Pressure

There is so much pressure when it comes to school. Pressure to do things with your dorm mates, pressure to meet everyone, pressure to act like you're perfect. It's funny that everyone says they love transparency, and hardly anyone actually is. I feel like hiding in my room so no one sees me in my imperfection.

Michael and I have both found it hard to be in a school full of young men and women. We almost can't help comparing ourselves. At first it was really hard not to, but now we've gotten a little better. I don't feel quite so inferior anymore. At Pierce, there were many different age groups. One of my favorite study partners was Lori, who was closer to my parents' age than mine. Here, hardly anyone is older than 25. They're trying to partner us up with "mentors" who are sophomores and juniors.

On a happier note, I like the people in my dorm. We'll probably eventually all warm up to each other. My Old Testament Professor is stinking hilarious, I love his class. He brought a giant bendy tube to class the first day and showed us that we were supposed to be "in" the Bible by getting into the tube and speaking out of it. I won't forget THAT lesson! :)

 I absolutely love my nursing labs. We all get together and either pretend to be the nurse or the patient, and it can get really funny. I've been learning how to act professionally around ornery patients, schizophrenics, patients that weigh over 500 lbs, etc. Of course, these are all pretend scenarios, but later we will really be going to the hospital and using our skills with real people! Exciting!! All we've really learned is hand washing and how to make a bed (an OCCUPIED bed, too!), but that's where we have to start! I know I can do the skills and academics here. I just have to find a group of people that I get along with. :)

I love you guys!! If you have any questions, feel free to ask!
Oh, and if you want my address, facebook me!

The Banana Challenge and Other Exciting Adventures

Today we had the Banana Challenge, the annual, school-wide relay race. It was pretty fun! Every dorm dressed up differently and then ran a crazy relay all across campus. There were the creepers, the cross-dressers, the guys-who-only-wore-underwear(guys REALLY like to take their shirts off around here), the where's waldos, the painters (dressed up in big white painter's suits -- Michael's dorm!), the unicorns, the clowns, the mimes, the-guys-who-wore-girls'-swimsuits (two pieces -- eww!! But they wore short shorts on the bottom, at least), the posers, and last but not least... The ALIENS! :) That was my dorm, of course! We painted our bodies green, wore green shirts, and created aluminum foil accessories. It was pretty cool. :) No one else painted their entire bodies like we did, so people thought our costumes were funny.

In  the relay we had to take a banana through a series of obstacles, such as completing a kid's puzzle with oven mitts on, diving into a tiny pool filled with water and flour, spinning around with a bat seven times and sprinting toward the other end of the field (my obstacle! I was thrilled because I was actually better than the other people who were racing me -- I must have good balance.), going through a slip-and-slide, etc. At the end, we had to make a pyramid and the person on top had to eat the banana and drink an entire sprite. It was hilarious. :)

We didn't win the relay (even though we were fast) because we had a guy on our team. I don't know who decided to have him on there, but it ended up being a bad thing. I heard we were penalized an entire minute, which completely knocked us out of the race. But it didn't matter -- it was fun! :)  

Other than that, I have tons of homework already. My dorm wants to go out to Denny's tonight and spend the day at the beach and church tomorrow, but I'm going to have a movie night with Michael (yay!) and spend tomorrow doing homework and reading for my new job, even though I would honestly rather go to the beach and church. Which reminds me -- I got the library job!! I don't remember who I told about the interview, but I was interviewed for a job in the library (and I felt REALLY good about the interview) and I got it! It made me feel so good. :) Now I hope I'll have a little extra money.

People have asked Michael and I SO many times if we started dating since we got here. It's really annoying. I want to introduce us to new people like this: "Hi, I am Allie and this is Michael, my boyfriend. We have been dating for five months. Yes, I did say that. FIVE MONTHS." But last night one guy thought we weren't first years, so that almost made up for it. :) (And honestly, it's not a big deal. It's just a little surprising that people think we got together in less than a week. Sheesh!)

Michael and I are going to try and take the bus tomorrow when we have a study break. I need to buy scrubs and a watch that shows seconds. I took my spending money out of the bank (now it's in Canadian currency! How weird!) and I am ready to use it on the things I need. College is more expensive than I thought it would be, socially. Everyone is wanting to go out to Value Village to get costumes, go out to eat, and go out for the day, which always ends up costing something. I have to be careful about what I do and don't do. So far, the only thing I've gotten outside of the cafeteria has been a snack out of the snack machine. I'm doing good! :)

Anyway, I've already written a novel, so I'll leave it at that. I love and miss you guys!

An American Student in a Canadian World

It is weird being an American in a different country. The other day, someone was talking about how hot it had been on some day during the Summer -- thirty degrees! Whoa! I was confused as to what in the world they meant until I realized that everyone knows Celsius here. Good thing I didn't say anything. :) And the annoying thing about living here -- my money is worth less. I didn't realize how annoying it would be, but exchanging money in general isn't a lot of fun. Oh well! Soon I'll be an old pro. :)

Orietation Week has not been a lot of fun for me, but I'm sure it will get better. It was basically a week of insanity and leaders trying to get you to meet the whole campus before classes start. Hanging out with people I really don't know stresses me out as it is, but to be introduced to fifty people every day? I wish they were more sensitive to our vulnerable position and let us have some peace. However, just the name games, ice breakers, and silly speed dating (it was okay one time, but I was sick of them by date three) got under my skin. I have a really good connections group and I'm looking forward to my classes.

I have made a few acquaintances here. I've discovered it is hard to balance Michael and other dorm buddies -- if I'm not completely spontaneous, my dorm leaves me behind. I'm working on figuring out the balance.

My teachers seem fabulous. The faculty is really what I am looking forward to here. The nursing staff is really passionate about what they do, and it is such an amazing experience to have Christ in the classroom. It is obvious at every turn, and here they aren't afraid to say what they believe. I never would have gotten that at a state college or at Pierce. That is what really makes me glad I came here. I got to visit a faculty's home yesterday with my connections group, and we visited Professor Eriksen. She seems really amazing and very Godly. She is definitely passionate about people. She baked us cookies and sliced watermelon for us -- it was very fun. :)

Okay, a random side note -- I am ALWAYS hungry here. Why? I have no idea. DAD, I MISS YOUR FOOD. SO MUCH. Why aren't there any leftovers in the fridge...? The food is definitely average here. I had the first meal that I actually enjoyed yesterday, but I'm not sure if that was because it was really tasty or because I was starving.... Oh well! At least I loved it. :)

Oh, and one more thing before I go! Freshmen went to Stanley Park yesterday, it was a lot of fun! I saw wild otters and seals swimming in the water!! They were really close, too! It was a really unexpected, happy surprise.

Anyway! I am getting more comfortable here, so that's good! :) Not everything is as easy or fun as I expected, but classes are beginning and I am thrilled about that. That is something I know I can do. :)

I love all of you and miss you!! Family, church family, friends!! (Marissa, I've been thinking about you in particular a lot lately... I wish you were here! Everyone at Trinity is my age and it gets really monotonous. I miss you!)

Lots of love to everyone!!

First day!

Hey everyone!!

 I miss you guys. All of you. HOWEVER, I am happy to be at Trinity. My first day has been crazy, and I learned many useful things. One of which is: NEVER get the pre-packaged cafeteria sushi. Ugh!!

I met my roommate, and I like her a lot. We have a ton in common and I think we'll get along really well this year. We hung out, ate lunch together, and have been talking in our dorm. Woohoo! :)


Today we packed everything into the car, drove the very clogged highway to Trinity, and unpacked when we got there. Michael and I had to squash our stuff into the car -- good thing we had a Thule, otherwise it wouldn't have fit! It was fun getting my stuff into my room, but then my parents had to leave... That was sad. :( Afterward, Elyce came in and I was still all puffy-eyed and sniffling. What a first impression! :)

We did a very interesting thing today: Douglas speed-dating. They said it was a Douglas (which is the name of my dorm) tradition. It was just a get-to-know-each-other activity, so it's not like I was actually dating other guys. It was fun, although we did it outside in the dark, so I have absolutely no idea who I met, everything said and done. My RAs were very interested in Michael, and one of them said they'd be keeping an eye on me - she was joking, of course. :) I think about 99% of the people here at Orientation week are single. I guess it makes sense, but the lack of other couples is still a little weird. I guess people usually break up right before college...? Who knows?

They had a little performance for us with lots of singing and dancing -- it was pretty funny. They made a speech about not caring about being cool. Appropriate for our age group and for our time of life. I hope everyone (including me) takes it to heart. Although, I've never been cool... I don't expect to be cool now. ;)

I am SO tired from all the activity today and am ready for a good night's sleep! Phew! But I'm glad I got to post to tell you guys about my first day. It was good and I look forward to the rest of the week! I especially  look forward to the start of classes... I can't wait!


I love and miss you all!