What is this thing you call winter?

The shock that I experienced when getting off the coach bus yesterday morning, was a drastic one. I was wearing shorts because I had been in Ocean Springs, Mississippi 18 hours earlier. I should have expected it but I was lazy and didn't have any of my clothes with me (because they were all in the bottom of the bus). So I basically speed walked to Miller and changed right when I got back in the room.

There definitely seems to be something going around in the Towers these days. We are no longer immune to the Lutheritis disease. Almost everyone I know has been (in the last 5 days) or still is sick. In my case I am mostly better with just a cough remaining, I believe that it is because I am either allergic to something down in Nawlins or Mississippi or it is because of the large difference in temperature my body has experienced lately. Oh well. I am trying lots of different medicines in order to try to heal my self. My roommate came down with strep yesterday, I really hope I don't have/get that. I just want to be better.

Okay enough bitching. I just finished my 6-page paper for New Worlds, New Nations. I got 4 pages done last night then slept (with the help of some Tylenol PM) and then got up around 10 AM this morning and just finished it up.

I am watching Sports Center at the moment. So why have I seen no MLB coverage? Did the MLB dissappear while I was gone? Pretty sure it still exists. I really hate how they cover all the stupid sports (football, golf (blah), nascar (double blah), and hockey)

I should probably go shower right now but I am blogging instead. I feel like I should be working on my writing skills constantly nowadays. I mean I only have two years left at Luther and then its a swift kick in the rear end towards the real world.

Heres a picture from New Orleans (we spent our first night and part of the day last Sunday there)

Our group in front of a Cathedral in the French Quarter

I'm the one in the blue if you don't know that already.

My NCAA bracket was pretty off. I had no idea two one seeds would be in the final four. Meh. Basketball sucks anyways. I can't wait to go to like 10-15 Twinkie games this summer and I definitely can't wait for the new Target stadium to open. YAY!

The new stadium is coming along quite nicely:

Target Field from Webcam #2

My return to the Gulf Coast

Hi Y'all!

I just got back from spring break today around 9 am. I went on a Habitat for Humanity trip with my school Luther College. We had a group of 50-60 students and adults (both employees, retired teachers, and alumni). We took a big coach bus down on March 20th and drove to New Orleans. We arrived at about 3-4 pm and then spent the night. The group I was with cruised down Bourbon St. until we found a restaurant that looked good. We chose a seafood place that had a live band playing. The food was okay but surprisingly the fried shrimp I got were Minnesota sized (tiny). Then we continued looking around and enjoying the sites. In the morning I went with a small group of people and walked along the beautiful river walk. Around 2 pm we packed up again and got on the bus. It was a two hour drive to Ocean Springs, Mississippi from New Orleans, LA. We were able to see much of the damage that Katrina caused as we drove along the highways.

When we got to Camp Victor (the place we stayed at and the organization that organized where we worked and everything else.) around 3 or 4 pm we were first given a tour. It had changed quite a bit from the last time I saw it. It was no longer a distribution center for the community and had converted that space into an extended lounge for the volunteers. Then we were given our dorm assignment and dropped our stuff off and made our beds. We were given some free time and then it was time for dinner. Later that night at about 9:30 we met as a group and discussed the different jobs different groups were to do during the week. I went to a group that was doing both demolition and construction on eaves and Fascia board (basically the part of the house under the overhang of the roof.) It was with a great leader and ex-chem professor named Dale. I had worked with him last year too. We had three other students besides me and two adult leaders, Dale and an alumna named Carol.

The next day was Monday and the lights turn on throughout the camp @ 6AM (there are no roofs separating the different rooms in the camp.) We ate breakfast which I think was biscuits and gravy. It took awhile for all our group members to make themselves a sack lunch and then to gather up all the tools we would need for the job and put them into the vans we had rented. Around 9 to 9:30 we arrived at our work site and met Larry who was the homeowner we would be working for the whole week. He was quite a character and gave us a lot of interesting history lessons about his life and about the area. We began work by tearing down parts of the material that was under the overhang of the roof, the Soffit and the Fascia which had been damaged during hurricane Katrina and had begun to rot. We removed these materials with crowbars and hammers. The next day (Tuesday) we basically did exactly the same things we did on Monday. Except that after work I went to dinner with a big group of friends and shared a big seafood platter with a girl who was an expert in picking apart shrimp and crab. It was so delicious.

On Wednesday, we woke up @ 6 am again. Got to the worksite around 8 or 9 am. Today we would begin sawing and then replacing both the Soffit and Fascia board. I used a circular many times to cut and trim the boards so they would fit in the house. We then used caulk to get them to stick up there. We did this the remaining two days. But I was sick starting on Monday with a sore throat and a bad cough. I stuck it out and went to work Monday through Wednesday but then took a day off on Thursday and stayed at camp and slept for most of the day. This helped me immensly and I was able to go back to work on Friday. Both Thursday and Friday the weather was rather bad and it rained most of the day. The drainage systems in most homes in Mississippi as well as public areas is not very good, so Larry's yard and the road to go to the beach were flooded. This prevented us from working on parts of his house. Friday was our last day of work and when we finished it we took a picture with Larry and said goodbye. (I attached a picture, I hope you get it)

Friday night was quite relaxing, I went to dinner at a Sonic and then went to a grocery store and bought some cough drops to try to cure my still bad sounding cough (which I still have unfortunately). I then played a few board games until about 11 pm when a small group of us decided to walk to the beach (which was about a mile away). It was storming (lightning, thunder, and rain) when we got there and quickly got worse. The winds were around 20-30 mph, and I got some great pictures of both waves and the surrounding area. We decided to leave about a half an hour later because the storm was getting increasingly big. We were rained on, on our way back to camp. I then went to bed at about 12-12:30.

On Saturday we a free day until around 2 pm when we would be leaving to go back to Luther. I woke up around 9-9:30 and a group of us walked to a local donut shop. We then walked to the beach and the roads were severely flooded because of the large storm last night so we were unable to reach the beach (because I had tennis shoes on and couldn't wade through the water) so I decided to go back to camp and pack. I ate some lunch and then got right on the bus. We left around 2 pm. I sat next to the girl I previously mentioned (the one that was very good at picking apart seafood) It took us about 18 hours to drive back to Luther. I got a pretty good amount of sleep on the bus (which can be a difficult feat sometimes). Anyways now I am back at school, and am writing a paper about how the Native Americans benefitted from the Europeans trade networks and economic systems but by 1763 their economic system was destroyed by it. It is for my class New Worlds, New Nations. Well I better get back to it.

Inauguration, Dentist, Thawing Day, How could this day get any worse?

Following up on my post on Sunday (1/18), the Arizona Cardinals won 32-25 against the Philadelphia Eagles. The Pittsburgh Steelers won 23-14 vs. the Baltimore Ravens. So Arizona and Pittsburgh will be playing in the Super Bowl on February 1st, be there.

Anyways, I am watching the beginning of the television coverage of Obama's inauguration and it is quite boring so far. Just showing people standing around in the cold waiting for something to happen. The security around the White House is obviously very tight and the news reporters were saying that the line of people was about 10 blocks/or a mile long. Security officers at the door aren't allowing people to bring in backpacks (obviously) or umbrellas (a little less obvious). I hope the television coverage gets more exciting soon, because so far its just showing various celebs that are present at this ceremony. According to my dad Inauguration ceremonies are super boring and are "just a bunch of people speaking and a stupid parade".

In other news, last week when I went to the dentist (Dr. Maley), they discovered that I had one big cavity and four minor ones. So today I have an appointment around 2 to take care of those. I hope they use plenty of Novocaine because it will probably hurt otherwise. My dad has kind of been yelling at me for getting cavities and he has a point. I admit that I don't take the best care of my teeth, but ever since discovering I had 5 cavities, I have been brushing a lot, using mouthwash, and flossing (I feel kinda gross just starting flossing now, after 20 years lol).

Well today is supposed to be quite warm (in the 30's!, basically a heat wave).

10 AM

Obama and Bush just arrived @ the U.S. Capitol

Aretha Franklin will be performing.

Everybody at the Inauguration looks so cold. They are bundled up and obviously in layers.

I'm sitting here with Lex watching Fox 9 coverage of the Inauguration. Nice and warm.

10:14 am
George H.W Bush and Barbara Bush enter
(George H.W is limping around, he needs the support of his wife to get around, it looks like) (They look very frail, but very cordial)

Jimmy Carter and Rosaline Carter enter
(They both look very old)

Congressmen and their wives enter

10:15 am

Bill Clinton and Hillary enter

According to all the Facebook status's of my friends who are overseas, they are able to watch the Inauguration in their respective countries. Pretty cool that it is available worldwide. Has it been that way for previous inauguration events?

10:20-10:23

Previous Presidents are introduced and seated in chronological order:
Carter
H.W. Bush
Clinton
W. Bush

10:26 am

Michelle, Malia, and Sasha are introduced.

Laura Bush and other women (don't know who they are) walking down the stairs and are introduced.

The crowd is chanting Obama's name. Moments away from swearing in Vice President Joe Biden and 30 minutes away from swearing in President Barack Obama.

10:35 am

President Bush is announced and walks to the stage

10:39 am

Joe Biden is announced accompanied by a few senators and coordinators.

10:42

President Elect Barack Hussein Obama (with others, coordinators and such) is announced and walks to the stage

Something I have noticed: They are sure emphasizing how this is a "Peaceful transition of power."

Okay now its time for the swearing-in of the Vice President and then the President. I'm signing off for now. Look for my comments later on.

Obama, Obama, Obama...when will it end?

Me standing next to the big cherry @ the Walker Art Center
Today is Sunday January 18th 2009. The NFC and AFC Championship games are on TV today. The Philadelphia Eagles are playing the Arizona Cardinals and the Baltimore Ravens are playing the Pittsburgh steelers. I am rooting for the Arizona Cardinals and the Baltimore Ravens.

Anyways today I have heard Obama, Hope, Peace, and president-elect about 50 times already, @ church, all over TV (even on the NFL pregame show), and in the Sunday edition of the pioneer press. I know this is just the beginning, and we will hear a lot of Obama talk...which I'm not too excited about. But its a bit ridiculous to hear his name so often in just one day.

A comic in the Pioneer Press today:

Here's the actual comic: Cow and Boy by Mark Leiknes

Cow and Boy by Mark Leiknes

a little boy is sitting on a cow.

Little Boy: You feel that, cow?

LB: There's something in the air.

LB: A feeling I've not felt in a long time.

LB: One of hope and possibility.

LB: And yes, we've dug our hole deep and we've been in the dark for so long, but finally...

LB: It's the dawn of a new day.

Big, blinding flash of light.

Cow: My Retinas!

Obama Appears and the words "Obama Power" are in bold.

Haha this is funny because its so ridiculous.

I am watching the eagles vs. cardinals right now, the score is 24 to 6 Cardinals.

I am going to go get a few appetizers, so I will quit writing for now. I'll be back later.

Has/Will music ever stop evolving?

A current picture of me

Well well! I am finally writing in here again. Phew well this has been a busy week, two finals and a take home test which all require a lot of studying and writing. Luckily this semester is almost over. It will be over in a little bit less than 24 hours. Phew. Tomorrow my roommate, Ingrid, and I will be driving back to the Twin Cities for X-MAS FRICKING BREAK!!!! And then I don't come back until February because I'm not taking a J-term class @ Luther. So will have about a month to relax, hang out with Mae and of course the fam. I am hoping that Mae and I will have the chance to go to lots of concerts and hopefully be together on NYE! Because that would be BEA-utiful!

This is totally random but...Last night I learned something interesting, that sometimes girls don't show any signs of liking you but they do actually like you. Wierdness.

Haha it is funny because people around here (@ Luther) really don't have any hesitations to drink on a weekday (no matter what day it is) and of course drink lots and lots of the weekends. I am not completely immune from this, I'll admit. It is kind of wierd to think about though, Because drinking on the weekdays when you have class the next day is not creating a beneficial learning environment for yourself. I wonder if our parents drank on weekdays or just weekends? Is this a new phenomena? Are we just more and more okay with drinking during the week, killing brain cells when we should be utilizing them?

Music is really a great relaxer and personal therapist. It is amazing how true that really is. I mean I can be totally stressed about something and then turn on some music (usually the Beatles) and most of the time I will feel at least somewhat better. I just hope that music doesn't degrade anymore into shitty techno songs and rappers rapping about their bitches and hoes. Lol. Thats another thing...our parents listen to the music that they grew up with...so if we follow that tradition, will we be listening to Luda, 50 cent, Chingy, and Eminem? because if we do that will be just too crazy for words. And what will our kids be listening to? Has/Will music ever stop evolving? Will new genres continue to emerge? I think that music will still constantly be changing and so it is almost impossible to predict what our kids and future generations will be jamming to...

Alright I better get back to these Bible papers I am supposed to be writing right now.

Listening to: Barbie Girl - Aqua (reminds me of 4th or 5th grade :) )

Sam: Loud?, Obnoxious?, Out-going?, Hyper?...

I have changed so much since I was a kid. It is amazing to think about. I have become very sociable and very loud and actually outgoing. LIke 3-4 years ago I would have never thought I would be this way. Here is how I have progressed...(well as much as I remember)

6th-7th Grade: I would only wear solid color t-shirts. Was friends with mainly 'nerds' haha. Played Dungeons and Dragons all the time. Got Bad grades. Was put on ADD medication for the first time.

8th Grade: I don't remember this year very well but I have a feeling it was similar to 6th and 7th besides the D&D. I do remember that I had branched out friend-wise and had made some more "popular" friends.

9th Grade: I think by this time I was wearing T-shirts with logos. But maybe not. I struggled greatly academically. I hung out with "Jocks" haha. I played baseball on the 9th grade squad and sat on the bench for most of the season. Besides being a pinch-runner once.

10-11th Grade: I had now become a lot more open and a bit more sure of myself. By now was wearing any t-shirt basically. Was hanging out with the "rebel/slacker" crowd. Had found the right crowd haha. Started to become really into baseball stats and followed the Twins like crazy.

12th Grade: Was the most open I had been yet. I was still with the slacker crowd and as they began to become more into partying so did I. I began to drink (just a little) and smoked cigarettes for about 6 months. That summer I partied and smoked some things I shouldn't have.

Freshman Year: I was still shy/kinda outgoing. But I forced myself to be social/outgoing for like the first month. So I made lots of friends but got stuck with horrible roommates (one just didn't talk to me and the other got busted for drugs and drank alot). After a Habitat Trip to Mississippi during Spring Break I was a changed person and was very social. Lots of people noticed.

This Year: I have come a long way since I was a very shy 7th grader only wearing solid color shirts. I am still a big Twins fan and will make this obvious (especially by what I wear most days). I have made lots of friends and like to be very social and outgoing. I will even sing now in public which I never thought I'd be able to do. I do dance sometimes but I am not very good so it doesn't happen very often.

SO thats my social life in a nutshell lol.

-Sam

The waters getting warm so you might as well swim!

Wow! Lately it has been super humid/hot outside. Its almost the end of July which is insane and means I have to go back to school in about a month...which I have mixed feelings about. While its going to be nice living on my own again and seeing all my friends from school, I am going to miss my family and of course my girlfriend, Mae.

It is currently week 6 at Camp Minnehaha (the camp I am a counselor for) and I am working with the 2nd and 3rd graders this week because one of the regular teachers is on vacation. The 2nd and 3rd graders are a lot of work and usually do not listen the first time you tell them something...so you end up repeating yourself many times. Which is super annoying.

Oooofff okay it is 12:30 am and I have to get up 'today' at 7...so I better make this short and sweet. Camp Minnehaha is going to the Roller Gardens in St. Louis park tomorrow for their weekly field trip. It should be fun although I am not a very good skater.

I have been reading The Stand by Stephen King since about the middle of June and am currently on page ~756 or so. It is getting so interesting. Harold Lauder is in some deep doo-doo. He better watch his back. And the 'Good-guys' inhabiting Boulder, Colorado are just starting to establish a new government and have elected a 7 member counsel.

One of my brothers birthday is next Tuesday, he is going to be 16. He is having a sleep over party this Sunday, and I am getting kicked out of my room in the attic because of it. Which I guess I don't mind too much, as long as they dont mess up my stuff or stink it up too much ;).

Anyways I better get going to bed. It is getting late.

-Sam

I'm back in action

Oooooffff! It has been way too long since I've blogged.

But it is late and hopefully I'll want to finish this tomorrow. Its 11:54 right now and I have work @ 8 am tomorrow!

I have to go!

Bye!

P.S. I watched GoodFellas tonight and REALLY WANT to be an Italian Gangster!

Heres two shows I've been watching a lot lately:

Flight of the Conchords - I love this show!

The Office - I really really LOVE this show!

Struggling to stay afloat!

These last two weeks have been very stressful. Not only has the work load and number of tests increase, but after being in Ocean Springs over spring break and having made lots of friends who I barely see because I am a lowly freshman and they are sophomores and juniors. I am probably getting myself way to worked up about this. It is probably not as bad as I make it seem or think it is. I have been known to do this and am often way too stressed. And I probably should have taken my depression pills sooner because now I think it has come back rearing its ugly head again, because lately I have been wanting to retreat to my room, to be on my computer and just watch TV. Sound familiar? yes it does.

But the last two nights I have gone down in the social lounge to study/be around people. This is a pretty common thing for me, I love being around people, even if we don't talk it does help. Another one of my problems is that I'm very homesick. I miss my family and am dreding these last few weeks because I am going to have to work hard, because right now my grades are not where they should be.

And another thing! Why doesn't Luther require Professors to update grades on My.Luther at midterm? It doesn't make sense, I'm know I'm not the only one worrying about where my grades will be and it would relieve a lot of stress if we knew where we stood at least mid-way through the semester.

I am trying to cheer up, I really am, but it is hard. I really don't have many good friends anymore that live in Brandt. They are all friends but no one I really hang out with much. I also am sick of my roommate situation. I would so be feeling better if we actually talked to each other instead of being MUTE ALL THE TIME!!!! Arggghh, and trust me I have tried several times to remedy the situation by starting conversations but all I get is a short response and then its back to silence. Also I asked a friend (he wont be named, but he knows who he is) if he wanted to be roommates with me next year, I thought it was worth a shot so I shot him a facebook message. I still haven't gotten a response! WTF! Does he think I can't handle rejection or something? Its almost worse not being answered then knowing how the other person feels. That is really a pet peeve of mine. C'mon people don't just ignore it just tell the person what you have to say. They probably wont be very hurt or anything. Arrrgggh..

Anyways it is way to late and I should have been in bed 2 hours ago. I'll write later....maybe.

[Early Arrivals], [New Season, New Look], [Matthew LeCroy update]

Early Arrivals:

Tomorrow (February 19th, 2008) marks the first day that all players may
report to Spring Training. But there are plenty of familiar faces already working
out at the Lee County Sports Complex.

More than 30 Major and Minor Leaguers were taking part in the voluntary workout
Friday morning on the back fields of the complex.

Scott Baker, Kevin Slowey, Glen Perkins, and Jesse Crain, have all been working out all week and have also been throwing off the mound.

Joe Mauer caught a few pitcher's bullpen sessions Friday morning.

Jesse Crain is looking strong after just about 8 months after having right shoulder
surgery to repair a torn labrum and torn rotator cuff.

There were some new faces that joined the workout group on Friday some of
these new faces were pitchers Phil Humber and Kevin Mulvey, both who were
acquired from the Mets in the Johan Santana trade.

The first official workout for pitchers
and catchers will take place on Monday



New season, new look:

Lots of changes were made during the offseason to the Twins roster, and to the
team's Spring Training complex.

Every year, the complex gets some slight upgrades.

This year:

- New Lights were installed at Hammond Stadium
- New Seats inside the ballpark
- Installation of a new batter's eye to help players see better
during the afternoon games.



Former Twin update:

Catcher Matthew LeCroy signed a Minor League contract with the Oakland A's
on Friday.

While LeCroy eventually hopes to go into coaching, he said at the time of
his call-up with the Twins last season that his hope was to play at least
one more year.