i have discovered that there are dead animals in the freezer in the back of the lab, including one beaver. the rest are wrapped in newspaper and are unidentifiable. the reason i discovered this is because the freezer is broken and now melting all over the floor, which means the dead animals have begun to thaw. i hope they fix it soon, before the bio floor reeks of dead carcass.

i am writing a paper on orcas for my boreal ecology class. they are so cute i love them so much. this is a picture i took in alaska, and i want to hug the baby orca. i kinda wish i didn't really have to write a paper at all about them, but at least they are fascinating to me.

3 days and counting till i go home!

i can't wait to go home.

i miss my family. i miss my animals. i miss my boyfriend a LOT. i miss sleepy summer days and crazy nights. i miss the beach and being barefoot.

josh came to visit this past weekend, which was a-maz-ing. i love that boy so much. we went to a drive-in theater and to buffalo and to red lobsterrrrr and played outside at the waterfalls and threw the disc and ate waaay too much food and just plain went crazy.

i've already read seven books this summer, and finding another one is eluding me. any suggestions?

i am in the middle of planning an escape route for the frogs stuck in my window well. their plight is sad but real, and i am trying to help.

the adventure begins.

i love my kitty. mmeeeerrrrwwwwww. he gets a strange satisfaction from attacking the grass.

so it's been forever. here's a quick update on my life/summer.

i love joshua troyer.
i'm going to alaska for a month in approximately 3 days.
i'm doing genetic mapping research for dr. pelletier for 4 weeks in starting june 5, the day after i get back from alaska.
home july 1
counselor at youth camp july 10-15
florida to visit jenn, john, evan, and tori july 18-24
wildwood beach ultimate tournament july 28 - 30 (in josh's '71 volkswagon bus..oohh yeah)
finally home for a month before i leave for school august 27 (flats 107 baby with the hottest roommates ever!!!!!!!)

so there's my plans, if i'm not updating that is why. the times i'm home i plan to park myself at the beach (here AND on long island), visit judy, visit the love of my life, maybe get another job (maybe), make judy come ride my unicorn, sleep, and eat. oh and maybe run and get back in shape for frisbee in the fall. lets see how much that happens. :) i was elected captain for next year though, and i'm really really excited about playing. i just hope i don't freak out with all the labs that i have. oh well.

so i guess thats it for the update on my life. sophomore year was definitely amazing, and i can't wait until next year. i miss my friends dearly, especially judy and matt and brandon and chris and sam and dan. and alex.

off to finish shopping for the boots that seem to be escaping me.

i love you <3

i slept in, rode spot for an hour, and bought a picture frame, a candle, a candle holder, and a little box at target, ALL WITH GIRAFFES ON THEM. my collection is rapidly getting out of hand.

off to consume lots of pizza and help my mommy with a 1000 piece puzzle.

i <3 home.

here's my nose!!

well, been a while eh? life seems to move in slow motion at school because you do the same things every day, but then you look and the months fly by. amazing. life is amazing. amazingly awsome and wonderful and full of love and friendship and laughter. sometimes life can be amazingly sucky too, but mostly not.

lets see...lots has happened in the past month. i guess the most inportant and life-changing would be what happened during my random week off from school. on the 27th of january, Josh Troyer and I left to go to Long Island because his step-mom had called and said that his dad was getting really really bad, and she thought he might want to come home. his dad had a very advanced case of melanoma, and had tried numerous treatments that didn't work. he had multiple tumors, including one in his heart, and it had spread to his brain. so we left on friday morning to drive home, and we got there and got to talk to his dad for a bit. he even gave Josh a hug and said "Hi Rachel. No traffic?" when we got there. It was exciting :). but anyway, he progressively got worse and worse, and eventually on saturday night he passed away with everyone around him. i know he was ready to go, and everyone knew it was time, but it was still really sad. i was glad we made it there in time on friday and that Josh got to spend some time with him. the visitations and the service and burial (military burial...yeah 25 years in the Navy!!!) he was an awesome guy, and i am really thankful that i got to know him and spend time with him when he came up to school, and when i visited over Christmas break. he gave me a gold star for making Josh tell him he loved him, and he called me a firecracker. i miss him though, and am sad that he is going to miss out on a lot of important things in Josh's life. he's dancing with Jesus though. :) i know Josh misses him alot too, so if you would keep him in your prayers that would be great. it's been hard. so that's the biggest thing that's happened, and if you want to know more, just ask. people at school have been really nice about it too, which is great.

haha another big thing that happened to me is i got my nose pierced. i got it done the first week in January, and i love love love it. i'll put a picture up so you can see. :)

a couple weekends ago was winter weekend, and judy and alex and josh and i went. we had a lot of fun, and spot was good afterwords too.

mmmmm.....i am home for break right now. 10 days off and i am loving it. i go back the 5th, and i don't have any homework, only some studying to do. i have no plans either. sleeping in, spot, and hanging out with crystal is it. and the DR fundraiser. and josh coming up at the end of the week!!!! yay!!

well i am off to hang out with my daddy. my mom is in cedarville visiting sarah and is coming home tomorrow (but i will still be asleep :)).

lovelove.

i think i'm pretty much the happiest i've been in a long, long time.

this is my list of favorite people today:
Josh Troyer
Judy
Josh Toth
Sarah
my mommy
my daddy

personally, Judy has quickly become my favorite buddy. she always makes me laugh and encourages me and is my workout and biology buddy. yayy!

so i *officially* declared my major today. ooooo. ahhhhh. yeah i pretty much was already a bio major but now academic records knows it. so i am rachel clift, biology major and chemistry (and math?) minor. whoooa.

brief update: school's good. classes are good. friends are good. life is good. miss my parents. and my pony and dogs and cats. miss crystal diaz. miss my ashley. miss the mate kids. sad about josh leaving in 11 days. i have a poster of a giraffe and her baby up in my room. looking for more posters. i love awana (even though the yellow team always wins. except for last week when my RED TEAM WON cause of sword drills!!) . i love water polo. i hate speech class. i love my nose. hee hee. i've been running every day. can't believe i'm almost halfway done with school.

wow.

i decided that it was time for another new template because there are 27 days until christmas. i might decide i need to change it again if i find one i like more though.

so i'm back at school after a very relaxing and fun break. i hung out with my family and ashley, played with the animals, spent time at the barn, ate a lot of yummy homemade food, hung out with friends, watched movies, and slept. i had no homework to do, no commitments...it was wonderful. i actually do feel refreshed and i think i'll be able to survive the last three weeks rather well. it's good to be back but it was even better to be back home.

genetics was cancelled today, as was lab, so i only had 2 classes today, and the whole afternoon free. amazing. i am going to take a nap, watch a movie, and paint my toenails. what will it be this time? haha.

hope your thanksgiving was as restful as mine! <3

since ashley so kindly updated her blog, i decided to copy off of her and update mine. here is my list of random things i am thankful for:

-hooded sweatshirts
-hobbes
-hot cider
-my mommy's hugs
-my daddy's hugs
-my mommy and daddy all around
-ashley
-german chocolate brownies
-frisbee
-my roommates
-christmas music
-coming home
-realizing that you have known your friends for 10 years and you still like each other
-talking with benjamin
-are you sure it's sprite?, french bread pizza, and modeling in the yard (especially the mailbox)
-cute puppies
-snow
-things that don't change when you come home
-things that do (even though sometimes i don't like it to begin with)
-VW buses (excuse me...campmobiles) and Porsches
-the people that own the VW's and Porsches, that being Joshua Troyer and Alexander Lipnicki
-Dr.Pelletier
-lotion from bath and body
-the Bible
-my niece and nephew
-Jenn and John
-Sarah Elizabeth, the most superfantastic sister in the world
-Jesse
-Erik, Crystal, Ralph, Josh, Jen, Kayla, Tom, Dean, Cam, Chad, Dayna, Crystal Dub
-hats
-bacon
-the best submariner in the world, otherwise known as Josh Toth
-my girls: Megan, Chrissy, and Nikki
-love
-nail polish. oh come on, you know me.
-the admiral and the commodore. again.
-Jarod and the rest of the Mate family
-MY PONY
-Judy Jackson
-all my biology buddies
-Alan and Sam, because without them i wouldn't be passing chemistry
-fireplaces
-school
-breaks from school
-AWANA
-sally
-gilbert
-trinity
-yatsu
-the influence that my grandmother has on my life even today
-david ridley
-all the ridleys
-trials in life
-hard decisions

i could go on forever i think. that's enough for now.

this song is dedicated to ashley pelletier. because we sung it in the car tonight.

To really love a woman, understand her -you gotta know her deep inside
Hear every thought, see every dream
And give her wings when she wants to fly

When you love a woman
Tell her that she’s really wanted
When you love a woman, tell her that she’s the one
'Cause she needs somebody to tell her
That it’s gonna last forever
So tell me have you ever really
Really really ever loved a woman?

You got to give her some faith, hold her tight
A little tenderness, gotta treat her right
She will be there for you, takin’ good care of you
You really gotta love your woman...

Just tell me have you ever really,
Really, really, ever loved a woman?

sometimes it really bothers me that people get ticked off when i don't act like the perfect friend to them. i mean really...benjamin has been my best friend since i was 8 and i've talked to him twice since school started. are we not friends anymore? of course not. he'll be my best friend forever even if we never talk. it's assumed that just because we are both extremely busy doesn't mean we're not friends. true friends know you are still friends without talking about it. it bothers me that i can't go a week or two without talking to someone and they freak out and get annoyed that i'm not there for them anymore. yet, when i do try to talk to them, they act cold and unfriendly and say about 3 words the entire conversation. so basically if i don't talk to them unintentially, they think they have the right to do it intentianally. what's the logic in that?

in other news, i go home in 5 days. i also think that God needs to tone down the details of his creation for people like me who have to memorize all the parts of it. and chemistry needs to fall off the face of the earth.

i have 3 loads of laundry to do and no time to do it.

it is Thanksgiving Dinner night and i'm about to go get some turkey to match the ones on my toes. if you want to see my toes, just let me know. i'd be happy to show them off.

peace.

i'm sorry i haven't updated. i thought it was about time to change things around and trees in the fall make me happy.

apparently someone named vivienne wants me to move to beautiful north wales. yeeesssss.

megan and i are listening to christmas music. it is our new favorite pastime. we listen to it every time we are in the room, especially the American Idol christmas cd. love it.

so this week i don't really have that much homework, and i'm ok with that. however, the next two weeks are going to be slightly more fun. i have a genetics, calc, and chem test in the next two weeks, along with a calc Derive test and project due. whoooooo. i <3 math!

i played powderpuff football on saturday with my lovely roommate. she made 3 interceptions and i scored a touchdown. it was lots of fun. and we got muddy.

tonight i have AWANA, which i must say is always the highlight of my week. i'm so glad it's on wednesdays..it makes the rest of the week easier to get through. there is a little boy in my group named Ethan and he always talks in a whisper and likes to smile but is incredibly shy. he's very small for his age and i like to give him lots and lots of hugs and encouragement. i am the red team leader, by the way.

today it is cold and raining and tomorrow it is supposed to snow 3 inches. what's up with that?

here is a list of things i miss about home, in no particular order:
-my mommy
-my daddy
-sarah (even though she's not there)
-ashley
-sally
-gilbert!
-spot
-trinity and hobbes
-yatsu
-jarod mate
-kyle mate
-mr and mrs mate
-the angerosas
-church
-the barn
-the triplets
-my room
-my bed!
-old navy
-the chinese place by shaw's
-the sub base
-josh (even though he's not really there right now)
-my mommy's cooking
-riding
-sleeping in
-playing with sally in the backyard
-everything

time for dinner.
i love my sister.

pray to end abortion.

hi.

so.

school is nice. yeeeaaahh. i'm loving genetics, hating chemistry (but i think maybe i am understanding for once) and intro to christ is nice too. so far in class we have watched clips from Monty Python and the Holy Grail, the Simpsons, Southpark, and listened to Christian death metal. he's an awesome professor. calc is going ok, it's math. enough said. i get it but it's not really fun.

all my time is spent studying or playing disc. i don't think i have studied so much in my entire life. except for finals week last year. oh gosh. don't think about finals yet. if i'm studying this much and it's only the middle of the year, i can't imagine what finals week will be like.

disc is going well, no more tournaments till Oct 29-30. we have practice 5 days a week which i love, well, i loved it more when it was warm outside. it's a bit brisk now. but hey it's ultimate.

my parents came to visit Sep 30-Oct 2, and we had a lot of fun. they brought Sally to surprise me, which was so exciting because i missed her so much and i hardly ever get to see animals here. i thought they should have brought Gilbert too, but they didn't think he would have had as much fun as Sally did. Our home tournament was that saturday, so we hung out outside in the gorgeous weather, and my parents saw me play for the first time. they were excited to watch. i love my family.

i went for an hour and 15 minute run yesterday over the cross country trails in the woods behind the ski slope. it was awesome. i had a lot of pent-up energy that i needed to get out, so it was perfect. i almost got mauled by a bear though. and by almost i mean not really. but i could have if not for my remarkable tracking skills.

i am eating strawberry banana yogurt with granola on it. mmmmm.

yeah, so, this past weekend was a tough one. my 31 year old cousin Carrie died last saturday, and this weekend was her funeral. she had had breast cancer for 3 years, but had only really been sick for about 2 weeks before she died. it was really hard, but i'm so glad she was saved. she can dance with my grammy now. :) I flew out to St. Louis on Friday and met my mom, then went to the funeral and hung out with family on Saturday and flew back Sunday. it was a quick trip, but so good to see my family there. we went to the cemetary where my great grandparents and great great grandparents are buried, which was pretty good. actually, my family has 4 generations buried there. it was a tiny cemetary that was totally in the middle of nowhere surrounded by cornfields. i wanted to go visit my grammy's grave too, but Jefferson Barracks closes at dusk since it's a military cemetary, and we didn't make it back in time. oh well.

you know what's the best? when people get mad at you for actually studying (which is what you're at school for) and not talking to them every day for endless hours because you don't want to fail chemistry. i love it, don't you?

i changed the voicemail on my phone. it's kind of funny and random cause i didn't really know what i was going to say. oh well.

tomorrow i am going to visit my wonderful, gorgeous sister at school for 5 DAYS. i am so excited. it would have been nice to go home and see ashley and gilbert and my pony, but i am still very excited. mom and dad are flying out on friday to see the play that sarah is stage managing (which is a main reason i am going as well) and we'll just have a superfantastic time. i have a huge amount of work/studying to do while i'm there (3 papers and 2 tests the week after break..blah) but of course i get to sleep in. mwahahahaha.

ok i think i need to go do something productive because all this talk of work is making me stress. not really but it could if i let it.

i love ashley.
josh troyer makes me laugh.
jesse braswell is my number one encourager.
my sister is amazing.
my parents are the coolest parents ever.
i miss my pony.

PEACE.
p.s. i love Megan Roll. she's my roommate and i always want to give her a hug.

well well well.

here i am. back at school. back at Houghton. back to class.

i don't want to be here.

sometimes the worst part about going to college is going to college. i know that i will have fun, that i'll get over it, that it won't be so bad not having any close friends in the dorm anymore. i know judy and sam are the floor below and that makes me happy. my roommates are both really nice and i know it'll be a good year. but i still wish i was home.

i wish i was getting ready to crawl in my bed after a good day full of church and ashley and relaxing. i wish i had to work tomorrow at the barn, and be able to ride my pony. i miss him.

in other news...i need to stop feeling sorry for myself and wake up to the fact that chem is at 8 in the morning. please pray for me!

my last few days at home were really really good..i spent friday with the ridley's, which was wonderful because i got to see Dave for a long time. we went to the beach and played soccer (oh excuse me...football) and rummy 500 and just layed in the sun. it was very enjoyable. then we went back to their house and had my favorite dessert ever (Pavlova) and i painted anna's toenails and watched Master and Commander of the Seven Seas. i love my second family.

saturday i had a craaaazy day but it was a good crazy. i woke up at 9:30 to bake Swedish Butter Cookies for Jesse, then ran ran ran to the post office to mail his guitar + cool stuff package before it closed at 12:30. i left my house at 12:20. it was awesome. then i went to walmart, hallmark, and the barn to ride my pony for the last time. we played outside and went for a trail ride and played with the hose. it was a good last ride till thanksgiving. after the barn, i ran to the romine's to pick up my shirt i'd left, then ran home to take a shower, eat dinner (steak and baked potatoes) then...dum dum dum.

i got to see joshua!!!!!!!!!!

it was so so so exciting and the best thing i could've done on my last night home. i went down to his house and met him, then went to panera bread and he ate dinner and i had british breakfast tea. then we went back to his house and i met his roommate and helped him unpack like the good helper that i am. i am the t-shirt and sock master. after that we just hung around his house talking and laughing and then went to the store to get tums for my tummy. i have an ulcer. but that's another story. we basically just sat around and talked for like 6 hours. it was awesome. i was so happy to see him and hear about dive school and see the picture and his new insignia and everything. i was so happy that he came home yesterday instead of driving home. i miss him.

today was moving in day...my mommy and i left at 5:30 this morning and made it to HC at 12:30. we stopped 3 times cause we had Sally with us. aaaannndd...when we got here, billy came as a surprise and helped me move in! i am very thankful that he came because i had lots of heavy stuff. he also stayed and played frisbee with us on the quad to jump start the season. i'm glad he came, it was good to see him, and as always, disc at houghton wouldn't be the same without him.

well...my brain needs resting for chem and genetics and calc all in the SAME DAY. mmmmrrrrmmmrrrr.
i miss Ashley!

10\2 dreaming of you.

my mom reads my blog. amazing.

had a relaxing day today. church was good and then after the Mates, the Angerosas (minus Pastor cause he's in Haiti) and my family went out to eat at Pacific Buffet. so good. Jarod Mate is my new boyfriend..i love him so much (he's 4). He insisted on sitting next to me to eat, and then declared that he is coming to college and is going to sleep in my bed with me. he would share things on his plate for lunch, tell me to save his spot when he went to go get more food, and would randomly kiss my arm and say "Gotcha!". he is my favorite...his smile lights up the room.

after lunch, i came home and hung out with Ash all afternoon. i packed most of my clothes while she went Scripture hunting in my room, then we relocated to her room and she cleaned and used her creative skills and i promptly fell asleep on her bed for 45 minutes. she got ready for work and i left for the barn. Spot got his shoe on yesterday so i was able to work him again today. we horsed around (ha) for a while outside and i cleaned his stall. i then went to the easiest babysitting job in the world. the triplet's house, but they were in bed already when i got there and never heard from them the two and a half hours i was there. it was awesome. i watched tv, called Benjamin and left a message, talked to Jesse for 45 minutes, and napped for 30. so cool. and i got paid for it.

so here i am after a profoundly relaxing day. the week will start to get crazy tomorrow, but hopefully not so crazy that i can't just chill out before classes start next week. the Schmitz children are coming to ride Spot on Tuesday (wow Bailey on a horse), work, tutoring, horse-sitting for Mrs. Wittman, and trying to say goodbye to everyone. yaaaay for time management skills!

hope you are enjoying God's blessings on your life as much as I am!
10/4 out the door.

only 9 more days till i'm back at Houghton!

sometimes it seems crazy that the summer is almost over, but 4 months is a long summer i suppose. a lot of stuff has happened in these 4 months.

this summer has been one of discovery, renewing, laughter, love, tears, joy, sorrow, loneliness. there have been nights and weekends of endless celebration and lots of people, and nights of relaxation and solitude. friends have come and gone, a few have visited and one has stayed. (i <3 Ashley)

i've said goodbyes to many more people than i expected. my three best friends in the entire world all left this summer. benjamin is in north carolina, jesse is in Iraq (my knight in desert camoflage i say), joshua is in florida (my favorite Navy sailor). My heart aches for each of them, for the trials and battles they are all facing in their own way. I rejoice in the joy they have in each of their circumstances. I laugh at the stories they have to share. but it only makes me miss them more each day.

i've come to realize this summer that my parents really are cooler than everyone else's. i have laughed, watched movies, shared problems and triumphs, and generally just loved on them more than i did when i was still living at home. they are truly God-honoring people and i'm blessed beyond belief to have them as parents.

i am excited to see what the coming school year is going to bring, the challeges i am going to face (CHEMISTRY), the new friends i will make, along with the memories.

here's to the nights we felt alive
here's to the tears you knew you'd cry
here's to goodbyes, tomorrow's gonna come too soon.

*8 days till i see Josh! unless boat duty calls then maaayyybbeee not till thanksgiving. but maybe till christmas :( oh in case you were wondering...he's rocking out the dive school. and he totally killed the bay swim. about a dozen times.
*4 months till Jesse comes home for leave!! and 293 days till he comes home for gooooood.
*10 months till my triathlon. eeeee need to get on the working out thing.
*9 days till Houghton
*8 days till David Ridley
*1 hour till Ash gets home from work
*30 seconds till i bite into a hot slice of bacon pineapple pizza. mmmmmm.

10/1 on the run.

i miss josh. sometimes i like the fact that he is in the Navy, but sometimes it makes me really sad. like now. however, i am proud of him and proud he is going to dive school. pray for him hardcore ok? he needs it. pray for strength and energy to survive having his hands and feet tied together in the pool, to survive a 1000 meter swim in open water while only using his feet, no hands, in less than 23 minutes. i would drown. pray that he would find a church and get into a spiritual routine while he's down there. pray that he wouldn't be tempted by other things and would stay strong in the Lord.

by the way, this is a picture of his submarine, the U.S.S. Toledo, SSN 769. it's way way cool. i got to go on it all sneaky-like (not really) and see where he works and what he does and where he sleeps. it was awesome. although it was a boatful of dudes, which was a little intimidating cause they never see girls on board. but hey. whatever. i can better understand why it is a good thing to have contact with the outside world when underway.

p.s. i've decided to join the Navy SEALs. think G.I. Jane.

well. time for an update wouldn't you say?

ok. so. lots has happened. can't really think of it all. hmm Independence Day was nice but not what i expected. i wanted to do something so cool and fun and patriotic and I-Love-My-Country like but it just didn't happen. the Angerosa's came over for dessert and birthday cake (happy birthday mommy!) and then we did fireworks in the backyard. we ended up venturing out to the Cheshire fireworks, and they were awesome. definitely the best fireworks i've ever seen. i wanted to go to Mystic to watch theirs but it never happened. then i wanted to go to Sailfest's on Saturday in New London because they are supposed to be the best on the Eastern seaboard but that didn't happen either. oh well.

i babysat for the Angerosa kids for 24 hours that week and had a blast. we played with the Slip n Slide, built a castle, went to Wendy's for dinner, made cinnamon rolls, got snowcones, the kids rode Spot..it was a fun experience. we had a tage sale on the 9th to raise money for Haiti at their house...i think i saw them every day for 8 days straight. we made our own commune.

last friday was the anniversary of the day Grammy died. it was a sad day. i bought my mom flowers because i would catch her crying. we did a lot of crying that day. i miss my Grammy. i miss her laugh, her saying "hello Dolly" when i called her, her smell, her hugs, the sound her slippers made as she shuffled across the kitchen. i miss waking up and giving her a kiss in the morning as she sits at the table with her coffee, always in a cup and saucer, never in a mug. i miss laying on her bed watching CSI with her, listening for a bell ringing in the night to signal a problem. i miss the quiet hiss of her oxygen machine close to the end, the nebulizer treatments, the hospice care. i don't miss watching her body shut down on her, when her mind was just as sharp and witty, but if it meant she was here, i'd take it anyday. i miss the past, the trips to the mall to pick out a new outfit for Christmas, spending a month at her apartment in the summer, sleepovers in her bed (watching out for Yatsu of course). i miss her voice, her robes, fixing her hair, painting her nails. i miss her, i miss her, i miss her. Love you Grammy.

friday was also Jonathan Ridley's 17th birthday, so i went to their house for dinner, then to his baseball game to cheer him on. we made huge signs and embarrassed him very badly. he loved it though.

saturday was Benjamin's 19th birthday. happy birthday dear!!! i miss my best friend lots and lots.

also on saturday i went down to norwich and hung out with the one of a kind Joshua Toth. we went to the mystic aquarium (finally!!) and saw beluga wales, touched sting rays, a starfish, and a crab, and saw lots of funky animals. we watched a sea lion show which was awesome and i'm going to get one now. and keep it in my bathtub. after that we went on base and bought stuff to make chocolate chip cookies at the commissary, then went and baked them and ate them. we watched million dollar baby (sad but really good) and ordered bacon and pineapple pizza. the pizza came half and half instead of both on all of it, so we made sandwiches. it was fun. he put on his dress blues for me too. just because i asked him to. isn't he nice? i miss him a lot. he is leaving for dive school for six weeks (i think) this week and i won't see him until Christmas and then he'll be on deployment Jan-June next year and it's really really really sad. and i miss him a lot a lot. he has become one of my best friends, which is strange really if you think about it, not because of him, because i said hi to him for about 4 months once a week. then he left for far away places and was awesome enough to keep in touch. he's my favorite Navy submariner. actually my favorite Navy anything. actually the only person i know in the Navy. but he knows he's my favorite anyway.

yesterday was church, the barn, and hanging out with people at the boys apartment all night. we went to Ruby Tuesdays and ate and watched old home videos of our friends. oh the joy of knowing your friends for 10 years.

today was work work work, then tutoring. no bible study. read and ate an MRE for dinner!!!! out on the garage floor. it was a-MAZ-ing. lets just say it's probably the most fun i've had eating dinner by myself. it was chicken tettrazini and a chocolate milkshake and a cookie and crackers and blackberry jam. so fun. i loved it.

so that's it, consider yourself updated. if you care to know more, then ask.

prayer requests:
i'm lonely. my 3 best friends in the entire world have left and i don't know when i will see them again. miss you guys.
going back to school. don't want to. enough said.
chemistry. calculus. genetics. enough said there too.
mohammed. ask. i'll tell.
jesse. in Iraq being a cool nurse. for wisdom and energy to make it through long 12 hour workdays
dan grundman. in indonesia for 16 days helping with tsunami relief. comes back the 30th.
josh. dive school.
billy. christian friends, struggling with a lot of things i am.
my dad. his job.

sometimes i stop and realize i have a truly amazing life and even better friends to go with it.
yeah that's it. <3

I Am The Flag

I am the flag of the United States of America.

I was born on June 14, 1777, in Philadelphia.

There the Continental Congress adopted my stars and stripes as the national flag.

My thirteen stripes alternating red and white, with a union of thirteen white stars in a field of blue, represented a new constellation, a new nation dedicated to the personal and religious liberty of mankind.

Today fifty stars signal from my union, one for each of the fifty sovereign states in the greatest constitutional republic the world has ever known.

My colors symbolize the patriotic ideals and spiritual qualities of the citizens of my country.

My red stripes proclaim the fearless courage and integrity of American men and boys and the self-sacrifice and devotion of American mothers and daughters.

My white stripes stand for liberty and equality for all.

My blue is the blue of heaven, loyalty, and faith.

I represent these eternal principles: liberty, justice, and humanity.

I embody American freedom: freedom of speech, religion, assembly, the press, and the sanctity of the home.

I typify that indomitable spirit of determination brought to my land by Christopher Columbus and by all my forefathers - the Pilgrims, Puritans, settlers at James town and Plymouth.

I am as old as my nation.

I am a living symbol of my nation's law: the Constitution of the United States and the Bill of Rights.

I voice Abraham Lincoln's philosophy: "A government of the people, by the people,for the people."

I stand guard over my nation's schools, the seedbed of good citizenship and true patriotism.

I am displayed in every schoolroom throughout my nation; every schoolyard has a flag pole for my display.

Daily thousands upon thousands of boys and girls pledge their allegiance to me and my country.

I have my own law—Public Law 829, "The Flag Code" - which definitely states my correct use and display for all occasions and situations.

I have my special day, Flag Day. June 14 is set aside to honor my birth.

Americans, I am the sacred emblem of your country. I symbolize your birthright, your heritage of liberty purchased with blood and sorrow.

I am your title deed of freedom, which is yours to enjoy and hold in trust for posterity.

If you fail to keep this sacred trust inviolate, if I am nullified and destroyed, you and your children will become slaves to dictators and despots.

Eternal vigilance is your price of freedom.

As you see me silhouetted against the peaceful skies of my country, remind yourself that I am the flag of your country, that I stand for what you are - no more, no less.

Guard me well, lest your freedom perish from the earth.

Dedicate your lives to those principles for which I stand: "One nation under God, indivisible, with liberty and justice for all."

I was created in freedom. I made my first appearance in a battle for human liberty.

God grant that I may spend eternity in my "land of the free and the home of the brave" and that I shall ever be known as "Old Glory," the flag of the United States of America.