.

I think one of my goals now is to possibly write here about once a week about something new I have learned, whether it be about real milk, nutrition, agriculture, veterinary medicine, or animals at home. I have to keep myself busy somehow. Maybe this will be like a school journal in a sense. I can blog about what I've learned and how it will affect me today and tomorrow. I will make this summer meaningful, because there is more to life than following the crowd..