Garza and my sorority mom! 

My sister, Jackie! 

Mery, my mom and I! 

Last weekend I had a ball. Literally. Well kind of.

The Thetas headed to Grand Rapids to have a formal dance/dinner at the Hilton Hotel. It was so much fun and I am blessed to have such amazing sisters. After talking to a lot of them, I wouldn't have even met them having not found the Theta Gamma Pi sorority. A lot of them have different majors and partake in different activities than I do on campus. I barely even run into them now that I know them! It is really exciting to be able to branch out and learn more about what they are doing on campus and what brings them fulfillment.

Tonight, I attended the Senior Recognition and Women of Color Celebration. The Theta president, Iliana Garcia, was one of the speakers, and she was excellent.

Without Theta Gamma Pi, I wouldn't know these lovely ladies that bring such a different perspective to my life.

I hope you find organizations that mean as much to you as the Thetas do to me.

xoxox

A

The Speaker herself! :)

Iliana, being a speaker! She did fabulously

As busy as we all are, it means a lot of things are happening. Decisions are being made, committees are meeting, and progress is in the air. Here are a few cool things that have happened lately at Hope:

• Hope got a new president (!finally!). 
• We also have a new (but returning) dean of sciences!
• I officially accepted my summer research position under Dr. Fraley to continue working on my project for a 10-week span at Hope.
  
• Hope's own William Pannapacker wrote a great piece about building a liberal arts foundation for the New York Times. In the article one particular sentence has resonated with me for the week. Keep it in mind as you are on your college search and decision process:
  

When it comes to choosing a major, you should engage with things that you care about, that interest you and that will produce your strongest efforts.

In other news, my friends have been going crazy in efforts to maintain our scholarly statuses and sanity. We have taken to doing absurd amounts of homework until late at night and rising early for breakfast. Though we struggle to maintain this routine of happy, early, college students (breaking norms are never ok), here is a photo of us in our prime, enjoying the atmosphere in the Cup and Chaucer before our 8:30 AM class.

In our spare time, of course, we keep ourselves occupied. Marvin and I recently designed our Halloween costumes for next year. He's on the left, dressed as the rough endoplasmic reticulum and I on the right as a mitochondria. We also took all the food in our dorm rooms and checked it all out on the app Fooducate to see how unhealthy we are… Believe me, we are unhealthy.

…Ok… maybe we spend too much time studying the sciences.

Marvin Scanning barcodes with Fooducate

Last but not least, I went home and worked (and studied a lot) all of spring break. I got to see my puppy, made a bit of cash to pay for school, and of course… studied orgo.

Questions, comments, concerns? Want to go out to coffee when you're visiting? Want to see my research lab or meet a professor? I'll get you in touch. Contact me at amanda.porter@hope.edu or @hopeamanda15 on twitter ;).

Gunner!

I went to Round Robin as a joke. It's the traditional beginning of spring Greek Life rush at Hope College. Most of my friends are Greek, and I thought I might as well enjoy myself for a couple of hours hobbling around [remember hip surgery?] and laughing at sorority girls.

I surprisingly got caught up in one organization: Theta Gamma Pi. I walked into their round robin presentation giggling and left with tears in my eyes after watching this:

I didn't know any of these girls. One went to my high school but I hadn't ever really interacted with her. But when I watched their rush video, I felt an instant connection. The love and excitement, morals, values, and pure emotion flooded into my heart and caught me up in a whirlwind of strange feelings. I CAME AS A JOKE! This wasn't supposed to happen.

My New Theta Kicks from New Member Education

The week following Round Robin, I was in a huge dilemma. I had condoned Greek life (mostly privately) since high school, and never thought I could be part of something like it.

After attending one rush event, I was hooked. I got there early and was the last to leave. I couldn't get enough of these beautiful women! They were dedicated, had fun, and were encouraging, empowering, and motivated to succeed.

This past week I was initiated/activated as an active member of ϴГП. I couldn't be more proud. I now have the most wonderful, powerful, and beautiful (inside and out) sisters that will only enrich my life and my time here at Hope.

Maybe you, too, should open your eyes, try something new, and don't judge a book by it's cover.

A New Theta shirt from the sexy seven!

My New Member Educator, Osbelia! :)

So, I thought I'd be a little bit helpful and fill you in on some important things you should have heard of this week, that you probably didn't.

1. I am pledging Theta Gamma Pi, and tonight I become an active member.!

The Thetas <3, without the delta class of course.

2. A guy fell into a sinkhole and died.

NO THIS IS NOT A JOKE. Sinkholes are real. Read here:

http://www.cnn.com/2013/03/01/us/florida-sinkhole/index.html?hpt=us_c1

3. Michigan is in a state of fiscal Emergency!!!! BAD NEWS BROTHER.

http://www.reuters.com/article/2013/03/01/us-usa-detroit-emergency-idUSBRE9200TI20130301

4. This morning in ORGO we were talking about how we aren't allowed to use Cyanide in our labs. This is why:

http://usnews.nbcnews.com/_news/2013/03/01/17148201-cyanide-poisoning-killed-1-million-lottery-winner-authorities-confirm?lite

5. Facebook is Changing.....AGAIN. Let's all sigh in annoyance together.

http://www.washingtonpost.com/business/technology/facebook-sends-invite-promising-new-look-for-the-news-feed/2013/03/01/0d377486-82a0-11e2-b99e-6baf4ebe42df_story.html

6. Don't ever get a Hedgehog. You'll die of salmonella.

http://www.npr.org/blogs/health/2013/01/31/170776440/salmonella-undermines-hedgehogs-cuteness-overload

7. The pope resigned because he wanted a cat:

http://www.usatoday.com/story/news/world/2013/03/01/cats-kitties-pope-benedict/1957295/

8. AND LAST BUT NOT LEAST: PERFECT for Anthony's new restaurant: The new iPad will have a storage drawer! Maybe I can skip the purse now, and just bring the iPad??

http://www.theonion.com/articles/apple-announces-plans-for-new-ipad-with-extra-stor,31067/

I'm back and forth about religion. I am a Christian, but I don't always enjoy organized religious events. This morning I went to Chapel with good friends Betsy and Hannah, where Father Charlie Brown (from a local Catholic Church) gave the message about Ash Wednesday.

He reminded all to introspectively evaluate what each of us is blessed with, and how we can use those blessings to benefit others. How can we be as generous to others as God has been and is to us?

During my time of Lent, instead of fasting, or giving up sweets or TV, I'm going to make a concerted effort to START something new. I want to listen to my self, to God, to hear how he is speaking to me, because often it's hard to hear him. I want these next weeks to be about listening more, about living my life positively and focusing on how I can bless others with my blessings.

On my way back to Hope from Winter Break, my passenger conveyed she had wanted to go to a public school. Having gone to private school all her life, she was interested whether she could continue to test out and apply her spiritual life to the "real world" without a constant reminder of her faith. Though Hope is defined as a Christian college, you can easily avoid all religion while here. Sure, most of the students and professors you talk to and interact with are Christians, but that doesn't mean you have to be, or participate as one. However, if you DO want to be the Christian you've been training for, and develop your faith, Hope has a million and seventeen ways to do that and help you in any way you desire.

So join me. Take the leap. Use your life to benefit others, whether you believe in a higher being or not. Make the pledge to assist others, to lend a hand, and to lead by example.

1 John 3:17 

But if anyone has the world's goods and sees his brother in need, yet closes his heart against him, how does God's love abide in him?

Hebrews 13:16 

Do not neglect to do good and to share what you have, for such sacrifices are pleasing to God.

Philippians 2:4 

Let each of you look not only to his own interests, but also to the interests of others.

I never cook. If I did, you wouldn't like it. But, I've never had to worry about what I was going to eat, because I've been dating a CHEF. Yep. If you can't cook, it's the right thing to do. They feed you and think your cute and you don't even have to do anything.

HOWEVER, this winter break, I think I earned my keep. My boyfriend, Anthony, opened a restaurant in Traverse City, Michigan. It's always been his dream to be able to work for himself and build his own flavor combinations, and finally it has come true. As the handy-dandy personal assistant, I have called cable, phone, internet, banks, GFS, local producers, TV stations, radio stations, chair companies, painting places, you name it, I've called them. I've run to the store at 2AM to get EVOO and called the Coca-Cola distributors and meat shops to make sure the mornings order would come in on time. Now, since I'll be going back to Holland to resume school, I will try to maintain their social media influence in Traverse City.

This weekend, Anthony had a sneak preview day, where he fed over 220 people on the house, to introduce them to his food. It went really well, but we were VERY busy. Only getting around 4 hours of sleep every night to keep up with food prep and business odds and ends, we were constantly going. Talk about a great date! :)

His official opening date is Feb. 12th. I am so thankful that I had winter break to come and help him open to the public and be able to share in his joy. The passion he has for his cuisine is unreal, and inspires me every day.

If you get a chance to travel up to TC, make sure you check out his little gem, Georgina's Taqueria. The food is delicious and the atmosphere is great. Though, I'm a tad biased.

Like him on Facebook and follow him on Twitter, too! :)

Here are some photos to make you hungry… Ok. the food ones anyway. ;)

I literally creeped so many blogs, academic pages, reviews, professors, etc from Hope, just to try and pull Hope a bit closer to the in-between phase I was in.

So, retrospectively, here are some things I wish I would have done as a second semester (second/third trimester) senior before I went to college, in no specific order. P.S. My number one tip is the last one :) Enjoy.:

• Read a bunch of books for fun. Once you get to college it takes dedication and willpower to sit down and divulge in a book for entertainment. It's possible, but if you're not used to studying a lot, it probably won't be easily accomplished.
• Get your nutritional act together. I took for granted that my mom made my dinner every night and I didn't have to plan anything. I ate junk food a lot, and I wasn't very mindful of when and how often I ate. It's a lot more difficult in college to practice portion control and maintain healthy choices, especially when there is soft serve ice-cream, a cereal bar, and dessert bar sitting in front of you at every meal. So, start to think smarter about it. The desserts will always be there, yo. 
• Go to the doctor/dentist/hair salon/health department/get your oil changed/etc. This may seem silly, but when you get here, appointments are hard to fit in and it's especially difficult to maintain relations with departments and doctors from home. I know a lot of people keep their family doctor from home, but with the frequency of doctor's appointments I was required to go to, I ended up finding a physician, neurologist, and physical therapist in Holland. Even if you don't really need these kinds of things, keep it in the back of your mind. 
• Get a job, but not one that takes all your time and energy. With the prospects of college (and a big student loan) around the corner, I picked up a million hours before starting as a freshman at college. Though my bank account was happy for a little while, I was stressed. I ran from job to job and felt like I never got a break. Keep your life enjoyable and stress-free. You have a lot of time to worry about money, so why stress so much now? ;)
• Love on your family AND your pets. I bet you haven't thought a lot about the lack of animals at college. Believe me, it is ruff sometimes (haha). I always miss my cats, dogs, and even chickens, it's bizarre. Though animals are not extinct in Holland yet, it is sometimes difficult to find one you can spend quality time with. You never know though, trips to a professors house to see their dog may be in your future. Oh, and of course you're probably going to miss your family. So don't forget to spend time with them too, even if it's something really lame with your mom.
• Travel with your high school friends. Ya. I know you've heard it. You won't be friends with your high school friends. Some people still are. It's just that you no longer are in the same place taking the same classes at the same time, so you surprisingly don't have a lot in common anymore. Everyone follows different paths, and this is where life separates us a lot of the time. Take some time out of your schedule to go to Cedar Point with your favorite group, or even just hanging out in your basement being weird. You will love to look back on the memories you created.
• Enjoy yourself and the things you are doing. This seems like it should come naturally, but the summer before my college years, I was so busy and so stressed out that I was not always enjoying myself. I wish I could have said, YO. You can stress later. For right now, just be.
• Look for scholarships. So Ya. You still haven't searched for scholarships, eh? You definitely won't in college if you haven't in high school. So take the down time to rack up some cashola and write a ton of essays that may score you a couple grand or two. 
• Don't start your homework early. Classic Freshman mistake. Just enjoy yourself yo. Your classes will be there during the year.
• Go outside and play! I grew up in a pretty rural area, and I really miss grass. Like fields of grass that I can run through while laughing with my dog or biking on a dirt road never seeing a car all day. In college you spend a lot of time indoors doing stuff. Not that it's not fun. It's just not outside. Work on your tan, because for the next four years you'll be ghostly. 
• If you go to private school with uniforms: Learn how to dress yourself. I never really thought about this, as I went to a public high school (though I didn't have exceptional fashion taste), but a couple of my friends came from private school where they were restricted to uniforms from 7-5pm M-F and sometimes Sunday. WOW. If this is you, I guess you need to go shopping and Pinterest a lot of outfits right now. 
• Look at extracurriculars: It's never to early to creep the Hope extracurriculars and think about clubs, sports, Intramurals, and other activities that you may want to be a part of. Don't be afraid to ask any of the student bloggers for advice on any activities. We all know SOMEONE in something that you're interested in.
• Contact your roommate, get together? This won't happen until middle to late summer. But keep it in the back of your head. It's never too early to chat it up with your soon-to-be-bunk-buddy.

ARE YOU READY FOR MY NUMBER ONE TIP????

Here it is:

JOB SHADOW: Oh my gosh. I can't tell you how helpful it was for me to job shadow. I had a good idea of the field I wanted to go into as a senior. And LET ME TELL YOU. There is a ladder of difficulty when shadowing professionals. As you go up the academic food chain (i.e. high school, undergrad, professional/graduate school, etc) it becomes increasingly difficult to shadow in the real world because people seem to think that because we are learning a ton of new skill sets, WE WANT TO TRY THEM OUT. Well, it's probably true in some cases. I wouldn't mind doing brain surgery right now, but that's beside the point. See if your dreams and future plans really do lie where you imagine them to be. Maybe you'll find something better along the way!

TIP: If you're bored job shadowing, you'll probably be bored working there. Just sayin'.

Have questions, tips for blog posts, crucial details I forgot to mention, or something else you suggest I add to my list?? Email me at amanda.porter@hope.edu or tweet me @hopeamanda15.

XOXOXO  -A

My first day back was quite a challenge. Over break I had a labral repair and removal of osteocytes on my right hip, a medical problem that has been causing issues for me for quite some time. Though I am feeling a lot better than I did, I am still on crutches and getting around is not very fun for my poor, pathetic, tired, and very sore body.

Being a pre-med student, my story is actually pretty funny. I mysteriously developed right abdominal/pelvic pain over the summer (June-ish) and had many ER and doctor visits checking for intestinal, appendix, and other organ problems. However, everything came back normal.

In October, I shadowed Dr. Carl Wierks (See my blog post here). I thought his labral repairs were so awesome, and after learning more about symptoms and possible causes, I thought I might be on to something. Though my symptoms were a tad different, they were very similar. I scheduled an appointment with Dr. Wierks and a week later, he had discovered bilateral osteocyte growths causing inflammation and labral tares, the source of my continual pain!

Though I was resting and working on recovering and getting my hip back in motion all break, I still managed to have a good time with family and friends. Check out a few of my pictures from break!

So studious

On a Saturday night, this is what we did. haha!

Having a cupcake party! 

Christmas spirit with our cluster!

Morgan, Amanda, SANTA!, Shannon and Betsy!!!

Shannon and I in Chicago

Meet the two most important and amazing people in my life.

Shannon (Left) and Morgan (Right) were my freshman roommates. We had a triple room, that fit three people, in Dykstra Hall.

I only knew a few people going into Hope and no girls my age, so I decided I would go in blind, not knowing who I would live with. I couldn't suggest it more. The Hope housing staff do an AMAZING job of matching roommates, and if there are problems, they accommodate you very quickly.

I filled out a short questionnaire in late May about what my study habits were, what my ideas on alcohol and smoking were, my music preferences, how organized I am, and when I like to go to bed. Two months later, I got a letter from Hope. Nervously, I opened it. The header: 2011-2012 School Year Housing Arrangements. I expected seeing one name, but when I saw TWO, I really freaked out.

I HAVE NEVER LIVED WITH ANYONE AT ALL. I am NOT good at sharing. I DONT like to share food and MOST OF ALL: I NEED MY SPACE. I gulped and tried to grasp the concept of sharing a room with two other people for about a week, until I got a friend request on Facebook. Hope provides the home address and phone number of your prospective roommate, but my roomies quickly found me online. 

All summer, we coordinated how we would fill our room. Who would bring the mirror? Should we have a fridge? A TV? Do we want lighting? We made a Google Doc and exchanged what supplies we already had and decided who could bring what.

We talked about personalities. What major did we anticipate studying? Were there any clubs we wanted to join? What was going on in our lives? We figured we probably should get along at least a little and know a bit about each other if we were about to embark on a year together. I do know quite a few people that never talked to their roommate until they got to Hope, and they did just fine too. We just felt like we had a little step up. 

When we arrived at Hope on move-in day, I will admit, it was a little awkward. We had all our families, all our stuff, and we were hot, tired, and stressed out. But after about a week, we were like three peas in a pod. We ate together, we worked out together, and at the end of the day we came home to our beautiful room to discuss our collegiate activities. 

I wouldn't say we are necessarily all alike, but we really get along. We are all relatively low maintenance (in most things), and have learned to communicate with each other about problems and issues we have. We don't always get along. But 99.89% of the time, we are happily together.

Shannon is a sing-songy, energetic (most of the time), hilarious, intelligent, beautiful woman who never fails to keep us laughing. She always has something insightful to add to the conversation and she brightens the room when she arrives. She is a nursing major and with her amazing people skills, I know she's going to be an incredible nurse.

Morgan is quiet at first, but after you get her talking, she can go for hours! She is very fashion-forward, bright, chipper, beautiful, and adds her own flavor of humor that I can't really explain. She keeps you on your toes because she is kind of unpredictable, but in a hilarious way. As a secondary English education major, she is going to rock the schoolhouse, as she is great teaching and VERY smart in many subjects.

This year, we are in a suite together. Shannon and I are still roommates, and a bathroom connects our room to Morgan and Betsy's. We're still VERY close, and I couldn't imagine my life at Hope without them.

Please don't stress about your roommate. Hope will really figure it out for you. And I really recommend going in blind to meet new people. You will always have your old friends that come along with you to Hope. College is the time for new beginnings, new friendships, new relationships, new experiences.

If you have any questions about the roommate process, shoot me an email at amanda.porter@hope.edu or tweet me @hopeamanda15

xoxox

A

I haven't blogged in a while. December has been a super busy time for me. The next few posts will be about some things I have been up to, Hope and non-Hope related. So, I hope you enjoy!

Exam Week and the weeks leading up to it are extremely stressful and busy. If you think the first couple of weeks of the semester are bad, getting through the last week of classes is much worse. Mostly there are a lot of projects to finish, papers to write, exams to study for, and content to learn, especially if you're a good procrastinator like me. :(. The best ways to cope, that I have found, is efficiency and increased productivity.

Mandy, Hannah, Morgan!

Organic chemistry MINDMAP...driving my MIND crazy

GFlash+ flashcard- WITH AUDIO

iTunesU

Complete Class Organizer Student Edition

My Orgo Notes...a little sloppy but OH WELL. I was writing fast.

On a side note—We were able to have a bit of fun before the business started: Ugly Sweater parties are a must during the holiday season, and believe me… College students are BOUND to attend at least one or two. I attended one with my group of friends and, I have to say, my sweater was pretty ugly.

Other that that, I was so busy and filled with pure studying. I definitely didn't know I could study so much… and sleep so little.

The best strategies I used this semester included vision boards, flashcards, and flowcharts (sometimes called Mind-maps). Here is one I made for Organic Chemistry reactions of aromatic rings… a section in one chapter of Orgo :(. I hung them all by my bed and woke up to them every morning, hoping they would sink it a bit better! :) 

If you learn like I do, flashcards are a god-send but sometimes are very annoying to make by hand, as they take a bit of time and resources. 

Most of the time, I use virtual flashcards because I can take them everywhere easily. On my phone (Apple iPhone), computer (Mac), or iPad, it's easiest to use the GFlash+ app. You simply make an excel spreadsheet of your information with one column representing one side of the cards and the adjacent column showing the answer. The app will automatically connect to your GoogleDocs account to import information, which is really convenient. You can even add sound files or pictures to your flashcards, which is so useful, especially for chemistry and physics equations.

As far as I'm concerned, in terms of content, Sal Khan is a god. Creator and manager of the website www.khanacademy.org, Sal covers academic topics from physics to chemistry to algebra to biology. He is so awesome and I even used him in high school. When I don't necessarily grasp a concept as well as I could or need a quick brush up, I refer to his many videos and often times just a different teaching perspective is enough to help me understand a lot better. Check him out!

I have tried to use iTunes U more, but I can't find a whole lot of curriculum tailored to my exact needs, since Hope doesn't publish anything there currently. However, Moodle resources that professors give out are very helpful.

As far as notes, I have switched ALMOST completely to digital note-taking using my iPad. Bought specifically for school-usage in mind, my iPad has been really convenient in my first semester using it. I do love my MacBook, but I hate lugging it around and the weight in my bag with the power charger. My iPad is much smaller and lighter, and I can usually go two days on a charge in classes.

I use Complete Class Organizer ($4.99) on my iPad for the most organized notes, though a lot of my friends also use Evernote, which is free. Complete Class Organizer allows me to record class lecture and take notes (text or drawing) simultaneously. THEN: I can highlight text and pick up the lecture recording at exactly that point. I can also import images or graphs into my notes. I love that it is easily broken up into my different classes, organizing my notes by date and time as well. I can export notes to my computer via PDF or email or even print them from my iPad directly.  

I use a million other products for PDF's, CLOUD sharing, PICTURE editing, sharing, etc. But if I included them ALL in a post, you would probably go crazy.

Do you have any great study tips for me? I can always use suggestions or new breakthrough ideas! Have questions about the products I use, or any that I didn't mention here? Email me at amanda.porter@hope.edu or tweet me @hopeamanda15

our suitemate's christmas tree!

Christmas.

What a [possibly] magical time of year, eh? Christmas is around the corner, and though Holland is yet to have any long lasting snowfall, Christmas certainly is shaping up around us. Downtown Holland is decorated, the tree is up in our suite, and Christmas lights adorn our bathroom mirror.

This is also the busiest time of year, especially in college. There are exams to study for, papers to write, grades to finalize, cramming to be done, and of course packing to go home. In our flurry, we often forget that everyone is experiencing the same thing: chaos.

We took a night out of our craziness to enjoy each others company, and I am so blessed to have the people around me that I do.

Munchies!

The second tree!

Our first festive evening was put on by the best two people ever, Morgan and Shannon. My last year roommates, and this year's roommate and suitemate, really put on a fantastic evening for us. They had a cheese and cracker spread, cookie dough bites, grapes, and sparkling grape juice. We watched a few new movies together and had a great relaxing time.

The next morning, my good friend Jen asked if I would like to volunteer with her and a few of her Phelps hallmates. We traveled to Resthaven Senior Center and helped them decorate the halls for Christmas.

Lighting the tree!

Jen and I decorated two Christmas trees, one in a community room and one in a newly built family visiting center. The first tree was red and gold themed and as we decorated many residents came by to admire our cheer and work. We even put on some Christmas music to make it a bit more jolly :).

The second tree we decorated was a bit bigger. It was yellow and red themed and had beautiful gold angels hanging from it.

We moved on to wrap the pictures hanging in the resident hallways to look like gifts, a really cute idea! Other girls put bows up on each resident's door and decorated the main lobby and other seating areas. Overall, it was great to be able to use our abilities to help spread the Christmas cheer.

My new Operation game from Shannon!

Last night, we played with my new Christmas present from Shannon, the game Operation!! I am pre-med and having hip surgery over Christmas break, so it was very fitting! We even had a tournament to see who was the best at operating! :)

Though you're busy applying to colleges, getting ready for finals, doing classwork and anticipating the Christmas season, don't forget to take an occasional breather. We all need them! Even if its playing Operation with your friends, eating cookie dough off of a toothpick, or decorating a Christmas tree.

XOXO

A

One thing I thought I'd share with you is a concept we learned yesterday. Maybe you already know about it. I understood the feelings but never knew there was a precise term.

It's called---

Flow

Flow is in the moments your eyes light up. It's the hour you spend working on that last chemistry problem and you finally see the green "correct" answer box on CAPA. It's the poster presentation at Van Andel Institute where you finally look back and say, Dang. That was really cool.  Do you know what I'm talking about?

My professor put it a great way. She described flow as having a great challenge but having the intricate skill set to work through the challenge, though it may not be easy. 

In our study of happiness, we have read that flow IS happiness. You don't actually want to spend a week in your bed sleeping… well maybe you do, but you'll realize that it doesn't make you happy. It's using your skills and learning new things, meeting new people, and absorbing new experiences that really make moments worth living for. 

I find myself more and more experiencing flow throughout my days at Hope. Sometimes it gets monotonous, studying all day without ceasing. But on Saturday I had the chance to head over to Van Andel Institute with the Fraley lab, where we each presented a research project we have been working on. Over 350 students, professors, and community members from around west Michigan were there, and it was fascinating roaming through the posters and seeing what our peers are doing at their own schools. Especially at Hope, we have some awesome research being done.

As you wade through college applications or maybe you have just started looking at different schools, introspectively take a moment to reflect your current moments of flow. Will your future school allow you to have these moments? Even maximize these moments? It's not always the resources available to you, but also how you utilize the resources. At Hope we have brilliant professors, great lab environments, a welcoming community, and a body of faith that is open to you if you choose. Without these things, I definitely couldn't say that every day I have flow.

Western Michigan Regional Undergrad Research #science #gut #ecology

On August 7th, I accompanied my freshman roommates (and now roommate and suitemate) to a Coldplay concert at the United Center in Chicago.

My suitemate is obsessed (to put it lightly) with Coldplay, and when she found out they would be in Chicago, we were the first to know! The concert was incredible, and we ended up being in the front row to enjoy the concert due to our fan persona.

Here's a zoom-in of the panoramic above.

There we are in the front row!

Morgan and her friend Rachel made us a great glowing sign that said "We're Glowing In The Dark." Morgan also made us beautiful t-shirts with ironed on letters. Together, Morgan and Rachel spelled Coldplay, and Shannon and I both had MX - Mylo Xyloto  on our shirts! We also added some glow paint so we would glow in the black lights.

Shannon, Morgan, Rachel and Me with our beautiful shirts Morgan made us! 

The memory was so great, on Wednesday night Morgan invited us to go see a one-time premiere of the Coldplay Live 2012 Movie in Grand Rapids. The movie was the same concert we watched, but it was better the second time. It was awesome…

Without Hope, I wouldn't have these great friends, I wouldn't know about Coldplay, and I for sure wouldn't have experienced this:

I know a lot of students don't share what I feel about school, but I hope they can find something that makes them feel the way I do.

The past two weeks have been absolutely crazy. Sorry for the MIA on blogging. Wanna know what I've been up to?

First of all, we got a shipment of ducks in!!!!  Little baby ducklings to study. Currently, I'm working on gut ecology with Dr. Fraley, studying the bacterial contents of ducklings at different ages. 

I've spent years and years in the lab it seems. Today I ran a gel!

Is there RA in there?? I don't know… because I broke the gel.

Life in Orgo: Simple Distillations

Second, I have been consumed by Organic Chemistry. Days and long nights of studying, prepping for lab periods, etc. Get ready, it's a boat load of fun!! :) 

Third, BEST DAY EVER. I got the great opportunity to hang out with Dr. Carl Wierks in his OR at Holland Hospital. He allowed me to observe three surgeries including two anterior labral hip repairs and a labral shoulder repair. It was the most AMAZING thing ever. If you like medicine, OR is the place to be. 

MY NEW BABY

Maybe the most fundamental event that has happened this semester is the purchase of a COFFEEPOT. Yep. I'm a real-live adult now. I have a coffeepot, plenty of coffee, and my roommate even bought us flavored coffee. I literally can brew a pot around 9 PM, drink it by 1 AM along with my roommate, and zonk out by 1:30 AM. YAY COLLEGE.

If you don't like coffee, it's okay. It can easily be an aquired taste. Start off with lots of cream and sugar to your taste, and eventually you'll be a true Finnish gal like me, drinking it black by the pot.

My coffeepot has brought me immense joy and pleasure in the long and arduous hours of academia.

Do you enjoy coffee, surgery, or labwork as much as I do? Tweet me @hopeamanda15.

Or, email me questions or comments at amanda.porter@hope.edu.

Sometimes, these choices make for great life experiences, though they usually come with costs. If I watch Grey's Anatomy all night (which sometimes seems to happen), I've lost valuable studying time for the next morning's test. When I study all day without breaks, I have no social life and my friends begin to hate me. …Well… not really, but kind of.

Anyways, last weekend, I had a big choice. My best of all friends, Morgan, came to visit from my homeland, Sault Sainte Marie, on Saturday night. It's a six-hour drive, so she stayed for two nights and three days ! :) We had a lot of fun and went to movies, the mall, and a concert.

I had spent all of Thursday-Saturday night studying for every waking moment, trying to fit in all the work I needed to get done before Morgan arrived.

We went to see Blitzen Trapper, a band Morgan loves, at the Loft in Lansing, MI, about 1.25 hours from Hope's campus on Sunday night. No big, I just had a huge Bio 280 exam on Monday morning that was supposed to knock my socks off. But, the choice was mine, and I chose to Loft it up with Morgan and Blitzen. We were front row, head banging (uh kind of), and enjoying the tunes! We even saw our highschool classmate, Alex, there!

I got four hours of sleep before the test (better than no sleep, I suppose) AND I even was running through some of the concepts while driving home ;). In the end, the decision didn't end up being HORRIBLE, but maybe I'll use better judgement next time.

It's all about learning, right?

We saw Atlas Shrugged Part II....The cinema was immaculate

Seeing Blitzen Trapper!

We were so close to them!

]

What does this word mean to you? Does it involve a TV or your iPod? 

If you're like me, sometimes I avoid this word/action at all costs. But, in reality, that is why we are at Hope, to learn… which, for most people, means studying.

This week I had a million tests and midterms, huge papers, books to read, lab reports to write, etc. I feel like a turtle inside my shell. I haven't come out in so long! Yesterday, I was in the library basement for seven hours doing organic chemistry…Ya. I know.

Last weekend, I studied exponentially. My friend, Hannah, is a lovely tour guide, and while I had just finished an assignment and needed to run to the main floor of the library to print out a report, she brought a tour group of prospective students up to the second floor.

I'm sure they were absolutely terrified. Here was a student, on a Saturday afternoon, in full sweats, hair tousled, weary, and probably hadn't eaten in hours. I felt like an ogre coming out of my cave. Welcome to College.

I like to study quietly. So here are a few of my favorite "quiet" places to study. Don't give away my secrets…

When I don't feel like leaving my room, I cuddle on my futon and hit the books.

The Schaap Atrium...not always so quiet. But cute! Study rooms off the atrium are spectacular.

The Rare Book Room: found in the basement of the Van Wylen Library. You can breathe history in this room.

The Pine Grove: when it's nice outside, the Pine Grove is the perfect place to lay out with a book.

Cook Hall Computer Room: Printing, Technology, Roll-y chairs. What more do you need?

If you want to feel like Rapunzel, or Hermoine Granger, check out the Graves Tower.

Study Rooms of Van Wylen Basement: Prime, #1 Best spot to study.

Comfy chairs on the second floor of Van Wylen

At the Michigan Legacy Art Park, one piece particularly caught my eye.

A marble statue, partially broken, with inscribed words represented the brokenness of the world.

It wasn't until Wednesday evening that this particular quote really resonated with me. It was the last class period of my Political Science class and our professor was answering questions about his expectations on our final paper. He put it quite simply: it's our education. He could care less if we botched our volunteer hours and made up a bunch of phony experiences. The point of his course is to learn hands-on. If you didn't DO the hands-on work, then you wasted a lot of money paying for a grade that could have diversified your life experiences and taught you valuable lessons. This brought me back to the quote on the structure at the park.

What are we conserving? Are we really conserving what we love? Or at least, do your activities conserve what YOU love? Whose expectations are you living up to? If they aren't your own, you're going to be pretty disappointed when it's over.

College, and past college, LIFE, is a place to grow; A place to learn what and who you love; A place to step out and explore anything you want at all. Personally, sometimes I get wrapped up in my requirements. Do I need that class for my major??? I don't want to ask if I need to do something to fulfill someone else's standard. I want to take a class because I'm interested in what I'm learning.

My favorite question of all time came when I took a life assessment. They asked for your personal goals, your dreams, and the things that you'd like to accomplish in your life to gain self-fulfillment. The second to last sentence asked you to simply reread what you had written and introspectively reflect upon what your desires were. 

The last question:

Why aren't you doing those things now?

I challenge you, especially in the next couple of weeks while here we are taking exams, maybe you are preparing to apply to college, or your searching for the school that you'll be able to call home. Sit down with yourself and ask:

Will _______ allow me to be who I am? To accomplish my dreams?

Ok, I'm stepping off my soapbox now.

Follow me on Twitter @hopeamanda15 or on Instagram: amandalynnporter.

It was a much needed break for everyone, as things here remain quite hectic and midterms are upon us. Within the next week I have a bajillion things to do, a lab practical to study for, 2 class tests, and three papers to write. EEK!

Instead of starting on that daunting list, I thought I would tell you a bit about what I was up to all weekend long.

On Friday night, I stayed at Hope and caught the opening performance of Helen. It was really fantastic! I'm taking an English course that deals a lot with mythology and different Roman and Greek stories, so the performance fit well with the stories I've been learning. Also, a lot of people don't realize that the play is modern. There are only five cast members and it's set in a hotel room in Egypt. I really recommend checking it out this weekend if you're around campus.

On Saturday morning, I was up early to attend the MMED conference in Lansing on MSU's campus. It was a fun-filled day packed full with information about attending medical school. All the representatives from Michigan medical schools were there and students had the opportunity to get to know them and their school's application process. It was also nice to be gathered with people with similar interests. I even saw my high school friend, Talia, there, who attends U of M!

A frog! 

Saturday night after the conference, I journeyed home to Traverse City, where the trees were absolutely gorgeous. My mom and I took in Michigan Legacy Art Park at Crystal Mountain on Sunday, and I got to have a great time catching up with family and friends at home.

The park was fantastic! All of the pieces, scattered around a 1.5 mile pathway, had some significance to Michigan history. They also had hot cider and donuts and taught us how to play the harmonica!

My mumsy taking in the view on a giant chair

I hope your weekend was as special as mine was! Follow me on Twitter @hopeamanda15.

Fall colors of Traverse City

The annual run of the Pull rope around Hope's Campus on Friday afternoon, the day before the Pull.

This weekend was the 115th annual Pull.

One of Hope's most unique traditions (in my opinion), the Pull, is often viewed as a giant game of tug-of-war between the freshman and sophomore classes at Hope.

But really, it's so much more than that.

Dan Leahy pulling with all he's got.

• The Pull brings a sense of "mini-nationalism" about the campus between odd and even graduating classes. It gives us something other than academics or sports to be proud of our peers for. As an underclassman, this also helps assimilate new students into the general population as juniors lead the freshman and seniors lead the sophomores.

• It brings a little bit of "celebrity" to the participants, as everyone on campus knows if you're a "puller" or a "moraler."

• It creates a huge buzz around campus. Nearly everyone is excited (maybe not always outwardly) at least about who will come out ahead.

• It's a huge game of strategy. Though some teams are stronger than others, it's really the mentality, the leadership, and the game plan that help one team come out ahead.

It's pretty hard to completely grasp the situation until you are actually in front of the pits, cheering for your friends that are screaming in pain and agony to win this for your class. Ya, okay, that doesn't make it sound so appealing, but really, you have to check it out.

PLUS. 15 has won two years in a row. Which is ridiculously awesome. So, next year's freshmen, we're ready for you. 17 FIRE UP.

GUESS WHAT HOPE HAS…? Ok, you didn't guess. Photos from Pull all the way back in the early 20th century. Check these bad boys out.

Confused? Read up on Pull.

Check out more Pull photos here, and check out the winners all the way back to the original (or at least what we think is the original) pull.

The Class of 15 pit's

The 15 flag, which got ripped down shortly before we had officially won. 

Here are the some of the highlights of my past month:

My Mom and Sister came to visit me in Holland!

I can use my meal plan now at the Kletz because I have >70 credits. SCORE!

I have fully utilized the Make-Your-Own-Cookie bar at Cook!

My sister taught me how to organize my t-shirts by color!! [I fully accept that  this makes me a nerd] - but isn't it pretty?

I went out to Chinese with my roomie and ate DELICIOUS food. Yum.

FINALLY, I was an OA (Orientation Assistant) and I got to welcome all the incoming students (freshman and transfers) to Hope with awesome activities!!

I hope your month was as fabulous as mine! :)

Follow me on Twitter: @hopeamanda15

xoxo

-A