Hi guys! So I must gush -- I GOT TO MEET SHANE CARWIN!!!!!! =-D (that's me being super excited!) Now for those of you who don't know, Shane Carwin is the #1 heavyweight contender in UFC. And he happens to be an assistant (but more like guest) coach for UNC's wrestling team. So here's the story. I knew Carwin was going to be at the UNC vs. North Dakota wrestling dual which was perfect because I was alreadly planning on going to the tournament anyways. Wrestling is my favorite sport! I talked to of my girl-friends into coming along and I'm so glad I went. The dual was so intense...we as a team only lost by 4 points and man I wasn't the only one on my feet screaming for our guy to not give up. Talk about intense! That's what I love about it! And then to top off a great meet I got to meet Shane Carwin and get his autograph for my brother who is a wrestler in high school. On the autograph picture he wrote "Dream big! Knock 'em out!" :)I was all grins and am definitely going to be going to more of the wrestling tournaments so be looking out for more stats and pics! Here's the ones of Carwin and I!

The first week of Spring semester is almost done. I must admit it's really nice to come back to my apartment and all my crazy friends after being at home for break. In my junior year, this place truly has become my second home. And it feels good to be back.

Now about school! I'm super excited for the classes I'm taking this semester because I'm FINALLY done with my LAC's (liberal arts core) or general education classes! WOOT!!!! (yes that was totally necessary -- trust me! :) ) All my classes are 300 and 400 level and the discussions are so engaging I find myself enjoying class already and looking forward to the rest of the semester. As long as I can keep up with all the reading I have to do I think this will be a good, productive semester.

Speaking of books.....I had to buy about ten books. Now, as any college student knows, this usually puts a hefty dent in your wallet which is pretty small to begin with! What many incoming students who've never had to dump hundreds of dollars into books don't realize is that there are major ways to save big! So I shall let you all in on the secrets of saving some mooolah.

Although we have a bookstore on campus, and a bargain bookstore not two seconds away, the best way to save is online shopping. I personally recommend half.com. For those of you who've never had to buy online, don't fear! All it requires is a little shopping around and a debit/credit card. So don't be afraid to look around. If you absolutely need to buy books from the bookstore try to go earlier before the crowd rush, or even preorder your books from the bookstore, and always buy used!

My personal trick of the trade though is to wait to buy books until after the first day in class or even the first week if you can. By doing this I've been able to gage by the syllabus if I will even need the books (yes, sometimes professors cruely make you buy that $150 book that you use as a dust collector). Also, if some of my friends are in the same classes I'll usually go 50/50 with them on the books (don't suggest if your friends are unreliable!)

Hope that helps a bit when you get to UNC! I'm now off to put a dent in my list of reading homework that is fastly growing. Happy reading!

Ciao for now!

The end of the semester was......dreadful. As most finals weeks usually are thus far in my college career. I was nonetheless undaunted a trudged through finals week. What usually gets me through that week is knowing that by the end of it I will be safely home where no tests can touch me! =) This semester finals week was not too extremely bad and I've come to expect the usual day and night studying and binge eating to supress the stress.

Once safely home though, I was able to breathe and reflect on this last semester. I realized that I was somewhat overworked and I know this definitely affected my time devoted to classes and therefore my grades. As I went through this semester it didn't seem particularly difficult or different than any others. But now that I'm through it an on the other side, I see that I did wear myself out and stretch myself to the limit. I'm proud for making it through without breaking, but determined to focus on this coming Spring semester being better. And by better I mean less chaotic, stressful and unrelenting.

So here's to making it through 2009, and another semester at UNC, and looking forward to 2010 - another year of living life to its fullest as I enter my Senior year!

Ciao for now!