The end is near!

Alrighty ladies and gents.... Here goes my fantastical update!

This week is THE week. It is so close to the end of the semester I can't stand it! I officially have one of each of my classes left (plus exams). Also, my exams are going to be pretty easy which relieves me greatly. I'm getting down to that last little part of each class where I turn in everything and breathe that BIG sigh of relief. Tomorrow is my busy day. I have three meetings and a party with my favorite band people! I am so excited to see them all again.

The next thing on my agenda is Saturday when my parents are coming up. We're heading to the Soaring Eagle to see Chicago! I'm really excited. So, until Saturday I just get to wait and be excited while probably doing some homework. Which is probably a good idea to get back to... On that note, I'll leave you to enjoy the rest of your evening, I'll be sure to keep you all entertained during my stressful exam week. Until then....

I'm me and you're not :)

Hello again! Remember me?

Ok, so for those of you who actually read my blog, I'm sorry I haven't been very up-to-date!

I've been super busy trying to wrap up the semester on a happy note. It's been a very stressful few weeks. I got to that point where it was like: "I should do my paper for this class, oh and that project, oh yeah then I should study for that exam, cram for that test, and go to those meetings..." This was all at once of course. But now that I have dug myself back out of the homework hole, I plan to have a relaxing week.

I only have a two day school week this week. As you all know, the ever-popular Thanksgiving is coming Thursday. It's basically the greatest excuse to stuff your face ever. Plus if you've been to my house/had my family's cooking you'd understand why I love it so much. It is bittersweet because my littlest cousins are getting so big. It's rediculous how grown up they're starting to get. I feel like all the other adults: "I can't believe how big you are.... I was there when you were born!" I guess I better get used to that "adult" feeling what with my 20th coming in February.

Anyways, besides being busy in school, it's been a sad week. My life as we know it has almost come to an end. That is, band is practically over. I spend everyday from 4-5:45 on Jack Saunders Field. And now that the football season is over, so is our season. All that's left now is band banquet and a few "house keeping" things to finish. I'm sad because not only will I miss being at the football games, but a lot of my friends from my section are graduating. So, although I had a great season, I will miss them all very much.

So I guess that's all I have for now, I hope you all have a great Thanksgiving with your families and friends. I will post soon I'm sure!

Until then, remember:

I'm me and you're not!

What's up? What's up?

Yes. It has been quite some time since my last post, HOWEVER, I have a decent excuse. I have 19 credits, AND band... But I'll catch you up on my life. Last weekend I went to Michigan State University to play at the football game. Here's a video of our pregame performance:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=obmKGYv-nJU&feature=share

It was a pretty fun day. We lost the game, but the show went well, and the fans were actually pretty nice while we were leaving the game.

Lately I've been super busy with homework, projects, clubs, and meetings. But, it makes the time go by really quickly. I'm looking forward to going home to see my family next weekend.

Also I've been looking at apartments for next year, and I think I've found the one we're going to live in. It has 2 bedrooms and 2 full bathrooms. It has a kitchen, living room, and a washer/dryer in the room. I'm excited to be on my own next year in my own place.

Tomorrow is CMU band  day and we have high school bands coming up here the football game. They get to play with us at halftime too! This year's show is the Beatles. It's going to be a lot of fun. The best part of the weekend is Schoolcraft's band is coming up! Also, my parents are coming up too so I'll get to see them.

In other news, I recently won a scholarship for $1000. It's really going to help pay for my college, so it's really exciting news for my family. But for now I guess that's it. See you didn't miss much! Now you're caught up. Now it's off to sectionals then band practice, then the Mardi Gras parade!

See you all soon!

Remember, I'm me and you're not

Remembering 9/11/01

It's hard to believe that ten years ago today I was in fourth grade. I can remember this day almost perfectly. We were working on spelling, and we were all extremely anxious to get outside for recess. I remember our principal coming in the room a little before 9am. He told my teacher something in the hallway, and when she came back in she just looked shocked. They wouldn't tell us what was going on, but all we knew was, we weren't allowed to go out for recess. Naturally, us fourth graders were very upset by this, but little did we know, something terrible had happened.

Some kids went home early because their parents picked them up, but I stayed the whole day. When I did get home that day the TV was on, and the footage from that terrible day was being played over and over again on the news. I didn't completely understand everything that had happened that day, but I remember that everyone around me was sort of numb. No one quite knew what to say or how to act. I remember that for days, weeks and even months afterwards, the clips showed up on the news. Airports were shutdown, and families were separated.

Too many people lost their lives that day. It was not only a terrorist attack, but it was something that will unite our country forever. Even as a fourth grader, I remember how terrible that was. And only now can I truly appreciate the fact that I didn't lose anyone that day. But on the ten year anniversary of this tragedy, my thoughts and prayers go out to the families who were never the same. I pray for the firefighters, the police men and women, the people in the towers, the pentagon, and those who landed the plane in the field in Pennsylvenia. But most of all, for those families who are suffering the losses of the mothers, fathers, sisters, brothers, grandparents, aunts, uncles, cousins, and friends.

Our country will never forget 9/11/2001...

God Bless the USA

p.s. I'm me and you're not

What time is it? BAND TIME!

Just got done with my home football game of the season! It was South Carolina State University. We won 21-6! The game wasn't one of the most exciting ones, but it was still fun. The band has been working really hard the last few weeks. We learned very hard drill that was not fun to get through. There are lots of moves to master, and it's very frustraiting to learn it while it's 88 degrees outside.

Nevertheless, we were able to do it. Was it our best performance? No, but we worked really hard to get there. I'm proud of my entire CMB family! It's going to be a great season if this is any indication. But for now it's back to packing for my family's weekend trip to Mackinaw City! Then it's bedtime. So for now...

Remember, I'm me and you're not...

Random College Rant

Ok, so it was my last day of classes this week. I was on my way to my last class, and as usual, I was listening to my ipod. I listen to my music moderately loud, but it's not so loud that I can't hear anything else. On this particular day, I was trying to listen to one of my favorite songs, but found myself distracted by someone talking EXTREMELY loud behind me. Don't you hate those people on campus that feel that their conversations are so much more important than anyone elses, so they scream them? I mean even if you've never been on a college campus before, you've probably been in a mall or some other public place where this happens.

The part that made me so angry about this was, her conversation was about this party that she went to last weekend. She said she got "so wasted" and she "didn't have fun." Then she started laughing histarically about these two "hunky males" that were there that asked her to come back this weekend. So naturally she's going to have a repeat of last weekend.... I'm not dissaprooving her lifestyle or anything, but it's just not me. Personally I like to remember my night. Just sayin......

Anyways, that's my rant for today. I'm finished with classes for this week other than band tomorrow. It'll be a welcomed weekend for me. One filled with acomplishment and being productive. Homework to do, things to clean, laundry to wash, a football game to prepare for, music to memorize, and homework to do.... Somewhere in there I'm hoping to catch up on sleep. Good luck right? Thanks, I'll need it.

I guess that's all for now, but don't forget:
I'm me and you're not!

I survived...

Ok, so for those of you who thought: "hmmm maybe she fell off the face of the earth and this blog is over." NO! In fact, I was actually in the process of moving into my dorm, and then going to seven solid days of band camp from 8:30 in the morning until 8:30 at night. Yes it was a lot of long days, but was it rewarding? Absolutely!

I love band, for those of you who didn't know. I absolutely love it. It's a lot of hard work, and for those of you who are wondering, it IS a sport. What is a sport? It's a team of people working towards a common goal. We are a group of people, and we're working towards a great halftime show. Again, this is my opinion so you don't have to agree. I just thought I should rant about this.

It's been a pretty stressful week. Our professors are on strike because they either want tuition to go down, or they want higher wages. Also, the want respect from the adminstration. I understand this, and as a future teacher, I fully support them. But basically it means that most of the classes on campus were cancelled today. This leaves the freshman lacking a sense of normalcy that the upper classman are accustomed to. So hopefully that will be resolved soon.

But for now, I guess that's it. I should probably go to bed... I think I have class tomorrow.

So remember, I'm me and you're not....

All good things must come to an end...

It's hard to go to college. It's hard to balance your newly found freedom with schoolwork, new friends, activities, and a job. But it's even harder to leave behind your family and friends. My hope this school year is to keep in touch with all of them just as much, if not better, than last year.

I hope you all have enjoyed your summers. I personally have had such an awesome summer of making money, going to Wisconsin Dells, and the Mall of America., making music videos, having sleepovers, playing Rock Band, cooking, swimming, jet skiing, and so much more. This summer has made me appreciate my "home friends" so much more. It has also made me realize I should make new friends at school this year to help me survive the school year. It's hard to imagine that I could ever replace my amazing friends at home, but I won't so much replace them, as make my circle of friends bigger.

So as this last week of summer draws to a close and the work week drags on, I will continue to reminisce with memories of summer 2011. What are my plans for this last week at home? Work, work, lunch with family, work, guitar jam session, work, BEACH DAY, dad's company picnic, packing, then a family breakfast. Pretty exciting huh?

All I can say is I will miss everyone dearly, but I will enjoy my time at school. I'm excited to start new classes and get back to marching band. FIRE UP CHIPS!!!

I guess it's back to work... But remember, I'm me and you're not!

Jersey Snore...

Alright, so for those of you who for some reason like this show,  I'm sorry. I'm not asking you to agree with this post, but I feel it needs to be said.

First of all, where did they get these people? Snookie? What kind of name is that? Vinny, and all the others... I mean really. They get their orange selves out of bed every afternoon with a hangover. Then they "GTL". Go to the gym and try to impress each other with how strong they are. Then go to the tanner to further promote future skin cancer, followed by laundry. Then they go home to prepare a "home cooked Italian meal." They all sit around the table like they love each other so much, while they're all sitting there thinking about how much they hate the person next to them. Then they go out and party all night long until they're so drunk they beat each other up.

Meanwhile, they come up with things like: "I want to smush" and "T-shirt time" that have made them millions of dollars. I guess it says something about our country that we can be entertained by this. Either way, I know there are those out there that find it extremely entertaining, my brother included. All I know, is there are also those of us that will never truly "appreciate" the originality of Snookie and her gang.

So for now I leave you with this picture:

p.s. I'm me and you're not.

Picture courtesy of www.stumbleupon.com

Praying for Auntie

The day at the lake was wonderful. I couldn't have asked for much more. I spent more than seven hours in the water and got some awesome new sunburn. I love spending time with my friends, more than they know I think. Anyways, that's not the focus of this post...

Everyone has some crazy family stories, but I think this one tops my list. My dad's side of the family is sort of "out there." My "grandparents" don't speak to us (or any of their sons) and haven't for more than 11 years. My dad's oldest brother and his wife don't come around except occasionally on Christmas. But, my dad's middle brother and wife are two of the most amazing people in my life. A few years ago, my aunt was diagnosed with breast cancer. She was scared I'm sure, but you'd never know it by her amazing attitude. She was so positive, and was truly an inspiration to everyone around her. She fought, and was cancer free in what seemed like no time! We were all so happy for her, and we were delighted that she was feeling better.

A few years later, she called with some bad news, somehow the cancer from earlier had spread to her bones. She now had an incurable type of cancer. We were devistated. How could this happen? But her "can-do" attitude showed all of us that we needed to stay positive for her! We were as supportive as we could be as she called us with updates, good and bad.

Then a few years after that, right around Easter, we got another phone call. I'll never forget this day. It was my aunt saying that her husband was in the hospital. We rushed downtown to visit him. It was later that day we found out that what we hoped was pnemonia, was stage 4 lung cancer. Why? How could this possibly be happening again? I remember being so angry with God asking him why the only functional family we have left on that side of the family are both dying from cancer. It just wasn't fair.

My uncle decided that he didn't want to go through treatment. He wanted to just live as long as he could. We struggled to support his decision, but we did. In the next few months, they lived together with their dog Woofy. They took care of eachother, and came to every family event like nothing was going on.

Then at 2:22 a.m. on February 7th, 2010, he lost his battle with cancer. However, we don't consider it a loss to a wicked disease, but rather a celebration of a greater victory. He was surrounded by the people that loved him most.

It was so hard to be at the hospital watching it happen, but I felt that I should be there. You can imagine how this felt. Anyone who has lost anyone dear to them knows. But, we had to be strong for eachother. Especially for my aunt, and dad.

Today, my aunt and Woofy live in their newly redecorrated house. We visit as often as we can. She is doing fairly well considering everything she's going through. Lately she's been more sick, with a sore throat and just very run-down.

Why did I write this extremely long post? Not for sympathy, but with the hope that you'd take a few moments and send up a little prayer to the big guy. She could use all the prayers she could get. She has a very loving family full of nieces, nephews, parents, sisters, brothers, and has been offically adopted by my mom's side.

So for now, appreciate what you have in your life. Don't dwell on what you've lost, but rather look to the future at what you could gain.

And remember, I'm me and you're not...

Love you Uncle Bryan and Aunt Tammy

I will survive!

So as you can see, I survived the party. Now, I'm not going to lie and say it was an easy night, but it could've been much worse. In the end, we had a bent gutter, and frosting all over the garage floor. But other than that, we made out pretty well. The most important part is that Luke had a good night.

You may be wondering about the frosting, yeah, we turn our backs for one minute and they decide to have a frosting fight... Boys will be boys I suppose. My parents were a little bit stressed, and I would be lying if I said I wasn't excited to see 11:30 roll around. But we all survived.

As for anything else, I'm getting excited to go back to school. It's bittersweet because I really miss my family when I'm gone. Of course I also miss my friends from home. My goal this year is to make some new school friends. That way, it'll be easier to get through the year without my home ones.

Other than that it's off to the lake tomorrow for some well deserved R&R with the best friends in the whole world! Don't worry, it's ok to be jealous!

So for now remember,
I'm me, and you're not...

In the beginning

My first post from my deleted blog:

Ladies, and gentleman, dudes and dudets...

Welcome to my first ever blog post! Hooray! As you can tell I'm very new at this, but I decided that having a blog would allow me to flow right into this technological society that we live in. At least that's the excuse I'm going to use..

Anyways, this blog, as stated above, will not be all about music. However, I do love it, and I am a "band geek" I started band in fifth grade, continued marching band through high school, then auditioned and was accepted into my college marching band. For all of which I played clarinet. I also play piano and guitar. So be prepared for random posts from music videos, lyrics, etc. I will also be sharing random thoughts, quotes, and updates about my life that probably no one except my family will care about.

So to get started, there are a few things that you should know about me. First of all, I absolutely am proud to say that I am a Christian. Lutheran to be precise. I am not afraid to admit my love for God, but I promise not to shove it down your throat. So if I put any posts that offend you, please let me know. However, you must understand that what I choose to write is my opinion, and I'm not asking you to believe it.

Next, I love my family and friends. They are one of the biggest parts of my life. They have gotten me through so much of my life. Therefore, I will probably be referencing them quite a bit. I love to write. Almost as much as I love music. I write poetry, stories, and most recently, songs. I have a lot to say and writing is an easy way to say it without actually saying it.

Well, now that I've bored you with the details of my life, I think I will end this first extremely long post. If you would like to know more, please click the "about me" box.

I leave you with these temporary parting words:
            I'm me, and you're not...

7/29/11

Happy Birthday?

This is my second post from my old blog that got deleted:

First of all, happy 16th birthday to my not-so-little brother!

Don't worry everyone, he doesn't have his license...yet. But it's only a matter of time. I'm not as worried as most people are. He's actually a very good driver. My dad is a good teacher.

Anyways, today is the party. I would call it a "Sweet 16" but apparently boys don't call it that. So I guess I'll just call it "the party." He is having over 30 boys and girls over tonight and I am the glorified babysitter (along with family and a couple friends) that makes sure they don't burn the house down. Easy job right? Well, it would be if I had a full nights sleep last night and it wasn't 89.9 degrees outside!

But never fear, there is a good side, free tacos! Hooray. So tonight shall be a night of no sleep, teenagers, and free food. Will I survive? Probably. Will I be dead tired come tomorrow? YES!

I will try to post tomorrow provided I am alive...

Until then,
Remember, I'm me and you're not

7/30/11