31 December 2009

Story time

So, I know you've all been wondering what Kris Kringle season up at TAC is like. Well, maybe you haven't been... maybe there isn't an existent "you".... but I'm going to tell you what happened to me during that strange week anyway. :)

KK season is one of silliness, humiliation, and laughter. You draw from a large box a slip of paper with someone's name on it and you are that person's KK. You play pranks on them, do nice things for them, make them do silly/stupid things for the amusement of others. Christian charity should be the rule which overrules everything, and it generally is. At the end of the week is the Christmas dance, during which you find your KK and you are rewarded with a present. The whole thing is a fun tradition, which the tutors dread to some degree, as do any participants.

My personal experience was rather funny. I didn't hear anything from my KK for a week, but he certainly made up for that. I found a note in my box Thursday night, telling me that I had to wear all black - "as much black as possible" - and sing Defying Gravity from the musical Wicked to my Latin tutor before class the next day. I was also supposed to find a witch hat to complete the costume, but couldn't find one. Trying to keep to the spirit of things, I completed my ensemble with a broomstick. Also in my box was a surgical mask, along with instructions to wear it between the end of class and dinner. When I was asked why I was wearing it, I was to reply with "oink oink oink." The first request (singing) I was willing to comply with. I enjoy singing, and my Latin tutor is a good sport. I was nervous, yes, but it was fairly easy. The second one, however, I couldn't do. I have an abhorrence of those things... they make me feel really sick.

Friday afternoon, I got a new note in my box telling me that, since I had enjoyed the first prank so much, I had to wear a very interesting outfit for the remainder of the day. A friend's pink pants (which would never fit me. EVER), the highest heels I could find (with the instructions to NOT fall over) and my sparkly heart shirt from (dare I tell you?) Victoria's Secret. This shirt had a history... basically, a good friend was over at our house when I realized where it was from over Thanksgiving. I reacted in an inordinate fashion and he laughed at me. And he was also good friends with my KK. The two of them put their heads together to make mischief for me. So after class on Friday, I was decked out in all this finery (jeans substituting for the pink pants) and whenever anyone asked why I was dressed in such a fashion, I had to respond "It's a secret" and point to the part of the shirt with the brand logo. I was rather embarrassed, but it was in good fun.

Besides, I was well rewarded. I was given a large (and I mean LARGE) box full of chocolate. My KK and friend figured they had put me through a lot and should be nice to me. It will be a memory that will make me smile for years to come. :)

27 December 2009

I'm Leaving on a Jet Plane

However, unlike John Denver, I know with a fair amount of certitude when I'll be back again. The mob is packing up and heading up to see my mom's father. It looks like this will be a "good-bye" trip... pray for us if you would.

On a more pleasant note, here's a picture of the mountains surrounding my beautiful campus. This was the first snowfall of the year.



This is what it looked like down on campus.

26 December 2009

Christmas time

I lied about posting at Thanksgiving. I know I didn't promise anything, but I still feel negligent. In all honesty, the thought of posting did not even enter this little brain of mine. I arrived late Wednesday afternoon with two additions, had Thanksgiving dinner on Thursday, went KK shopping, uploaded pictures to facebook, generally chilled out on Friday, and then was back on campus by lunch on Saturday. Yes, we're crazy. It was a short trip home, but when you aren't driving, your opinion is not important. And I didn't mind it... it was good to have a day to just hang with friends on campus. The stress of school doesn't make that possible. I, at least, am always worried about something that is due in the future (whether that future is near or far is inconsequential - it if is due, I view it as a large knife hanging over my head)

Then school started again. It is a bit of a downhill slide from Thanksgiving break to Christmas break. There are a lot of goings on to keep you busy, as well as that bleak raincloud with the word FINALS etched across it. It sits on the horizon, gloating over you. No matter how much happiness, frivolity, and joy you may have up until then, that raincloud will pour torrential amounts of water upon you. But I love it. I really do. Seven days of intense academia, but you are well-rewarded for them. You see everything you learned come together to a wonderful, cohesive whole and you do it in the company of some of the greatest people on the planet. And there is nothing as satisfying as walking out of a final feeling you succeeded to the utmost of your abilities. Yes, it takes hours to reach the level of confidence which that thrill demands. Believe me, though, it is worth it. When you can explain with ease the phlogiston theory and Lavoisier's counter argument as well as the definition of motion and the principles of change, you feel accomplished. I suppose that is why so many people view TAC sophomores as conceited and annoying. We are simply reveling in the fact that we know what we are supposed to know. And that is a wonderful feeling which cannot be contained, though, perhaps, it should be.

Then home. Christmas was only a week away when I arrived. The bustle of the season is incredible, yet surreal. Three weeks off seem a long stretch, but one that is gone in but an instant. I have been home for approximately 9 days now, and I until January 10th to enjoy it. And I will. I have been up until this moment, and there is nothing to impede me from continuing in that enjoyment. Home is good!