However, I am so excited that I get to see my family and friends! My older sister is flying in from California with her boyfriend, and my Daddy is flying in from Washington, D.C. My best friend that goes to another school will be in town at the same time as I am.

Also, I am really looking forward to one thing that I am going to accomplish over the break: giving of myself. I am donating at least eight inches of my hair to Beautiful Lengths by Pantene Pro-V. I am also going to donate platelets at least once at the Red Cross. The cool thing about doing both of these things and being a Lyon student is that now I can keep track of my volunteer/philanthropic pursuits with the Experiential transcript from the Lyon Experiences Program. That relieves the stress of trying to keep up with everything I do outside of the classroom. How convenient! Ciao!

Let me tell you…I love to read! I cannot count how many books I’ve read in my lifetime. However, for some reason I have to fight with myself internally every time I have to read for a class. Assigned reading just turns me off completely. It’s like if I see a book on a shelf in a store, it would be very interesting to read. But when I have to pay hundreds of dollars for used books that are going to determine grades…I’m completely disinterested.

So tonight when I have a couple of chapters to read for a class, I find myself checking Facebook and writing a blog instead. Oh yeah, and I watched the reunion episode of Project Runway 4. So now I think I’m done with the procrastination for tonight and it’s time to buckle down and study!

Another random thought…  Whats up with the weather?  Last week there was snow on the ground.  Monday and yesterday it was in the 60’s and 70’s and then last night there were tornadoes around the NE AR area.  And then today it was snowing again!  Yes it was snowing.  If you missed it - don’t worry, it didn’t last long or stick.  The only thing I can say is Welcome to Arkansas!

This is the busiest week of the semester it seems.  The semester started not even a month ago and now all of my classes are having tests/papers/exams all in the same week - this week.  And to make matters worse - everything is due on Friday.

One last random thought:  this week we have started a Swim Club.  Why Lyon has an indoor pool but no swim team has always been an issue for me.  But we just started a Swim Club.  This semester we will meet two days a week for practice.  Maybe next year, they will be able to get into some competitions (if there are any other colleges that compete)   Well I’m off to practice now…

Current students, prospectives, alum….share your opinion.  It’s sort of like voting in a presidential election….we can sit around and talk about whom we want or don’t want running our country, but if we don’t go out and vote, our words will fall on deaf ears.  Let us hear what you think!

I had a Molecular Biology test scheduled for 8 am this morning.  I’ve learned my lesson in the past, so I decided not to pull an all-nighter and actually went to bed at a halfway decent hour.  My cell phone alarm went off at 5am, and I bounced out of bed, with the intention of getting about two and a half more hours of studying done.  Things were going well…I ate breakfast, studied for a while, took a shower…. Heck, my mom even called me four times while I was in the shower because she was afraid I wasn’t awake.  I sat back down on my couch to cram in as much info as I could about transcription initiation, elongation, and all that jazz.  The next thing I knew, I opened my eyes, looked at the microwave clock, and realized that “yep,” that terrible dream had come true.  I missed my test.

All I can say is, thank goodness, I have an awesome professor who completely understood and gave me a chance to take the test that I slept through.  And Mom, if you’re reading this, maybe I do still need that wake-up call afterall.

Whether walking down the sidewalk, eating in the cafeteria (which was AMAZING!), or just sitting around, the discussion would always find its way back to the subject of worms.  There was even a Worm Comedy Show and a Worm Dance.  I’ll admit that I was a little skeptical of the Worm Comedy show because throughout the week, I’d heard about every worm joke ever created, but it ended up being hilarious.  On a serious note, it was amazing to hear everything the professors, researchers, and grad students had to say.  They were all so passionate about their specific area of research, and it was interesting to hear them share ideas and theories with others.

So when people say “A worm conference? You went to a worm conference??”, I just smile and remind them that those “worms” are actually a specific type of nematodes, called C. elegans, and are an important component in research that’s done all over the world.  I’m sure that probably makes me sound like a nerd….but I guess I can handle that

After I came to a preview day at Lyon, I was completely sold on coming to school here.  I’m still not really sure if it was the campus, atmosphere, attitude of the students and faculty, or a combination of all of those things, but something left a lasting impression on me.  I’ve actually heard many other people say the same thing–once they visited campus, they knew Lyon would be their second home for the next four years.  However, I’ll be honest, Lyon’s not necessarily a perfect fit for everyone; some prefer a larger campus population or are looking for something further away from home.  Therefore, the best thing to do is schedule a campus visit–you may love it or hate it, but either way, at least you’ve given it a shot!