I rediscovered this cry for mercy in looking through documents on my desktop. It's funny now, looking back at it, at how stressed out I was in high school. That was nothing compared to the tests in college. And it's funny to note how little tactics like this letter could actually influence a teacher back in the day. For those of you who didn't know about this letter, it worked. Oh, the good old days of AP/CC Government. I wonder if I dare attempt it for biology? Yeah. Didn't think so...
February 23, 2005
Our Dearest Mrs. Micki Hall,
Oh, how you so expand our virgin minds with your endless wisdom and knowledge. You are the morning sunrise in each one of our dark and foggy mornings. We flock to your classroom in eager anticipation, ready to open our hearts and souls to every letter of every word that so elegantly rolls off your tongue. And of course, it doesn’t hurt that your face lights up the dust floating among us. Oh, dear teacher, you belong in a portrait stroked with the genius hand of Michelangelo. Your face – it is the Mona Lisa, but smiling. It is so fresh, like a field of wildflowers on a dewy spring morning. Mrs. Hall, you are truly an inspiration to us all. Because of your selflessness and pure love of each one of your students, we have all dedicated our lives to service and charity. We intend on giving all that we have to those less fortunate than us. You are a living example of everything we want to be, and if we can be even 1/50 of who you are, then we have succeeded in life, and can die knowing we made a difference in the world.
Mrs. Hall, we have always looked up to you, not only for your ravishing, youthful beauty, but for your heart. You have a heart the size of the national deficit. You are so strong and so set in your convictions, yet you are forgiving and merciful. You understand us, Mrs. Hall. You understand our plights and our problems. You understand because you too were once a student like us. You endured high school. You know the stresses we face in everyday life. There was once a day that even you, always calm and collected, always cool and reserved, wanted to pull your hair out strand by strand, root by root. You completely understand how we feel this week. You realize that there are teachers in this world out to get us. There are teachers out there who take sick and demented pleasure in watching a young, promising high school scholar writher in both emotional and physical pain when a burden so heavy with large projects is placed upon their shoulders. They laugh – cackle even! – when they hear of the other work given to the students by fellow colleagues, coincidently at the same time as their own. Their red pen is like a loaded AK-47, waiting to pierce the bullets into the young Marine’s paper, our paper, our very heart, even. They love late penalties. They relish in them. They are necessary evils.
We tell you this because we know you are not a evil. You are an angel, our angel. You are our saving grace. We come before you at this vulnerable time in our life, a time when one has access to suicide hotlines and quiz-your-homosexual-school websites. We come to you on our knees, in complete desperation and in fervent hope. We beg. We weep. We wait.
Mrs. Hall, in all your goodness and mercy, would you extend the deadline for the AP/CC President Project to Monday, February 28, 2005?
This is our prayer, our call to Allah, our (whatever Nora does).
Saturday, October 15, 2005
Wednesday, October 12, 2005
Joy
It's 1:00 AM and I have been trying to go to sleep since 10:30 p.m. Wow. What a waste of hours. You might ask why I even attempted to go to sleep so early. Well, considering the fact that I could barely keep my eyes open in any of my classes, fell sound asleep on the grass outside, inbetween two of my classes, and went to the library where I slept in a drooling state for 45 minutes. And, if those weren't signs enough, my head was pounding like the jackhammer from all the construction going on around here. So, I got all my reading done and at 10:30, I climbed into bed, hoping to fall asleep amidst the still very active dormitory. Nice Try.
My roommate had to study for a test and was talking on MSN. I thought that since I could fall asleep at the library, I could fall asleep with the light on and the tap tap tap of the keyboard as she chatted. However, the incessant tapping only caused my head to tap tap tap along with it, and soon I found myself trying every method imaginable to go to sleep. First, I was hot, so I took all the covers off. Then I tried covering my head with blankets. Gasping for air, I discarded that idea. Next, I got iPod and put it on soothing music to drown out the keyboard and the neighbors. I realized that it was only a new kind of noise. The computer screen was causing light to dark transitions, so I covered my head with the body pillow on my bed. Nope. Still nothing. Three times I got up and went and tried to sleep in the day room on the couch, but each time there was someone in there. So I would trudge back to the room and flop onto my bed. On the third attempt to occupy the day room, Jamie turned off her computer and went out in the hallway to study so that I could go to sleep. Unfortunately, our loud neighbors followed her into the hallway from their room. Meanwhile, my headache became increasingly worse. I tried to block out the loud, hyena laugh just outside my door. Finally, I decided I would go try to sleep down in the basement on the couch. It was 12:45 and my head hurt worse than ever. I waited until our neighbors went back into their room so that I wouldn't offend them, and then began the search for my keys. I couldn't find them anywhere. So I went out to the hall and got Jamie's and headed to the elevator with a pillow and blanket, the sound of our neighbors still echoing behind me. Luckily no one was down in the basement when I arrived, so I turned off the lights and tried to go to sleep on the anything but comfortable couch. Suddenly, about ten minutes into my attempt to rest, there was a head over the couch. At first I thought it was Jamie, but then i realized it was not. The girl looked startled and I sat up. "Uh," she said with her backpack on. "I'll just go study in another room." "No, no," I said. But she went anyway. That was enough for me in the basement. I flipped back on the lights and drug my blanket up the cold stairwell to the fourth floor. By this time it was 1:00 AM. I came into my room and Jamie was getting read to go to bed. I decided food might help me go to sleep. Food is always a good idea. So I broke out a bag of Quaker Rice Snacks (caramel corn) and a water and turned on my computer. Now here I sit, eating, drinking, and typing on this blog. Our neighbors have gone to get milk (???) and so for the first time all night the floor is silent. Jamie is asleep. And yet, I am up. Still writing, unable to go to bed. Ah, the joys of dorm life. The joys of headaches. The joys of sleep deprivation. The joys of wanting to pull your hair out of your scalp follicle by follicle. Goodnight.
My roommate had to study for a test and was talking on MSN. I thought that since I could fall asleep at the library, I could fall asleep with the light on and the tap tap tap of the keyboard as she chatted. However, the incessant tapping only caused my head to tap tap tap along with it, and soon I found myself trying every method imaginable to go to sleep. First, I was hot, so I took all the covers off. Then I tried covering my head with blankets. Gasping for air, I discarded that idea. Next, I got iPod and put it on soothing music to drown out the keyboard and the neighbors. I realized that it was only a new kind of noise. The computer screen was causing light to dark transitions, so I covered my head with the body pillow on my bed. Nope. Still nothing. Three times I got up and went and tried to sleep in the day room on the couch, but each time there was someone in there. So I would trudge back to the room and flop onto my bed. On the third attempt to occupy the day room, Jamie turned off her computer and went out in the hallway to study so that I could go to sleep. Unfortunately, our loud neighbors followed her into the hallway from their room. Meanwhile, my headache became increasingly worse. I tried to block out the loud, hyena laugh just outside my door. Finally, I decided I would go try to sleep down in the basement on the couch. It was 12:45 and my head hurt worse than ever. I waited until our neighbors went back into their room so that I wouldn't offend them, and then began the search for my keys. I couldn't find them anywhere. So I went out to the hall and got Jamie's and headed to the elevator with a pillow and blanket, the sound of our neighbors still echoing behind me. Luckily no one was down in the basement when I arrived, so I turned off the lights and tried to go to sleep on the anything but comfortable couch. Suddenly, about ten minutes into my attempt to rest, there was a head over the couch. At first I thought it was Jamie, but then i realized it was not. The girl looked startled and I sat up. "Uh," she said with her backpack on. "I'll just go study in another room." "No, no," I said. But she went anyway. That was enough for me in the basement. I flipped back on the lights and drug my blanket up the cold stairwell to the fourth floor. By this time it was 1:00 AM. I came into my room and Jamie was getting read to go to bed. I decided food might help me go to sleep. Food is always a good idea. So I broke out a bag of Quaker Rice Snacks (caramel corn) and a water and turned on my computer. Now here I sit, eating, drinking, and typing on this blog. Our neighbors have gone to get milk (???) and so for the first time all night the floor is silent. Jamie is asleep. And yet, I am up. Still writing, unable to go to bed. Ah, the joys of dorm life. The joys of headaches. The joys of sleep deprivation. The joys of wanting to pull your hair out of your scalp follicle by follicle. Goodnight.
Saturday, October 08, 2005
50 Things I Want for my Birthday!
My birthday is quickly approaching, and you know what that means....PRESENTS for ME! I realize that many might have trouble coming up with gift ideas. So, in order to aid you in your quest to shower me with treasures, I have produced the following list:
1. Gilmore Girls Seasons after Season 1
2. "Mona Lisa Smile" on DVD
3. A's on my Interior Design exam, as well as on my PSYCH midterm which happens to fall on my birthday.
4. Warm Clothes
5. The Key to the city (wait--Provo? Never mind.)
6. Pudding/Yogurt/Water (The essentials)
7. A new battery for my watch
8. To not have to be in the library studying on a Saturday morning like I am now
9. Stationary
10. "Little Women" on DVD
11. "Anne of Avenlea" and "Anne of Green Gables" on DVD
12. Warm, close-toed church shoes
13. World Peace
14. An English accent
15. High-calorie foods to be low-calorie foods and vice versa
16. A car
17. Lower gas prices
18. German Chocolate Cake
19. My real bed at home
20. Homemade Tacos
21. A scuba diving trip in warm water
22. A ski pass
23. Sleep
24. Letters in the mail
25. Anything in the mail
26. Any DVD's
27. A photographic memory
28. The ability to think of a destination and be there
29. Money towards my Europe backpacking trip in a year and a half
30. Musical talent
31. My tan
32. More pairs of pants
33. More clothes in general (if I can find room to put them!)
34. Cornbread and Stew/Chili/Corn chowder
35. To ride in a car
36. Chocolate Dessert/Apple Crisp
37. The new "Sabrina" on DVD
38. "A League of Their Own" on DVD
39. A blue BYU sweatshirt and shirt
40. To see my remodeled house finished
41. To hang out with my friends from home
42. To meet some really cool people here at BYU
43. Pumpkin Pie
44. To go to the Oregon Coast
45. Taco Salad
46. A Cannon Rebel Digital Camera
47. A new mini-ipod
48. A date
49. To go to the Sundance Film Festivel in Park City
50. A nap, right now. Goodbye!
Wednesday, October 05, 2005
Everything I Needed to Know I Learned in HEPE
At BYU, you are required to fulfill a wellness general ed. requirement. To do this, I am taking HEPE 129, which is a lifestyle management class (basically like sophmore health). I've decided that everything I will ever need to know in life, I will have learned in HEPE. Here they are.
1. If I eat a double-patty cheeseburger every day, I'll die.
2. If I don't exercise, I'll die.
3. If I don't eat wheat, I'll die.
4. If I don't eat fruits/vegitables, I'll die.
5. If I don't stretch, I'll die.
6. If I smoke, I'll die.
7. If I am fat, I'll die.
8. If I have poor posture, I'll be a hunchback first and then...I'll die.
9. If my parents die, I'll die.
10. If I live, I'll die.
1. If I eat a double-patty cheeseburger every day, I'll die.
2. If I don't exercise, I'll die.
3. If I don't eat wheat, I'll die.
4. If I don't eat fruits/vegitables, I'll die.
5. If I don't stretch, I'll die.
6. If I smoke, I'll die.
7. If I am fat, I'll die.
8. If I have poor posture, I'll be a hunchback first and then...I'll die.
9. If my parents die, I'll die.
10. If I live, I'll die.
Tuesday, October 04, 2005
What? Snow??
My holy freaking goodness. It is only October 4 and there is snow on the mountains as of today. And it is 40 degrees outside. I am so not going to make it.....Help!
Students Against Tuesdays
At BYU, there are a million clubs and organizations one can join. One can walk through the student center and could become a member of the Japan club, Southern Hospitality club, the Polynesian club, the rock climbing club, the prechiropractic club, the predentist club, blah blah blah. Wow. You would be one well rounded individual if you could bow, thank mams, dance with your tongue out, propel, crack necks, and fill cavities!
Today however, I go beyond sushi and Virginia. I want to talk about the movement to obliterate Tuesdays off of the calendar forever (or at least until the semester is over.)
Tuesdays are by far my longest days. I go to psychology at 9:30 for an hour and half; then there is a broadcast from the Marriott Center directly following it, Interior Design is at 12:00, religion is at 2, and my bio lab is from 4-4:50. So basically I'm at school from 9:15 to 5:00. It wouldn't be so bad if my classes went one right after another. Instead, I am forced to wait 45 min. to an hour in between.
Psychology isn't such a bad class. The subject, itself, is interesting. I'm kosher with PSYCH. On to Interiors, or should I say, HWJD (How Would Jesus Decorate). Now, I don't mean to be sacrilegious by any means. However, the professor routinely brings the church and the Savior into our lectures, sometimes to a point when you have to ask yourself if it's crossing the line. However, because of the stressed combination of secular vs. religion when it comes to Interior Design, I feel I have a better foundation upon which I can build my future home on. The materialistic aspect of design aside, the professor has stressed the importance of living within one's means and of living modestly even if one has the means. This has made an impact on me. I used to dream of the huge house, luxury cars, yadah yadah yadah. However, being in college and actually seeing the future so close in front me had caused me to rethink some of my priorities (and no, it's not because I've finally realized that I'll never be able to afford those things...). I want to have a modest house big enough for my family to live comfortably in. I want to have quality in a house, but not flashiness. The professor also stresses the importance of charity. She made a good point in saying that if you have the money, instead of buying, say the couch that costs $1000 more, take that $1000 and give it to a good cause. The world would be a better place...Ok, so I got off on a tangent, but hey, it happens after TUESDAYS! But in short, the professor is psychotic most of the time, but I appreciate the little things I can get out of the lectures. My religion class is good. It's my smallest with probably 40 students. I feel human.
And good old lovely Biology Lab. I won't go into any detail for I dedicated a blog entry to it awhile back. However, I will repeat: Biology is of the devil.
So in looking back on my Tuesday, I guess the classes themselves aren't the problem. It's really the long hours--and of course, the Bio Lab. To counteract the nonappealing nature of this day of the week, I treat myself to a terryaki chicken bowl from Terryaki Styx (which I am eating as I type) and then trudge home, the bag with my dinner dragging on the ground as I drag along with it. But then I am home, and I take a deep breath.
Today was an especially bad Tuesday. Though I find qualities in most of my Tuesday classes as I expressed above, the lectures seemed pointless and it poured and the wind blew, and my hands froze. Doesn't the weather man know I already detest Martes? Anyway, I suppose that is why today I feel a particular loathing towards Tuesdays and why I have just spent the last ten minutes rambling on this blog entry with really no major point or purpose in mind except for the desire to wipe the day of the week off of the calendar forever.
So in conclusion, if you find your Tuesdays to be as or more unbearable than mine, please stand and join me in bringing the day of the week to a destructive and permanent end. Who is with me?
Today however, I go beyond sushi and Virginia. I want to talk about the movement to obliterate Tuesdays off of the calendar forever (or at least until the semester is over.)
Tuesdays are by far my longest days. I go to psychology at 9:30 for an hour and half; then there is a broadcast from the Marriott Center directly following it, Interior Design is at 12:00, religion is at 2, and my bio lab is from 4-4:50. So basically I'm at school from 9:15 to 5:00. It wouldn't be so bad if my classes went one right after another. Instead, I am forced to wait 45 min. to an hour in between.
Psychology isn't such a bad class. The subject, itself, is interesting. I'm kosher with PSYCH. On to Interiors, or should I say, HWJD (How Would Jesus Decorate). Now, I don't mean to be sacrilegious by any means. However, the professor routinely brings the church and the Savior into our lectures, sometimes to a point when you have to ask yourself if it's crossing the line. However, because of the stressed combination of secular vs. religion when it comes to Interior Design, I feel I have a better foundation upon which I can build my future home on. The materialistic aspect of design aside, the professor has stressed the importance of living within one's means and of living modestly even if one has the means. This has made an impact on me. I used to dream of the huge house, luxury cars, yadah yadah yadah. However, being in college and actually seeing the future so close in front me had caused me to rethink some of my priorities (and no, it's not because I've finally realized that I'll never be able to afford those things...). I want to have a modest house big enough for my family to live comfortably in. I want to have quality in a house, but not flashiness. The professor also stresses the importance of charity. She made a good point in saying that if you have the money, instead of buying, say the couch that costs $1000 more, take that $1000 and give it to a good cause. The world would be a better place...Ok, so I got off on a tangent, but hey, it happens after TUESDAYS! But in short, the professor is psychotic most of the time, but I appreciate the little things I can get out of the lectures. My religion class is good. It's my smallest with probably 40 students. I feel human.
And good old lovely Biology Lab. I won't go into any detail for I dedicated a blog entry to it awhile back. However, I will repeat: Biology is of the devil.
So in looking back on my Tuesday, I guess the classes themselves aren't the problem. It's really the long hours--and of course, the Bio Lab. To counteract the nonappealing nature of this day of the week, I treat myself to a terryaki chicken bowl from Terryaki Styx (which I am eating as I type) and then trudge home, the bag with my dinner dragging on the ground as I drag along with it. But then I am home, and I take a deep breath.
Today was an especially bad Tuesday. Though I find qualities in most of my Tuesday classes as I expressed above, the lectures seemed pointless and it poured and the wind blew, and my hands froze. Doesn't the weather man know I already detest Martes? Anyway, I suppose that is why today I feel a particular loathing towards Tuesdays and why I have just spent the last ten minutes rambling on this blog entry with really no major point or purpose in mind except for the desire to wipe the day of the week off of the calendar forever.
So in conclusion, if you find your Tuesdays to be as or more unbearable than mine, please stand and join me in bringing the day of the week to a destructive and permanent end. Who is with me?
Saturday, October 01, 2005
30 Signs That I've Been at College for a Month
1. My deodarent is running low
2. My tan is saranara
3. I have forgotten how to drive a car
4. My stomach is saturated with Rasin Bran
5. My ID card has become my life
6. I don't talk to my family on the phone EVERY day
7. I need a haircut
8. I know what to expect on exams
9. I have 73 friends on Facebook
10. I'm starting to talk like a Utahan (idea= idih, picture = pitcher, figure = figur)...haha, YEAH RIGHT. That drives me NUTS!
11. I can see myself living in Oregon, even though one day I wanted to live everywhere else but there
12. I miss the weather in Oregon (who would have thought!)
13. I've definitely put on a little weight
14. My sheets are softer because I've washed them four times now
15. I have a territory established at the library
16. I've gone through almost two cases of water, two cases of yogurt, and six packages of sugar-free JELLO pudding
17. It's about time to open up a new tube of mascara
18. I sleep in the library
19. I can sleep through some of the noise in the dorm in the wee hours of the morning (key word: SOME)
20. My BYU nalgene is beginning to smell because I haven't washed it with soap since I got here
21. My toenail polish is almost completely worn off (how tackey! but who cares!)
22. I've gotten used to wearing flipflops in the bathroom
23. I appreciate my bed more than I did at home
24. I've read 3/4 of "The Idiot's Guide to Surviving College"
25. I was in the school newspaper (though I was just part of a line going into the Testing Center, but I was in the FRONT of the line looking at my flashcards)
26. I am soon going to have to break out the close-toed shoes
27. My aunt sent me Halloween decorations which I will put up tomorrow
28. I've had to recharge my iPod so many times I can't count (I think something might be wrong with the battery life!)
29. I know most of the girls on my floor by name
30. I know I will NEVER live in Utah
2. My tan is saranara
3. I have forgotten how to drive a car
4. My stomach is saturated with Rasin Bran
5. My ID card has become my life
6. I don't talk to my family on the phone EVERY day
7. I need a haircut
8. I know what to expect on exams
9. I have 73 friends on Facebook
10. I'm starting to talk like a Utahan (idea= idih, picture = pitcher, figure = figur)...haha, YEAH RIGHT. That drives me NUTS!
11. I can see myself living in Oregon, even though one day I wanted to live everywhere else but there
12. I miss the weather in Oregon (who would have thought!)
13. I've definitely put on a little weight
14. My sheets are softer because I've washed them four times now
15. I have a territory established at the library
16. I've gone through almost two cases of water, two cases of yogurt, and six packages of sugar-free JELLO pudding
17. It's about time to open up a new tube of mascara
18. I sleep in the library
19. I can sleep through some of the noise in the dorm in the wee hours of the morning (key word: SOME)
20. My BYU nalgene is beginning to smell because I haven't washed it with soap since I got here
21. My toenail polish is almost completely worn off (how tackey! but who cares!)
22. I've gotten used to wearing flipflops in the bathroom
23. I appreciate my bed more than I did at home
24. I've read 3/4 of "The Idiot's Guide to Surviving College"
25. I was in the school newspaper (though I was just part of a line going into the Testing Center, but I was in the FRONT of the line looking at my flashcards)
26. I am soon going to have to break out the close-toed shoes
27. My aunt sent me Halloween decorations which I will put up tomorrow
28. I've had to recharge my iPod so many times I can't count (I think something might be wrong with the battery life!)
29. I know most of the girls on my floor by name
30. I know I will NEVER live in Utah
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