Fall Break

Last week was fall break and sadly I didn't get to go home. I had to stay here because we had basketball practice everyday over break. It was boring at times because after practice all we could do was go sit in our dorms and since no one was here, there was no one to talk to. But at night we got together as a team and hung out. So we would usually have practice sometime in the morning until early afternoon then by 6 we would all hang out. One of the nights we had a team meeting and the coaches ordered pizza then after the meeting we went back to a girls house and watch Hocus Pocus. Then another night we had dinner at our coaches house and all hung out there and played games. But it was hard to hang out very late because everyone was usually tired from practice that day and we had to get up early the next morning for practice. On Saturday night, me, Anna, Sarah, Audrey and Bobbie all got together and hung out and played cards, watched movies and had dinner together then ended up having a sleepover that night. So I would have to say that was my favorite part of fall break. Even though it was nice having a break, I'm happy to have everyone back so we have more people to hang out with now.

Vocations Workshop

My first workshop that I went to today was the vocations workshop. I thought it was interesting to find out that 40% of incoming college students don't know what they want to study for their major. I was lucky enough to come in to college having an idea of what I wanted to do because I feel like that would be stressful not knowing. It's definitely helpful that they have people on campus to help guide you and give you ideas on a major because I'm sure that frustrates kids not having any idea of what to do. Another thing that is very helpful is that if you do have an idea for a major and you take classes for it and end up not liking it, then you can always change it. It's not like your tied down to that major for the rest of your life. I think that staff, advisors, and professors here at Wartburg are very helpful about stuff like that because they want to see us succeed. Vocation means "calling," and finding your calling in life is not an easy thing but when you do find it you feel like a weight has been lifted off your shoulders. You feel like you have a bright future ahead of you. Even though I have an idea of what I want my major to be, I know that if something goes wrong and I end up not liking it I can count on my advisor to help me figure things out and get back on track.

First Day of Practice

Sunday was our first official day of basketball practice and I loved it. We started out by gathering as a team in the middle of the court and talking about how practices are going to go all year and the coaches gave us a brief speech on our theme for the year. Then we started doing dynamic stretching and getting warmed up. After that, we worked on some drills to get warmed up. We pretty much did some cone drills and lay ups and stuff to get a light sweat going. Then we split up into posts, point guards and shooting guards and worked on some more drills. Then we all came back together and worked on different one-on-one scoring drills and then did transitioning drills as a team to get us running. After that  we started to talk about defense and went over the concepts of our defense, then did live drills with defense structure. To end the practice we worked on free throws and then introduced our new offense to the team and worked on the first option of it. After that we all gathered in the middle of the gym again and talked about the good and bad things that happened in practice that day then broke it down as a team. Some girls stayed and shot for awhile after then practice was done. I would have to say that for my first college basketball practice, it went good and I am looking forward to what this season is going to bring!

Most Difficult Class At Wartburg

Classes in college are definitely harder than classes in high school. In high school I was never good at math, for some reason it just doesn't come easy to me. The kind of classes that I like to take and that I am good at are English classes because I like to read. I like to read different kinds of books but right now I am in the middle of the Crank series. I think I like this series so much because it's about kids in high school who go through different problems with life, family, friends, drugs, ect. Then they have to find their way out of them and get their lives back on track. Another class, besides math, that I never liked in high school was Spanish. I could never pick up on what we were doing and I had the most difficult time with conjugating the verbs in spanish. When I started signing up for classes for Wartburg I would have had to take intermediate spanish because I took four years of it in high school but I didn't want to take that because I knew I was going to struggle with it. So instead I decided to take elementary  German because I thought I could catch on easier. I actually find elementary german really hard because my teacher is really hard to learn from. When she talks in german she tends to slur her words together so I can't understand what she is saying. Then she moves on from topic to topic even when kids have no idea what is going on. It's hard but I'm taking it one day at a time and counting down the days until the semester is over.

Preseason Basketball

It flew by, but preseason for basketball is almost over. We have our last work out tonight and it's a pool workout. Preseason is the time of year where the boys and girls basketball teams get today during the week and we do workouts that consist of agility, jumping, running, and lifting with our strength and conditioning coach. The workouts are hard but it makes it easier to do them when you have your team cheering you on. It gets us in shape and ready for season to start and it also brings us closer together as a team when we spend so much time together. Some of the workouts consisted of a lot of arm workouts like push up and then a lot of leg workouts like lunges and squats. But then we also had running which was a lot of sprints to be able to get up and down the court. Now preseason is coming to an end and we have our last workout before actual season starts. Our first official practice is this Sunday and I am nervous yet excited at the same time. I don't really know what to expect, I'm so use to high school season that I don't know how different college is. I know that I will be okay though because my team is very supportive and always there to help. I can't wait to start practicing and spend even more time with them.

The People I Have Met Here At Wartburg

I have only been here for a little over a month and I have already met some of the most amazing people.   My town isn't one of those small towns where everyone knows everyone but it's also not a town that's too big. But one thing about Dubuque is that the people there are very nosy and need to know everything about everyone and they are very judgmental. So it was nice to get out of there and come here to meet new people. So far the people that I have met have all been super nice and not judgmental at all, which is exactly what I have been looking for. The girls on my floor are awesome and we all get along so well. We all hang out together and can talk about anything with each other. The basketball team is everything I imagined it would be. The girls have already become like family to me. We spend so much time together and I know they have my back on anything. I have also met some other people on other floors of my dorm. The guys on the bottom floor are probably my favorite people I have met so far. They all play sports so I can talk to them about sports and they are all so laid back. The majority of them play baseball, and since my brother is the assistant coach of the baseball team they always talk about baseball with me. I love hanging out with them because we can find anything to do and it is never a dull moment with them. I can see all these people I have met here being my life long friends!

My Weekend

This past weekend was a good weekend for me because I got to see a family friend who we are very close to! Her name is Tracy Steffen and she actually use to work here at Wartburg. She use to be an athletic trainer here for the baseball team when my brother was a freshman and sophomore. That's how we first met Tracy and ever since then she has been very close with our family. I think of her more as the sister I never had! After Tracy decided not to be an athletic trainer here anymore, she got a job at John Deere in Dubuque and ended up not liking it so now she works at our catholic school in Dubuque. Tracy came up this weekend to visit the other trainers here and to watch all the different events going on up here the past weekend. I didn't get a chance to see her Saturday because I was at the football game and she was helping out with the volleyball tournament but I was so happy that I got to see her on Sunday before she left. She took me out to lunch and we hung out in the afternoon and she brought me some stuff I forgot at home. I was so excited to see her because I haven't been able to see my parents or one of my brothers since I moved in here. So seeing her was like seeing my family and just being able to see someone and talk to someone I'm so close to was definitely something I needed. I definitely miss my parents and I can't wait for them to come up this weekend for homecoming!

Homecoming Weekend

Homecoming weekend is in a week and I'm pretty excited about it because my parents are coming up to tailgate for the football game. I haven't got a chance to go home at all yet because I've been so busy with basketball during the week and on weekends, it's just not worth the drive. So I am excited for them to come up and see me. They getting here in the morning and setting up their spot for tailgating. There are other parents from the baseball team that are cooking out with them all day. My parents have been coming up for homecoming weekend for the past four years when my brother went here and now they are going to do it for the next four years that I am here. Not only am I excited to see my parents but I am also excited for the food they are bringing! I think they are cooking burgers and brats then they are bringing all kinds of chips and dips and desserts with them. My dad also promised me he would make me chocolate chip cookies and bring them up to me.