Spring Break Adventures (Part I)

Starting at about 6:45p.m. on Friday I was officially on spring break! WOO! I love breaks. It's when my life finally stops spinning around in endless loops of work and stress and just stops for a little while. I opted to stay up here at UAF for spring break, and I don't regret it at all. Plane tickets are expensive and it could be nice to spend some time in the peace and quiet that is my deserted dorm floor.


So far it has been fantastic. Nuff said.


Friday night I went right after my calculus class to the World Ice Sculpting Championship over in the ice park right here in Fairbanks, AK. Needless to say the works were incredible.

This one was my favorite

The artistic finesse required to do these thing is just astounding. Plus the conditions in which they craft these ornate sculptures are not very hospitable either. It's cold, dark, and you have to spend the whole time outside messing with ice. To me that just sounds like frostbite waiting to happen, but I guess for them it seems like a ton of fun. Plus there are prizes! Who doesn't love prizes? :P


So after a couple hours of fun over at the ice park Denali, Elika, Ashley, and I all drove over to the airport to send Ashley off. She's headed home to spend some time with her family for spring break! Hooray! After our goodbyes the three of us that remained drove back to campus and decompressed for a couple hours. By decompress I mean: we lied on the floor and then watched an episode of The Office and 30 Rock while we waited for airport trip number two.


Trip two comprised of Denali and I driving Elika to the airport for her huge travel itinerary. I don't know if anyone could tell or not, but I think Elika was excited to board the first of her flights heading towards Ecuador. I think I heard her yell "OH MY GOSH!" about 300+ times last week :D She's going down to visit with her emotional twin Valerie who is doing a Baha'i year of service down there (which sounds really amazing by the way). So off she goes to Ecuador!

Valerie and Elika (this picture is on Elika's blog)

Then back to the dorms again for me where I went to go bug Skyler and Kaleb for a while before heading to bed. I like sleep.

Denali headed out early the next morning to hang out with her family in Homer for a while. That should be fun for her. Campus is eerily quiet... But I kind of like it. Having everything just stop for a little while is probably good for me. Skyler, Kaleb, and Marshall headed towards Anchorage today as well to go skiing down at Alyeska.

But so far the single greatest thing about my break is the fact that I now have the time to go skiing. The weather has been beautiful around here for so long now, but my classes are so time intensive when it comes to homework and actual attendance in those classes. So now that everything has stopped, I said "Dude, I can go skiing now!" And so I did! 11k out on the UAF trails after being out of skiing shape had my triceps yelling at me to stop using them... But I did get to go out there for a good hour and took some pictures as well! It was so beautiful and sunny outside yesterday. Plus it felt good to get some decent exercise in.

 
Then I spent the rest of the day messing with Kaleb before they all left. Skyler and I also made some food that turned out pretty well.

And now today has just been a day of relaxation. A little skiing, some music transposition, and some blogging. Plus Diddy Kong Racing! WOO! I love that game so much! If you want to know, I now have sheet music for this video so I can play the music on my horn. Yup, I'm a super nerd.

So that sums up Spring break for me so far. I love having the ability to do nothing with my life for a while :D

I also swear that if Jonathan wakes me up in the morning again I will murder him... Hehehehehe.

Sportsmanship should always be present

You know, no matter what the sport I always admire good sportsmanship on the ice/field/court. Players should be out there to work hard and play a tough game without making it in to a huge spectacle of fighting and swearing. At that point tempers run high and injuries are way more likely to occur (and I am living proof of that... hehehe). Yeah.... I become exponentially more intense as the cheap shots start flying.

Anyways, back to what I was saying. Sportsmanship: its important.

Now last weekend I went down to Anchorage for the Governor's Cup. It's basically the biggest hockey game series in the state between UAF and UAA. They play one game up here and we play one game up there. Rivalry games are amazing, they get even better when there is a massive trophy on the line! But on my way down to the game I was told about this article that was written in the UAA school newspaper, "The Northern Light."

You can read the article here.

It was the single worst article in terms of sportsmanship that I had ever read from a school newspaper. Or even any publication in general. Even if I didn't go to school up here at UAF I would have been appalled at the downright rudeness that was shown by these school writers. I mean, I understand the whole school spirit aspect and the fact that you want to win, but the amount of just downright unsportsmanlike content in that article made me want to gag. People like that truly just make me want to travel down there, find them, and punch them in the face (no I won't actually do it, but the thought is rather satisfying).

There is no need for such blatant bashing of any group of individuals. Ever.

So what I guess I would say to Megan Edge, Patrick McCormick, and Taylor Hall would be this: "I do hope you are proud of what you have published because I'm sure that is all the pride you will get. There is no pride gained from trying to make yourself sound superior, just a general sense of disappointment from your audience. And by the way, you talked all that smack and still ended up losing. I guess that's just karma."

Because we did win the cup. We won the first game 5-1, lost the second 4-1, and won the shootout 2-0. So do actually try to act somewhat sportsmanlike. It won't kill you and in the long run will make you look like a more respectable person in the process.

Speaking of sportsmanship I have a soccer game tonight and a broomball game on Tuesday. Playoffs have started! It ought to be fun :D

So now I'm off to get ready!

Sleeping the day away

Everyone does it. It happens (for most people) every night. But here I am telling sleep to go fall off a cliff because I won't be using it much this week.

I did however take a nap today/yesterday (I really believe that at college, days go from 3am-3am not Midnight-Midnight) and it just seems like such a time suck. Sure I feel better and well rested and stuff, but holy crap there is so much to do. This week I have a physics lab to finish up, calculus homework, and physics homework which are all due on Friday. I think it will take me about 6 or 7 hours to finish it all. Not too bad I suppose. But on the other hand, I have 10 hours of classes (assuming I don't skip or sleep in), 3 hours of pep band, 9 hours for meals, 2 hours for transportation, 2 hours for sports, and a whole bunch of hours up at Birch Hill this week for the ASAA State Nordic Skiing Championship. I'm going to be a wax tech! This will more than certainly eat some more of my time up (probably upwards of 12 hours) and then there is that pesky sleep again. There are only 76 hours left until I board a tour bus and head down to Anchorage for the Governors Cup.

Why must I sleep when there is so much to do?

Other than feeling better, sleep really is not all that productive. I lie there, breathe, and drool. That's it. I could be doing homework, or alleviating stress, or waxing instead with that time! But no, I'll average 6 hours a night on sleep probably just laying there and drooling... Woo.... That is 24 hours down the toilet.

If you do the math, that means there are 76 hours until I leave. Take that 76 and subtract 24 for sleeping, 10 for classes, 7 for homework, 3 for pep band, and 12 for State, 2 for running around, 2 for sports, and 9 for meals. This brings my grand total to 7 free hours in 4 days. Come on now. That means that about 7% of my time this week is free time.

And I really like free time.... It lets me bother Derick, or eat ramen late at night with Elika, or crash on Denali and Ashley's beanbag. Or I guess in this case blog.... I should probably be productive soon... And actually be productive.

So say goodbye to sleep for now!

Bye bye!

Music for body and soul

Music has been a part of my life for basically as long as I can remember. I loved listening to music when I was little and started playing instruments in the 4th grade (technically 3rd grade if you count the recorder, but I usually don't...). I played the trumpet and it was the coolest thing ever to be able to come out of class twice a week and play my instrument in a small classroom from the "Standard of Excellence: Level 1" red book. Volga Boat Song was my favorite (It was number 109!). So I continued playing the trumpet for different schools all the way through the 8th grade. Then I hit high school for the first time.

High school band my Freshman year did not approve of me doing sports. I wanted to be in band again (because even then music was a huge part of my life) and the resounding answer was a direct "No." To be in Symphonic Band you had to be in the marching band. To be in the marching band you had to go to band camp at the end of the summer and give up most weekends during the school year. That just wasn't going to fly. I played D1 soccer in Everett and there was no way that I would give that up.

Not a chance.

So I didn't end up playing my freshman year because of that little problemo. I thought it also applied my sophomore year, but apparently with the new director it would have been fine. So I didn't play my sophomore year either. That was a sad couple of years because I missed music during that time. Music is a fun way to develop skills, lung capacity, and the ability to work within a group towards a common goal. Ensembles strive to make music with a group-wide balance, and when it is achieved, it sounds beautiful.So that was kinda lost for two years of my life. Then I packed up and moved to the great white north world of Alaska and was almost immediately asked to play in the pep band for when the cruise ships came around. Now, this was after 2 years of not playing at all, so it was pretty terrible. Yet I stuck with it and ended up in the Region II Honor Band on trumpet that year.


I think that one event started my enjoyment of music as it is now. I played in the Honor Band, then traveled with the Jazz Band to State Solo and Ensemble that year as a fill in for someone who couldn't go, then started having fun with messing around with instruments. I played the chimes for a choir song that year too because random percussion is fun. Way less stress too when they don't expect any sort of genius skill or memorization, they just wanted me to play it and have fun with it. It was great.

Senior year I played the trumpet for the first semester because of some.... mishaps. Like my first trumpet of the semester I sat on. It still played (kinda) but the bell was bent at something like a 30 degree angle. Never put your instrument on your chair for standing breathing exercises... Then the next trumpet I had broke inside of the spit valve and so it couldn't retain air properly to make the right tones. (That one wasn't my fault either!) But that happened so I needed to find an instrument to play. Why not the french horn? We already have 6 trumpets in the band and no french horns so I'll play that! And so I did. Sure I cheated a whole bunch (I took all the F horn music and transposed it to Bb music, then played the french horn with trumpet fingerings and the Bb key held down the whole time. It kinda worked... But not really). So that started that in my life.

However the funniest music news of the year came with Honor Band auditions. So Kasey and I were doing our auditions on the last possible day after ski practice having never practiced any of the music before. We were there from 5:30 to 11:30. It was great. ANYWAYS, I finished up my french horn audition tape pretty quickly and it was terrible. TERRIBLE. Okay so I had only been playing it for about a month and a half and had been cheating, it was destined to suck. But then since Kasey was still working and I didn't want to desert him, making a percussion audition tape seemed like a logical choice! So I went and looked up what some of the symbols meant in the percussion music (because I am uncoordinated with my left hand and have never played percussion) and gave every song one recording and submitted a CD. My song for mallet percussion took over 5 minutes for a song that was supposed to last for 1 minute (because I am just that awesome). But the tape was really just for laughs.

Except then it became serious when I ended up as 3rd chair for the Honor Band out of something like 24 applicants. CONFUSED. Our director called me in on parent-teacher conference day to ask what on Earth happened and to explain how I was picked. Apparently to be a percussionist you don't really have to be that good, just be able to follow instructions and independently keep a beat. And I was fully intent on playing percussion in the Honor Band! This was hilarious and I couldn't stop laughing! Or at least until I found out the bad news to the story. Kasey ended up as 1st alternate for the Honor Band. Sadface.... So of course I gave up my spot. He's an awesome percussionist and one of my best friends and Region Music Fest was actually in Valdez so I wouldn't take that spot from him.

(It was still super funny though).

I also played the djembe for choir that year.

And the bass drum for Valdez High School's first ever Command Performance at the State Solo and Ensemble competition.

Basically it was an awesome year for music in my life. So now here I am at college and music has stayed with me. I remember walking in at orientation and going to find my room key where Hadassah told me to go and try to join Wind Symphony. Sure I went and auditioned, but man was it UGLY. Dr. Gustafson didn't even let me do the sightreading portion of the audition because it was just that bad. I made it in though! Music in college is way better than it is in high school too. The people actually want to play (for the most part) and the music is a lot harder! And slowly but steadily I have been improving. Like the fact that I can actually read my music and pitches that are written in F now. Its kinda important. Plus my Jury grade was a B! That's exciting for me!

Its my horn!

So now this is semester 2 of music and we are playing all sorts of fun stuff in Wind Symphony and I really enjoy playing music. It is a good way to learn a new skill, learn how to keep a beat, and to listen/play some really good music. I guess this means that the point to take away from reading this is that you should play some music. Whether you have or not in the past, it is really relaxing (so long as you don't take on too many music commitments) and sounds pretty cool too.

Music makes me happy :)

Discrepancies

This is a post dedicated to the two harlequins that messed with my room >_>

- Tonberries are already badass. Although mine does look much classier with a bowtie and sunglasses.

- Tonberries also do not need guns to kill things. Trust me, that little knife is MORE than enough.

- Even though it would be the best game ever, ramen cannot be played on an N64 so it does not belong in the cartridge spot.

- That desk lamp pointed up for a reason, changing its direction isn't very kosher.

- The Game. You just lost it.

Yeah. I saw what you did there and I think I have now found all of it.

Randomness becomes a definition

I would definitely consider myself to be a very random individual in just about every aspect of my life. So I guess you could say that my life is random. BUT WAIT, there is proof of such shenanigans! This proof is comprised of little facts about me, actions I have done, and skills that I possess. Maybe it will help someone out there understand the essence of me. Or just give those that do a good laugh :D Either way works for me. So here's a list of some of the things I've thought of:

-I have nerve damage from the cold on both of my big toes. I guess that's what happens when you go for a winter mountain hike while only wearing tennis shoes and one pair of heavy socks in subzero temperatures...

-Even though I play the french horn (after 8 years of trumpet), I still managed to make 3rd chair in the Region II Honor Band for percussion my senior year of high school. I laughed my ass off at that one because my left hand is VERY uncoordinated.

-I have never seen any of the Monty Python movies. People keep telling me to watch them, but I haven't gotten around to it yet...

-In high school I traveled over 30,000 miles via Buc Bus to all of the sports/band events I was a part of.

-I once received extra credit on a Spanish final (my sophomore year of high school) for dressing and acting like a girl. It was hilarious!

-My spirit animal is the ostrich.

-My favorite sports are soccer, skiing, and hockey.

-I actually manage to pick up on social cues much faster than most guys (who are for the most part oblivious to their surroundings until someone tells them what is going on.... oh Y chromosome....)

-I love the body wash scents at Bath and Body Works. There is nothing wrong with choosing to actually smell good rather than covering up the scents with Axe..... I hate Axe.

-The worst thing about a sports crowd is easily the fact that THEY CANNOT KEEP A BEAT TO SAVE THEIR LIVES. It really isn't that difficult... And it annoys me when they can't.

-I know this sounds strange, but I can accurately judge bra sizes too. Don't ask me how or why, but I can.... And it has been proven too!

-I can also run with my feet perpendicular to how they are normally facing. Its really fun!

-Places I live in need to feel "lived in." It kinda creeps me out when places are too clean... So I make them messier :D

-Electronic and classic rock are my two favorite music genres.

-Even when I don't have a significant other, I always do something special for people on Valentine's Day.

-Frosting straight out of a can is considered a sugary delicacy to my brain/tastebuds.

-Until my freshman year of high school, I was a really short kid. In essence, the shortest in my class.

-I find spandex to be amazingly comfortable. Its AWESOME STUFF.

-There is a very small number of things that can actually make me feel awkward and I'm pretty sure that all of those that do are a form of mental awkwardness, not physical awkwardness.

-I would rather sleep in a cold room than a warm room every time.

-Heights are probably my greatest fear.

-Video games are my biggest hobby. They make me happy whenever I have the time for them as well!

So I hope this has come to help you understand a little more about me. Or at least it has given you a laugh or two!

School, sports, and creativity

My classes are pretty awesome this semester. I enjoy all of them except for Communications and Calc III really..... Comm is annoying. I'm already proficient at public speaking. I'm also not saying that I am perfect at it, but considering the fact that the course is a "skill development" course I really would rather not take it... I mean come on, today I was the only kid in the entire class that gave a speech without any visual aids or notes and I still made it to the time limit without sounding like a complete moron! RAWRG. This class will annoy me. And its 3 hours long every Tuesday.... I hate Tuesdays... Calc III is Calc III. Heh. Math.... I can survive it!

But Computer Science is amazing because I code and do fun things and make projects and confuse my professor with "if statements." Recital Attendance is glorified nap time with beautiful music, so what's not to like? Physics is interesting, but the labs are lame... But it was to be expected. And I freaking love Wind Symphony. Its the best class ever. I go in and play music with a large ensemble 3 times a week and this semester I managed to snag 3rd chair out of 7! FREAKING STOKED! NO MORE 4th HORN FOR ME PLEASE! (This is incredibly exciting. I was 4th horn on every single song except for Hillulah last semester.) This semester we are playing some pretty sweet music too so it will definitely be a concert worth watching!

Our intramurals have also started! As stated before I'm playing basketball, soccer, and broomball. Our games on Monday went kind of like this:

We freaking suck at basketball. It was a painful game in which I was knocked on my ass once, Denali dislocated her shoulder, Ashley was having problems breathing, and Elika forgot how to dribble. It was pretty amazing how awful we were. Heck, we didn't even make it to the second half due to the mercy rule (25 points down at any point). We ended up losing 34-7 with Levi scoring 2 points for our team and I scored the other 5. Maybe we will become better? Or maybe not... I hate basketball, but I love playing sports with my friends so I'll stick with it.

Soccer is going to be awesome this quarter. We all work well as a team and we have a freaking rock-solid defense. ATP (our team) even won our first game 1-0! I think this is a promising start to this season of my favorite sport of all time.

Broomball is getting progressively better. We are still losing, but teamwork is finally allowing us to have some good passes down the ice and some shots on net! Elika, Sarah, Levi, and Denali are beasts on offense for reals. I only came out with one bruise too! It was a pretty exciting game and today we will play against the team from the music department and we had better win.... We should win. For once. I really missed playing broomball as the goalie, but I didn't really miss the losing. Oh well. The game is still fun!

I have also started a new side project/game recently and it is amazing what you can do in that game. Minecraft is awesome. Our floor even has a pretty sweet server that we are putting together with about 10 of us from on campus. I HAVE TAKEN TO THE SKIES! And I love that game. Our most recent production (server-wide) is a road/skybridge (I love my skybridges :D ) project that now spans between everyone's house on the server. Our server will be flourishing for quite some time I'll bet and the finished project will be a sight to behold, trust me.

So I guess that's it for now. And I leave you with a Tonberry.

(I didn't draw it)