I'm still alive

I realize that it's been a month since I last posted a blog entry, but I am still alive out here. ;) With finals and a host of other things going on in April and early May, blogging was not my top priority. However, now that the semester is over (*hallelujah chorus begins to play*), I will have more time for blogging and plan to make it a priority over the summer. I intend to sit down and list my goals for the summer over the next couple of days and create a summer routine. After finishing my last final on Tuesday, I spent the majority of last week just relaxing when I wasn't at work (summer break means more hours--but at least that leads to a bigger paycheck). But I'm not one to sit around without any real plans for long, so I plan to fix that this week.

Probably the most exciting plan for the upcoming summer that I have at the moment is a journalism practicum (basically, a fancy word for a part-time internship). Beginning in June, I will be a summer intern with the news department at WBIR. I am thrilled to have the position and look forward to the opportunity to gain real-world experience in the journalism field. I am also excited about working with the people at WBIR.

I also plan to spend as much time as possible with my friends over the summer simply hanging out, having fun and relaxing. :)

I'll probably post more of my summer plans later, but for right now, this is all I have beyond the beginnings of a summer reading list.

I now own a video camera!

Yep. I finally bought a digital video camera Saturday night. I've been eyeing it for a while so when I noticed it was on sale, I bought it with my income tax refund money. It's pretty sweet. :)

I've been playing around with it some, but haven't had too much time to do a lot of exploring with it. After the next couple of weeks of school are over, I hope to get out and do more with it.

I have discovered, however, that my outgoing younger brother is a budding movie star and producer all in one six-year-old package. ;) If my camera is out, he is in front of it. And if I'm recording him, and he knows it, he will not hesitate to say, "Hey, Sissy, film this. Now film me. Now film this." I have some funny videos of him--some where he knows the camera is on and some where he doesn't--that I will try to post to YouTube in the near future. When I do I will also post an entry on the blog.

My sister also enjoys the spotlight. She loves drama and acting, so she's not one to run away from my camera either. I filmed a hilarious video of her lip-synching to a Relient K song and totally dramatizing it. I plan to post that one as well.

Owning a video camera is going to be fun and I can't wait to see what memories I'm able to capture and preserve on film.

Lady Vols make it to eight

The Lady Vols won their second consecutive national championship last night in a decisive 64-48 win against Stanford, bringing them to a grand total of eight national titles. Go Vols!

I am so proud of my team! They played a great game last night and have had an awesome season. There is no doubt in my mind that they've earned their back-to-back titles.

While most of the attention given to the team seems to center around team superstar Candace Parker, the entire team has played well all season to get them to where they are. And that's not to make it sound like Parker hogs all the attention--I think she does a great job of working with her team and not drawing all the attention to herself. Someone with her skills and the long list of accolades she possesses just naturally attracts more attention. But I think one of the key factors to the Lady Vols continued success is that they work together well as a team. Pat Summitt doesn't just coach a few players, she builds and guides a team and does a darn good job of it.

So congratulations, Lady Vols!

Also, congratulations to the five graduating seniors. In addition to winning a second national championship title,. they all had a great day in the WNBA draft today. Candace Parker (first pick in the first round) and Shannon Bobbitt (first pick in the second round) will play together for the Los Angeles Sparks, Alexis Hornbuckle (fourth pick in the first round) went with the Detroit Shock, Nicky Anosike (second pick in the second round) signed on with the Minnesota Lynx and Alberta Auguste (seventh pick in the third round) will join the New York Liberty. I wish them all good luck as they embark on their professional careers. They will definitely leave behind quite a legacy.

Give me, O Lord, a thankful heart

That has been the cry of heart lately. Help me to be more thankful, Lord.

I'm not nearly thankful enough. When I stop to think about it, I am so blessed it's ridiculous. So why is my heart not overflowing with thanksgiving all the time (as it should be)? Why have I caught myself whining more than giving thanks lately?

I am thankful that God has been opening my eyes to my lack of thanksgiving. I'm starting to really hear what I'm saying when I'm whining or complaining--and I don't like it at all.

Instead of being thankful that I am able to go to school--and even able to do it at very little monetary cost with no loans of any kind--I've found myself whining about wanting to be finished, how much I don't want to do my assignments or UT's policies. Instead of being thankful that I have a well-paying job (for a college student) with a flexible schedule, good atmosphere, and a good boss who thinks highly of me-- I whine about the things that don't go right at work. I've whined about the weather, fatigue, etc.

So I'm asking God to help me be more thankful, a prayer he seems all to ready to answer. And he is. Also as my friends, if you notice me whining, don't be afraid to bring it to my attention and gently tell me to stop. I won't mind.

Enter his gates with thanksgiving and his courts with praise; give thanks to him and praise his name. For the LORD is good and his love endures forever; his faithfulness continues through all generations.
Psalm 100:4-5

Spring fever in full force

Well, it's that time of year. Spring is finally here! But this year, along with the joyous excitement of spring, I just realized I am suffering from an acute case of spring fever. I think it's been years since I've had it this bad (one of the reasons why I haven't blogged in a while--just too darn restless). As I was staring blankly at my computer screen a few minutes ago, the thought finally occurred to me that maybe the restlessness I've been fighting since spring break has a name: spring fever. So being in a bored state of mind, I decided to Google "spring fever" and see what I could find. I found an interesting definition of the malady on Answers.com. It describes me to a T right now, with the exception of the laziness. I'm still getting things done, I'm just really restless and not quite as productive as I usually am. So maybe that makes me a little lazy, but at least I'm not skipping class, ignoring assignments or calling in to work.

I guess I'll just have to keep persevering through the next few weeks and fight my way through this. Summer will be here before I know it...

Spring Break is over

Yesterday marked the return to school after a wonderful Spring Break. *sigh* I had an absolute blast. I didn't travel anywhere and didn't do anything "spectacular," yet this was the greatest spring break ever. So what was so special? I spent lots of time with the greatest friends on the face of the earth. With an extra Friday on break this year, I was able to spend the majority of two weekends, and some time in between, with my closest circle of friends. I savored every minute of it. It felt great to be able to meet a friend for dinner, watch a movie, walk around downtown with a group of friends, and so forth without having to worry about assignments. What a godsend! I really didn't want to come back this week.

Also, it seems that in recent weeks I have grown closer to a few of my friends and felt a stronger connection with them--making the quality time I spent with them over spring break even more precious. That is the primary reason I did not want to return to school. Don't get me wrong--I absolutely love learning. I really do. I always have and I always will. But I'm ready to take it outside the confines of a university and begin real-life learning. I only have one more year of school left and only six more weeks in this semester, but I am so ready for it to be over. I'm ready to take what I've learned in class and actually apply it. But I'm also ready to be able to spend my spare time with my friends and family, not poring over books for class. While doing well in class will help me in my future job, it's not my GPA that will matter at the end of my life. It's my walk with Christ, the relationships I've formed and the people that have been by my side throughout this crazy experience we call life. That's what counts. And that's what I celebrated over break.

Life-saving dolphin aids whales

The dolphin is my favorite animal. A quick little known fact about me: I wanted to be a marine biologist for a couple of years as a preteen. I love the ocean and ocean life, so I thought it would be cool to study it for a living. Those of you who know me can go ahead and laugh. Don't worry, I changed my mind about marine biology. While I like studying marine biology (and general biology as well), I figured if I couldn't stand the thought of being out on the ocean in a small to medium-sized boat then I probably shouldn't major in it.

Crushed career dreams aside, I still think dolphins are amazing creatures. Not only are the cute, funny and intelligent, but occasionally they have been proven to save lives. As I was browsing through MSNBC.com earlier trying to see what was happening around the nation and the world, I stumbled upon this article. Apparently a dolphin in New Zealand helped lead two stranded pygmy sperm whales, a mother and her calf, to safety. How sweet. Dolphins prove their intelligence and compassion once again!