Assignment 3

I have already realized the importance of making connections in my career at ISU. I am applying for several studies abroad, and the application process requires two letters of recommendation for each program. Obviously, I directly needed connections to be able to reach my goal of studying abroad, and, as I had already gotten to know a couple faculty members, I was able to ask them to write these letters for me. Also, I was interested in taking two courses that were closed to me this spring semester, butI was able to use my connections to get into both of these classes.

In order to make a successful connection with a mentor/potential letter of recommendation writer, I need to be able to respect and learn from that person. I have found that I make the strongest connections with those who teach passionately, share personal stories, and listen to and take seriously their students' ideas and opinions. (I also appreciate someone who teachers with a dry/satirical sense of humor.)

In the future, I hope to make more connections in the English, psychology, and women's studies departments, as I am studying all of these areas, and they all apply to my goal of researching and writing about sex and sexuality. I plan on getting involved in research through the Honors mentor program, which pairs freshman with faculty conducting research projects. I would be able to assist in the researching process, which would generate many connections between myself and knowledgeable faculty.

Without letters of recommendation, I will not be able to accomplish many of the things I have planned, including studies abroad, scholarships, and getting into grad school. It is therefore important for me to connect to faculty and other people who will be able to help me in this area.

Assignment 2

One of the clubs I've gotten involved in is Relationships On Campus. Although I went to ClubFest, I didn't join ROC until I learned more about the club after attending Sex After Dark a couple of weeks ago.

ROC promotes healthy sexual and intimate relationships among young adults. We promote education and awareness about sexual health and the differences between healthy and harmful intimate relationships. Some of our activites include the Red Bicycle Campaign (giving away free condoms) and an Advocates for Youth workshop on 31 October about healthy relationships.

There aren't specific leadership opportunities, but members have the option of designing their own program or "campus-based internship" within the club for one to three college credits. Based on your interests, you can work on media and publicity, community relations, writing, research, fundraising, and website development. I plan on centering my internship around writing about and researching issues concerning ROC.

My involvement in ROC is mostly due to my personal interst, but it also had an academic component: if I grow up, I want to be a sexologist. Ideally, I would research and write about sex and sexuality in connection with the brain. Therefore, getting involved in a club that studies sex and relationships and allows me to research and write about these issues is an excellent opportunity that will provide me with background experience in my chosen occupational field.

One more thing: ROC wants more members! If you're interested in joining, we meet at 6:30 on Wednesday nights in 311 East. :)

Assignment 1

As you've probably noticed, color guard is a pretty prevelant part of my life. (Don't worry; I promise I'll eventually start talking about things other than the fact that I'm in guard and how I'm busy because of marching band, etc, etc. :) ) I'm not sure why I'm so into it--admittedly, it is a random hobby--but it has consumed most of my time and effort from May to October for the past five years. During high school, our band would put in about 140 hours minimum per season, which, as a statistic, doesn't seem like that much, but that's quite a bit of rehearsal for a single show. Furthermore, we only have around eight performances per season, so each one has to count, or a lot of time and effort has been wasted, not to mention you feel physically ill when you step off the field disappointed in your work (as opposed to absolutely conquer-the-world euphoric when you know you've done your best).

Sidenote: I'm a performance junkie. For me, it's straight up the most addicting thing in existence. Marching onto a field to a crowd of several hundred or several thousand (or sixty thousand in Jack Trice) and knowing that every person in the stands is there to see me (because, honestly, the band sounds good and all, but they're pretty much just the flagline's soundtrack ;) ) is a fantastic feeling.

Our marching show my junior year was Nightmares--probably the most creative show ever composed. Our guard coach was this incredible lady who majored in theater and has been involved in the performing arts her entire life, so the guard work was superb. I even got a fun little solo in the beginning: we had a massive bed that this "little girl" got tucked in to, and when the music got creepy, I crawled out from under it and danced on it in a deliciously deranged way; then the rest of the gurad spread out from under the bed, which looked like a hoard of spiders and really spooked the audience. Simply put, it was stunning.

Our band had rocked all the competitions that season, and our last performance was at Ankeny. This, we knew, was it. We were standing at the gate all jittery and nervous, the drumline started the taps, we set on the field--and the sky burst open with this downpour of rain. Seriously, it was one of those torrential, Discovery channel, I-feel-like-I'm-in-a-shower kinds of percipitation. Our uniforms were drenched, our flags weighed about 20 pounds each and clung to us everywhere, our poles were crazy slick, and we had makeup running across every spot of exposed skin. But, come on: What's more perfect than Nightmares in a thunderstorm? ;)

Now that we all had to try about 10 times harder to play our horns, manuever our flags, or even freaking see, everyone in the band figured they might as well go all out. The sound: beautiful. The drill: clean (despite the mud ;) ). The flagwork: unbelievable. I have never been so adrenalized during a show before or since. I screamed scary nightmare noises through the entire show, and I looked and felt exquisite. Performing that show was the best feeling of my entire life.

Oh, two fun facts: 1) As soon as we marched off the field, the rain stopped. Not one more drop the entire night. 2) One guard member put so much force into this move (called a windmill) that she smacked herself in the nose and bled all over her face and neck. It was awesome. Morbid, yes, but remember, this was a Nightmares show. Pretty fitting, eh? :)

In order to replicate this feeling of harmonious excitement during my first semester at ISU, I should probably stay caught up on hw/class/band/clubs/other commitments so I have room to feel good and enjoy life instead of stressing all the time about what comes next. I should also relax just a bit and be sure to make time to interact with people, because getting caught in the rain with others is significantly more fun than weathering the downpour alone. Finally, I'll try new things, travel to exotic places, and experiment with new situations, because trying out for color guard was a random (lucky) decision in the first place.