Life Analysis: Swimmin'

SKIP TO THE BOTTOM FOR ANALYSIS.

For those of you who don't know me personally one of the biggest aspects of my life for the last 10+ years has been swimming.  I started swimming when I was 4 or 5 and took swim lessons until 2nd or 3rd grade.  I always thought I would be a dancer, but when all my friends from dance started doing competition dancing and my parents wouldn't let me, I decided to put all of my time and energy into swimming.  At first I tried the whole do swimming and dancing but it quickly became too much.  In the beginning of 3rd grade my competitive instinct took over.  I hung up my tap shoes and ballet slippers for good.

5th grade was when it started getting a little more intense.  My relay placed 4th at the state meet which was a very memorable experience because we not only got to go up on the podium in front of everyone but I also got my first taste of what hard work could do.  Middle school and early high school summers were filled with 6:00-8:30 am practices Monday through Friday with doubles, weights from 2:00-3:00 and practice from 3:00-5:00 pm MWF.  During the school year I would go to practice before school at 5:30 and after my dad would pick me up with oatmeal in a thermos to eat on the drive to school.  After school I would go home and do my homework so that I could go to practice again in the evenings.

During the summer before my 7th grade year my parents decided that it might be a good idea for me to try out for the high school team.  My mom and I went to visit and I was a little intimidated by all the older girls.  I decided that I needed another year before I would feel ready to join the team so I waited and then joined the team my 8th grade year.  For some reason I joined the team a little late so I missed the first couple of meets, however at my first high school meet my coach put me in my first varsity race, the 200 freestyle.  I'm actually terrible at freestyle but I still remember getting 5th place and scoring my first point!!!

Junior and senior years of high school were when life and swimming collided.  Up until my junior year I had thought that I would for certain swim in college.  I really wanted the experience of being a collegiate athlete and I thought that swimming was the most important part of my life.  I not only trained a ridiculous amount those two years, around 20 hours a week, but I also met a really solid group of friends who were not swimmers who I am still really close with to this day.  My times also improved dramatically and I achieved my first set of speedo cuts in the 100 fly and 100 bk.

In the end I decided to not swim in college because I wanted a more classic college experience.  I wanted the opportunity to be involved on campus, and not be confined to just making friends with the girls on the team and the other athletes.  This has probably been one of the best decisions that I've ever made.  So far I've not only gotten to know some of the most interesting and intelligent people I've ever met but I have also met some of my best friends.  The people that I've met in college have really made my experience thus far and I'm so thankful to have them in my life.

I learned a lot in my many years of swimming:  time management, hard work, determination, preservation, setting goals, dreaming big, believing in the impossible, focus, courage, strength, discipline.  But more importantly I learned that while all those characteristics are important and have helped to make me who I am it is equally important to have great friends standing by your side and enjoying every moment of life.

MOST INCREDIBLE RACE I'VE EVER SEEN. #whyiswim #lessonsappliedtolife

Oh.  And a side note.  I'm still swimming.

JKS.
Kat

  

Country Challenge

Today I was sitting in my room studying for my economics midterm tomorrow when Jason Aldean's "My Kind of Party" came on.  That's when it dawned on me that I hadn't ever finished my blog post on country music!  An interesting observation that I've had since coming to college is that very few people here like country music.  SO WEIRD.  It's not like I've grown up in the deep south or in Hickville, U.S.A., I just really like country twang.

Reasons people don't like country music are generally as follows...(1) Country music is sad/not upbeat enough, (2) People don't like the stereotypical people who listen to country music, or (3) The lyrics are too sappy or weird.  When I first heard country music, I honestly didn't like it.  But slowly it started to grow on me and now I would definitely classify myself as a country music fan.

Which brings me to my challenge for moment?/day?/week?/remainder of this quarter?:

Using 10 songs, make someone who hates country music, tolerate it.

Good luck!

Peace. Love. Country.
Kat

Song 1:  Wild At Heart (Gloriana)

Song 2:  Rain is a Good Thing (Luke Bryan)

Song 3:  Sideways (Dierks Bentley)

Song 4:  Crazy Girl (Eli Young Band)

Song 5:  Barefoot Blue Jean Night (Jake Owen)

Song 6:  Crazy Town (Jason Aldean)

Song 7:  Just By Being You (Steel Magnolia)

Song 8:  Stuck Like Glue (Sugarland)

Song 9:  Bless the Broken Road (Rascal Flatts)

Song 10:  Way Out Here (Josh Thompson)

40 Days of NO ICE CREAM.

Today is Wednesday, February 22nd 2012 which just happens to be Ash Wednesday or for those of us who are Catholic....the beginning of Lent.  Traditionally, the purpose of Lent is conversion; meaning that Catholics are supposed to leave behind an old way of living and reform their lifestyles.  For many people this means giving something up for the 40 days between Mardi Gras and Easter.

Top 10 Things People Give Up for Lent

1.  Alcohol

2.  Chocolate and Sweets/Candy

3.  Cursing

4.  Facebook

5.  Television

6.  Junk Food

7.  Soda

8.  Smoking

9.  Texting

10.  Gossiping

This year I decided to give up ice cream and candy (which includes chocolate but does not include cake, cupcakes, or cookies).  I also want to keep my dorm room a little cleaner than it is normally kept.  So in honor of the beginning of Lent...pictures of delicious ice cream, which I can now eat in a little less than 40 days : ]

NOMNOMNOM

Kat

Serious Business.

Up until this point I have mainly used my blog to post about random things, like what I did that day or things that I like or don't like.  However, I want to change gears a little bit today and talk about a more serious issue.  When I originally had the idea to create a blog I wanted to include discussions on current events and issues prevalent to our society, with the goal being to inform and stimulate discussion.  This will be the first post of hopefully many to come on a "hot topic", with the topic being foreign aid.

I'm currently taking a class about ethical problems and public issues in our society.  During class we've touched on same sex marriage, the death penalty, pornography, assisted suicide and many other controversial topics.  The class has opened my eyes to a lot of opinions and views that different people hold.  I've always said that a lot of problems that our society faces cannot be easily solved because in many cases both sides are correct to some extent.  My in class discussion today on foreign aid made that blatantly clear....

An introduction to the issue:

Hunger and poverty are undeniably major issues in our world today.  According to the United Nation's Human Development Report 2005, over a billion people survive on less than a dollar a day while another 1.5 billion people survive on between 1 and 2 dollars a day.  That means about 2.5/6 billion or 42% of the worlds population live on less than $2 a day.  On top of this the population of those living in poverty is doubling approximately every 35 years, while the population of those living in wealthy nations is doubling every 87 years.

So, as human beings do we have a responsibility to help those who are living in poverty?  In many cases the living conditions of those living in poverty are brought on in part because of inefficient and/or corrupt political and business institutions, meaning that many people have no choice in what their standard of living is.  They're completely innocent.  But on the other side are handouts really the best way to stimulate a broken economy and improve the living standard?  One of the main arguments against foreign aid is that by giving handouts wealthy countries are discouraging people from trying to create a better life and become independent.  The classic proverb "Give a man a fish and you feed him for a day.  Teach a man to fish and you feed him for a lifetime," is automatically brought to mind.

Other interesting thoughts/questions on this topic.
-What determines a proper living standard?  Is it when people are no longer hungry?  Is it when people are capable of becoming educated?
-Should eliminating poverty in our own country be ahead of helping the poorest countries in the world?
-How can we stimulate economic growth in countries where corrupt governments are in place?
-Should developing countries be able to use unclean resources as a means to kick-start economic growth?
-Is limiting population growth a way to limit poverty?

Ready to chat.
Kat

Wait...it's only Monday?!?!

Sometimes Mondays make me want to crawl into a hole and die.  Today was one of those days.  Not only are midterms aka "2/3 terms because the quarter system requires constant testing" coming up in the next week and a half but I'm just beginning to realize that I really should have kept up with my readings this quarter...oops.  

If you haven't already realized this I'm a professional procrastinator.  I can easily take a task that should only take 1-2 hours and turn it into an 8 hour, ridiculously painful, ordeal.  However, there are a few benefits to being so good at avoiding the inevitable...

1.  You get to look at adorable pictures (Hint: google adorable puppies, kitties, baby animals, etc.)!

2.  You get to watch hilarious youtube videos (Like this...)!

3.  You know what all your friends have been up to the last few days...

4.  Professional procrastinator = Online shopping addict

5.  YOU CAN WRITE A BLOG!!

See.  I'm being productive.

Kat

Weekend Update!

I know.  I've been a terrible blogger the last couple days.  So I'm going to change the direction of my blog and post what's been happening the last couple days!

Friday -- Woke up a little later then usual due to not having class until noon on Fridays.  Highlight of my week.  I went to lunch at my dining hall and the line was short enough that I got stir fry!!!  We ate lunch on the couches, totally normal, and I got to drink my favorite cranberry lemonade aka "cranade" and SOY MILK.

After lunch I headed to class for a couple hours (math and econ) and then made my way back to my dorm.  The weather finally decided that it would be winter so it was a complete struggle heading back.  Not only was the wind pushing me in the other direction but the snow was blowing all over my face and I literally couldn't look forward.  Strugs.

Instead of heading to the movies about a mile away from the dorm, my friend and I decided to go to the library to get some hard core studying done.  We studied for a couple hours and eventually decided to head back because 1. We were starving and needed to get food and 2.  It was still snow storming and we didn't want to risk getting stranded.

Dinner was decent as usual but I had to get ready for my first PC sleepover!!!  So much estrogen...but so much fun!

Saturday -- we woke up to some of the SX pledges telling us that breakfast was ready...at 8:15.  4 hours of sleep meant an incredibly tired Kat.  After returning to my dorm...BTW IT'S PLEDGE MOM WEEK...I decided it would be completely pointless to take a nap for an hour, so instead I did all of the things that I hate doing (laundry, dishes, vacuuming, etc.).  Next, I had a swim meet that ended up taking 3ish hours.  Our team placed 2nd which was a really good showing for us!  After the meet I was starving, as usual, so a couple of friends and I went out to dinner.

We got back to the dorm around 8:30.  One of my friends gave herself a facial...no worries, I got a couple pics!  I made a couple Valentines, even though I HATE valentine's day.  Ended up going to bed way too late, which was a problem because...

Sunday -- I had to wake up at 10 for an interview at 10:45 this morning.  Sleep > Eating so I stayed in bed until 10:15.  In classic swimming fashion I managed to get ready in 15 minutes and got to my interview with 2 minutes to spare!  Score.  Went to another meeting at my chapter house and then stayed to make tactile valentines, which was super cool.  I never realized how much we perceive with our eyes, and it was challenging to try to recreate those effects without using visual aids.  Went to another Valentine's Day party after to chill with some super cool kids!!!  Then it was back to the pool for a couple hours and then HAWT COOKIE BARHH.  #nomnomnomnomnom.  Which leaves me at this moment.  Sitting at my computer trying to do homework and in reality doing nothing at all.  I've loved the last 2 hours of my life.

My neopets are hungry.
Kat

Hump Day!

Todays life advice to myself: Always trust your gut.

Midterms were exceptionally rough this quarter.  Not that I was anticipating anything too stellar.  However, I did learn that it is important to trust your gut instincts when it comes to tests and papers.  So many times in life we change the answers only to find out that we had them right initially.  Then we kick ourselves.  Multiple times.  And it hurts.  Exceptionally.

Resolution for the rest of the quarter:
1.  Do all the readings
2.  Do the extra homework
3.  Go to office hours

And above all...Trust myself and my abilities.

Study on.
Kat

Random Ramblings Edition #1: Focus on Food

I was struggling with thoughts on today so I decided to start doing "Random Ramblings"...unorganized thoughts on whatever I feel like talking about!  This posts focus is food.

-Today the food in the dining hall was terrible.  Since I'm not allowed to eat foods super high in saturated fat my choices were limited to a sad looking salad bar or a sandwich with limited meat and dressing.  Tough call, but I went with the sandwich.

-Fresh fruit is only available in limited portions in our dining hall...but today we were lucky enough to have fresh strawberries!!!  Such a treat!!!

-Totally obsessed with Special K.

-Even though soy milk looks absolutely disgusting in all its off-white glory, I've been enjoying it lately.  Especially since the skim milk machine pours at a rate of 1 cup a day.

-One of the things that I miss most from home is my absolute favorite froyo place Freeziac #nomnomnomnom

-I eat spaghetti almost everyday...usually with whole wheat penne.

-I always order pesto cavatappi with no mushrooms and a flat bread when I go to Noodles and Company.

-My ideal breakfast consists of waffles with peaches on top and orange juice OR blueberry muffins

-The only food I'm morally opposed to eating is lamb...and brussel sprouts, but that's only because I can't think of another reason to hate them.

-I once tried to mix milk and orange juice as a more efficient means of drinking my breakfast beverages.  It was disgusting.

-When I was little I used to freeze milk in a bag and eat it during the summer time.

-I LOVE ICE CREAM.  (Chocolate chip, mint chocolate chip, peanut butter chocolate chip, oreo, vanilla)

-I always ask for a chocolate almond cake for my birthday.  Or an ice cream cake.

-If there is fruit sitting out I will finish it.

-I really like pineapple on pizza.

-Eating crab and lobster makes me tired.

-My absolute favorite seafood place is the Neptune Oyster Bar in Boston.

-Croissants are way better in France then they are in the United States.

-Red velvet cupcakes are my specialty.

-I hate TV dinners

-I used to only like Kraft mac and cheese but now I only eat Annie's white cheddar shells.

-Bonne Manman jam is the best.  No exceptions.

I honor of my food post...#frenchfood

Mange On

Kat

Monday Musings

"Always bear in mind that your own resolution to succeed is more important than any other." -Abraham Lincoln.


Monday.  The first day of a new week.  For some reason, Monday mornings always are a struggle for me.  I set my alarm for 9:05 am...and usually manage to get out of bed by 9:20 for my 10:00 am class.  That seems like a lot of time, but it really isn't.  Here's a break down....

9:20-9:25 Brush and floss teeth/clean face
9:25-9:30 Brush hair while picking out outfit for the day
9:30-9:35 Put on outfit, apply light makeup, put hair up in pony tail
9:35-9:40 Pack backpack for the day, slightly tidy room
9:40 Leave for class

----RANDOM THOUGHT----
One of the highlights of my day is when I walk down the main road of campus and run into people that I know.  For some reason, it makes it seem like you know so many people when you really only know 1-5 out of a couple hundred.
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After my first class I head to lunch by myself at one of the on campus dining halls.  There is usually a decent selection of food and the best part is that there is always SOY MILK.  Yay.  While there was a humus bar today, the hot chocolate machine was broken and my favorite non-fat balsamic salad dressing was missing.  Oh well.

This week is going to be a little crazy:
1.  Trying to organize a speaker series
2.  Trying to organize an a cappella show
3.  Philanthropy Event
4.  PC Sleepover
5.  2 Solicitations to do
6.  2 Social Events
7.  1 Prospie
8.  HOMEWORK
9.  French Quiz
10.  Everything else that will decide to pop up

Ending this post with a pic of adorable puppies...because everyone like puppies.

I'll keep you posted.
Kat

1st Post!!!

And so my life as a blogger begins.  I've decided that college is the time to do all those things that either a.  you never thought you'd do or b. you've always wanted to do.  Case in point number 1:  This weekend I woke up after noon, spent 4 hours sitting in the "faux lounge" aka the hallway with chairs from the lounge, went to a comedy show where 95% of the jokes were about sex, and then played taboo for three hours.  SUCCESS.  


While we should be doing our homework, we prefer playing sporcle, facebook stalking, and talking about  the latest fraternity shenanigans.  Topics that were brushed on at the beginning of the year are now discussed in full force at whatever hour we want.  


Goals for this week:
1.  Finish my philosophy readings.
2.  Find a date to winter formal.
3.  Not die of stress.


Song of the moment:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Wa5B22KAkEk


Life as a college student.
Keep it Klassy.
Kat