Awwwwwww 

equal opportunities... by rachel

So here is the latest installment of the adventures of Food Science class. Today was none other than "Farm Day." Woot! We met behind the Ag. building and climbed into two old vans. Prof. Clark drove one and Jessica followed in the other. I rode in Jessica's which also held such lovely people as Ashley and Clay. Fun times, let me tell you. As we were driving down the road, I jokingly suggested that we just keep going and not follow Prof. Clark... It seemed like a nice day to spend in Lexington. :) Well, everyone thought that was a great idea, and as soon as the van ahead put on their blinker to turn into the farm, we all yelled at Jessica to keep going. Everyone was laughing so hard. Jessica swerved between the right lane and the turn lane for a second or two, saying, "No! No, I can't!" the whole time. Then, as Prof. Clark slowed and turned, Jessica kept on driving straight. The van erupted. I was crying I was laughing so hard, and Clay was about to have a hernia in the front seat. Jess then decided she'd better turn around, so, instead of waiting on a road to turn around on, she just did a U-turn in the 15 passenger van. It was great.

Finally we arrived at the farm and we all got out to see the cows. Clay walked straight up to the fence and started talking to the "puppies" as he called them. As Prof. Clark lectured about cows and beef, etc., Clay decided he wanted to feed one of them. So, careful to not touch the electric fence, he held out a handful of grass to a nearby cow. It started nibbling then sneezed. I don't think it liked Clay's grass. As we were walking away, Clay declared that he wanted to come out and read to the cows, they looked like they needed some entertainment. I told him this school was equal opportunity after all, why leave out cows?

Next was the pigs. One in particular caught Clay's attention. It was the male hog with balls the size of my head. I'm not kidding! They were HUGE! Since Jody had the camera for the yearbook with her taking snapshots, Clay climbed into the pen (with help from our Professor) to take a picture "to put on the internet." As soon as he got in, the pig ran... it looked painful. Jody got a great shot of Clay timidly looking at the pig's rear. Once Clay got his shot, he headed back for the gate. Mr. Pig didn't like this apparently because he ran for Clay and rammed him in the leg. Clay doubled over he was laughing so hard. The pig got Clay's farmer overalls dirty though. After that, he decided he wants to be a farmer, but one that doesn't have to do any work... He wants to be a supervisor farmer. I think he just likes wearing overalls. I told him it was a little better than his former ideal career of sitting on the benches on college square heckling young women. Maybe.

We also got to see llama beans... I almost stepped in a pile. AND lambs. I even got to hold a baby lamb. One was born with a deformed hip structure and broken legs. Because of this deformity, it will never be able to walk and its mother abandoned it. Poor thing. It pulled itself along by its front legs; its hind legs were in tiny red casts.

I admire my freshman roommate for all she does out there... she would always come back with stories, and I never quite understood. She got to give us the tour today, and she was so in her element. It was good to see her like that. Go Jess!

THEN, to top off an already awesome morning, none other than Jaime joined us for lunch in food service. I miss him!! I miss eating with all the guys. It was awesome to hang out with him even if it was for half an hour.

So... the moral of this post is... well... watch out for hogs with big balls... and... yeah, I guess that's about it. :)

TYPING IN ALL CAPS BY HANNAH

I'm not really going to type in all caps. That was for Kate ProcreKate Two Boobs Farrell herself.
It is Monday, and I am fading. I am physically, emotionally, and intellectually tired. Today has seemed nothing but an endless succession of busy nothings and disappointments.
I went home this weekend, which was both good and hard. I love being with my family, but I seem to have a difficult time going home and losing that which I treasure so much- my independence. When I go home I turn into a 16 year old again, and I don't know about you guys, but I don't really like feeling 16. It's not even just that my parents treat me like I'm 16- it's me too. I have to keep reminding myself that I'm 20, and I have a good life.
Today at work I had the lovely priviledge of being the middle man in an argument between two professors. The argument happened to be about 4 tables in the drawing studio that one professor wants/needs for his class and the other requires to be moved for his class.
Also, my stress-fractured foot of last year is causing trouble again: at the moment I have some gauze padding and a sticky ace bandage around it to "remove the pressure" but it doesn't seem to be helping much. My foot is kind of red and swollen. As much as I loved wearing das boot, I would really like to not return to it. Even though it gained me one good nick name. I'm thinking about ice as a really good idea at the moment, because then it stops swelling, and it's numb so I can't feel anything!
I got a very disappointing quiz back today, in which my professor (Sometimes referred to as "Dr. Satan") took 7 points off of an essay and didn't even mark anything.
Because of this, and other things, my general feeling about life right now is that nothing I do is enough for anyone else. I'm not speaking of my friends so much as professors, people I work for/with, my family sometimes, and so on. It really isn't like I go around trying to please other people, but it is discouraging to see that no matter what I'm doing, how much I'm trying, how hard I'm studying, I can't seem to make a difference.
On a happier note, tonight is my first night of Berea Buddies! I can't wait to see Cheyenne, the coolest kid EVER.
Also, I WILL NEVER STOP LAUGHING because of this equation:
my stalker+fertig=LOVE.
I WILL NEVER STOP LAUGHING.
And the week is looking up- Friday I get my airfare to Lancaster! I found out last week that I will be in England for SIX MONTHS. That's a really long time, eh? And I get my plane tickets on Friday. Uber exciting.
One last thought, something I learned about myself is that I bestow compassion when I want to, when I like the person I am bestowing it upon most of the time. I realized that isn't compassion. That's choosing who to sympathize with.

the joys of food science by rachel

So, I went to my lab science class today, The Science of Society's Food Supplies (or something to that effect). It was yet another adventure. Prof. Clark handed out a sheet of paper that included most things that humans eat. This list included the "normal" american diet such as different fruits, meats, and vegetables, as well as things like eel, caterpillars, and something called a filbert. He then pulled out a plate covered in little fried balls of something, each stuck with a toothpick. "Whoever can figure out what this is, wins the technically edible thing in this cardboard box," he said. The phrase 'technically edible' should have clued us in. We each took one of the unidentified fried balls. After staring at it for a while, I bit a piece off. It tasted like chicken (I know, I know), but the texture was a little off. I had no clue what it was. I decided that before I ate any more of it, I needed to know what it was. Just in case. You never know. Yusef, a guy in my class, said he thought it was wheat. And indeed it was. I ate a fried wheat ball. A ball of wheat. So, Yusef was the grand prize winner of whatever Prof. Clark had in his cardboard box. Knowing how the class has gone so far this semester, everyone scooted as far back from the box as possible. Once again, just in case. As he slowly began to pull the flaps up, we could hear scratching noises coming from the box. Then, all of a sudden, out flew... a pigeon. Yes. A pigeon. As it flew just above our heads in circles, a girl in my class began to freak out. She climbed under the table and sat there until Mr. Pigeon found a perch on a cabinet in the back of the classroom. As soon as it had landed, she grabbed her stuff and ran out of the room. I don't think she is much of an animal person. Mr. Pigeon just sat there for the rest of class time and stared at us. Yusef decided to give his prize up for adoption and left him in the room at the end of class. Poor Mr. Pigeon.

Sex and Berea by Hannah and Rachel

Hannah is the dictator. Rachel is the typer. NO, I'm NOT typing that, Hannah! I am so allowed to say no to the dictator! We are so stupid.

We'll start with babysitting. This past weekend, we babysat 2 four year old red-headed twin girls (that Hannah had at the daycare this summer) and their two year old little brother for seven and a half hours!!! Yeah... long day. It was hilarious though. They constantly kept saying, "Rachel, I forgot your name." Dalton, the little boy, got tired in the afternoon and got grouchy. While watching "Sleeping Beauty," he got extremely upset when Prince Philip was given the shield of virtue. He beat his chest, yelled, covered his face, began to walk out of the room, and ran smack into the wall. Hannah and I tried soooo hard not to laugh out loud. It was hard. At snack, Hannah took Aleigha to the bathroom. Emma looked around, then stole a Dorito off of her sister's plate. I said, "I saw that!" and she just grinned at me like the cheshire cat. It was all great fun.

Oooooh, we have been given snob names now, too! A few weeks ago, Hannah, Keith, Kate, and Booger were eating at the Mexican Hardee's when Booger told his favorite freshman story of every year... when a freshman girl hits on him (Booger has a boyfriend). This year's model decided to call him Patrick instead of his name (Thomas). After Booger told the story, he decided to give everyone else snob names as well. From hence forth we shall be called Sarah (Hannah), Kelly (Kate), Bradley (Keith), and Stacy (Rachel, who was there in spirit... no really!). So now we get really confused when we talk to each other.

And Eric was eating with Hot Mess #1. YUCK.

And old men wear red pants. (new favorite Dr. D quote)

And Hannah is going to marry her boyfriend, Rufus Wainwright, which I use in the loosest sense of the word since he is clearly a homosexual. And she's going to England for SIX months. And Rufus is from England. So yeah, that's what she's doing.

We shall overcome by rachel

The highest form of bliss is living with a certain degree of folly. ~ Desiderius Erasmus

Do I believe this? I guess if you are happy despite the 'folly' then you can't get much happier. Now.... how do I get there...

Life is throwing me more and more curveballs and I just have to sit back and take them because at this point there is nothing I can do. God is my steady rock. I know that if I seek His will, He will show me the path I am to take.

Let nothing disturb thee,
Nothing affright thee;
All things are passing;
God never changeth.
~ St. Teresa of Avila

I am focusing on searching out the blessings I have been given to help me through the hard times. Today was unpromised, yet here I am. I woke up and had a good devotional time, then babysat for a few hours. This little 2 year old boy is hilarious. We played lots of trains and blocks (which I built into elaborate buildings under his direction and he knocked over) and Blue's Clues and light saber. Can't live without the light saber. :) He will look at you with his big eyes, searching your face for something, and then grin with his little dimples showing... It makes me smile every time. The walk over and back was nice, too. It is finally not raining, and it smelled like Bath and Bodyworks outside. Last night was good, too. I had practice for Chamber Singers auditions and had a blast. The music is easy this semester, and I accidentally spit on Kelly. But don't feel too sorry for her, she licked me. :-/ THEN I had a conversation that cleared up a lot in my own head and heart. I understand more now. I have a long row to hoe, but my best friend and I will make it.

My heart is still heavy, but it is lifting with hope. I will be where God wants me, which is where I want to be, and where I will be happiest. I have a lot to change in myself, but while I am on my way there, God is taking care of me.

Although the world is very full of suffering, it is also full of the overcoming of it. ~ Helen Keller

God is GOOD! by rachel

Why do I worry? Why do I doubt that God can't handle my life? My very dear friendship is back. God is awesome!! And so are you, Hil. I am so blessed. Thank you.

Living the Crazy Life indeed by rachel

So, I'm sitting here in our single dorm room (that Hannah and I share... yeah, it's small) on the 3rd day of classes which happens to also be a Friday. Praise the Lord. I just got off the phone with my younger brother (who is no longer my little brother as he surpassed me in height years ago) and am now listening to some Toad the Wet Sprocket. School wise, this has been an encouraging half week of classes. Mine seem really interesting and fun. My Food Science class is filled with really good friends... they even fought over who got to sit next to me. :) Thanks guys. Work is going to be ok, seeing as I have been through the routine before. I'm not terribly looking forward to the lovely retreat this weekend, I'm kind of sick of talking about service and just want to do some, but it comes with the territory of my job. Fortunately, I don't have much homework to stress me out while I am gone. The rest of my life, by the world's opinion, should be in shambles, but God is holding me together. I lost a very dear friendship yesterday... I just hope down the road she will be able to understand my actions. I don't blame her for hers. I wish there was a better way to deal with all the crap. My Hannah has been keeping me sane, too. I was super stressed out when my term bill issues were out of my hands and I couldn't even by books, and when I found out that our bathroom is bigger than our actual room. God has shown me how cynical and unfaithful I am, though. We rearranged the room, and I love it now. The term bill issue is also worked out and I have text books, thanks to my wonderful parents. I hate to have started a school year off like this, but God is wild, and I am just along for the ride. I hope I don't trip up too much... I hope that I am still seen as someone that shines with God. I try so hard...