What have I gotten myself into??

i'm Marci- i'm changing. last post was like six months ago... oops. in that post i believe i acknowledged a change in my major? if not, i am majoring in wildlife and wildlands conservation. i repeat: wildlife and wildlands conservation. 70% of the time that i recite my long major name, people get a confused look and ask me to repeat myself. so for the 30% out there who didn't need a repeat, forgive me. as result of my chosen major i have had to take a variety of interesting classes, have befriended some very different people, picked up some new hobbies and have had some bizarre jobs.

who would have thought that there is a class titled "intro to soils" and that it is accompanied with a three hour lab? how about that class "living with plants"? the "properties of range land management"? it's really entertaining to get my class list the first week of school. sometimes i sit in class and look around and wonder... what on earth am i doing here? i am going to class to learn this? in no way am i complaining, just admiring the humor in my current position.

heating up a soil in my soils lab!

this is me disecting a shark in my biology lab.

because i am surrounded by a variety of hicks, rednecks and farmers i have had a shift in some of my opinions. the first day of my classes after i had switched my major provided me with the first test. camouflage. anyone i saw in it was automatically overlooked by me. i couldn't stand the stuff and was appalled that people wore it outside of activities that required it. they were probably a bit thrown off by a tan little blond showing up to "intro to soils" in heals and skinny jeans every day so i suppose we all had to make adjustments.

now I see camo and it catches my attention. i automatically wonder if the person wearing it is in my major and if they like camping and hunting. I still have not ever worn camo as a fashion statement nor have i purchased any. and I don't think I'm close to that stage either. phew. i think they have learned to accept my outbursts of high heals and crazy clothes as well.

one of the first people i met from my major was a hunting redneck from Montana. he asked me to take notes for him while he went to Montana to shoot an elk and this proved to be a little shocking. after agreeing to take notes for him and as he was walking away i yelled, "don't kill anything!" it was mostly a joke but partly not... i thought hunting was unnecessary and a little bit silly. i didn't understand the culture or the hype. after eight months of exposure, i have seen the light. actually I have tasted it. have you ever tasted elk? bah, it's fantastic. hunting no longer falls under the "weird" list of hobbies. not only did i find that many things that are hunted taste better than store bought meat but i that it has many other benefits. those are for another post, another day. now, finding someone who hunts actually gives them some bonus points in my book.

this is me with a fish i caught (okay i had a little help!)

another big BIG change is... drum roll... i like country music. it is a recent development. i listen to it voluntarily and sometimes even sing along. for those of you who have known me for a while know that this is pretty much a big deal.

a popular accessory in my major is a pocket knife. at first I thought it was crazy that all of these people surrounding me were carrying these weapons in their back pockets around at school. it wasn't until i was eating lunch with my friend Chris and he used his pocket knife to pick his teeth and then later watched as my friend Chelsea picked her nails with her pocket knife that i realize they do come in handy. when i got a free pocket knife from my employer i finally felt like i was a real member of my major.

i have had jobs (2 different ones) relating to my major this year and they have proven to be quite different. i believe i have talked about getting the first job in previous posts but not about what i actually did. the first job i worked two levels below ground and, for the first half of the semester, counted and measured preserved fish.

the second half of fall semester i sorted and counted insects. i measured fish and counted bugs to see the effect mosquito fish were having on chub. very exciting. lets just say i got a lot of confused looks when i was dressed up nice and talked to people about my job.

after fall semester my first employer ran out of funding so i had to find another job. this job was almost equally as easy to come by. i talked to a few professors in my major and after emailing a resume and a good recommendation i scored another job. this job was a little different in that i did a lot of errands for the professor. it was also two levels above ground instead of below. that was nice. for a little while i was cutting elk and deer teeth to age the animals. that was pretty cool. this also provided me with my summer job as well.

so all, do not fret. i am still me. i still plan on wearing high heals (or whatever else i want) to campus on a regular basis; i just might have some extra accessories like a pocket knife and an ipod full of country music. you want to find me? i practically reside in the MARB and WIDB. just listen for the faint clicking of heals and it will likely be me (lets just say you're more likely to find a girl in chacos than a girl in heals in those two buildings). i still laugh loud (possibly even more than before). in fact, i am still the smiling, random, hyper girl i've always been- just with a few more quirks than before.

overall i think this year just showed me a different way to live life and a different type of people. experiences this year have made me a more accepting person, and the people that surround me in my major have made me nicer and happier. this year has just brought out a side of me that has always been there. the outdoorsy-natury-hike a mountainy side. change has brought me closer to new people and has taught me many new skills. i highly recommend it.

i'm Marci and i'm changing.

oh, can i also add that i have also acquired an attraction to a man in cowboy boots and some good levis?

Bring Your Own Sunshine

i'm Marci- i love life. coming back to school has been so wonderful. i left my fantastic summer with high hopes about this year in Provo. so far it's been better than imagined. the drive to Provo was surprisingly enjoyable.

no, it wasn't the miraculous views...

or the great car treats that made the drive superb.

 in fact, i can't even pin point why it was great. maybe it was the crying over the song "Hey Soul Sister" because it reminded me of my niece and nephew that did it and then laughing at myself for my ridiculous behavior with my mother. or was it summarizing the whole movie "Phantom of the Opera" to my mom as the soundtrack played that did it?  i surprisingly stayed awake for 13 of the 14 hours of driving (unfortunate for my mother). we had some entertaining conversations. i made up new games like the waving game. did you know that waving to people in other cars will either make them very uncomfortable or make them crack a smile? it's quite an entertaining activity in which to participate. when it took an hour and a half to get to Provo from Salt Lake i knew i was back in the good ole' college state i've grown so fond of.

moving in to my new apartment (just across the street from campus) was as easy as pie (to eat it that is, because some pies just aren't that easy to bake). having my mom and oldest sister with me made it so much easier... they're good deciders. i had my room completely set up and perfect with in 24 hours of arriving in Provo- now that's what i'm talking about. though parting with ma was hard i was quite enthused to be surrounded by people my age who are so ready to learn and have fun!

at first living in my apt was a tad lonely and i was a little bit down on life but luckily i had plenty to do that week before school started and wasn't able to dwell on the negative. with in the first week i perfected the apt, changed my major, got a job, made necessary purchases, found my favorite spot on campus (where i now sit to contemplate life at least twice a week) and got back into the swing of things. with the extra time on my hands i was also able to think about my life and i discovered many choices that i have the ability to make which i hadn't fully realized prior in life. the biggest choice that struck me is the fact that we can ALWAYS choose our attitude. my decision about this has made the past few weeks quite blissful. recently i have realized how blessed i am. first off came my major-wildlife and wild land conservation; i feel completely at peace with it and am excited on a daily basis about things i learn in class. because of this major i also don't have to take any more chemistry and am able to study biology on a lot more macromolecular scale. it's so perfect. then came my job which, in fact, came quite easily. i said a prayer before job hunting, talked to some professors and the fourth professor had the funding to hire me. i am a research technician and get paid to do biology. how perfect is that? other things i often think about are how lucky i am to have my family, to live on this beautiful earth and to have the opportunity to have been accepted to BYU.

so all in all, we have a choice. we can choose to hate- but what good does it do? why do we choose to fill ourselves with feelings that are so uncomfortable to bear? why don't we choose to be excited about how green the grass is today or about what our professor is teaching in class? i have experienced first hand that this makes life more colorful, more exciting, more happy and it makes you more inviting as a person. just do it. make the little adjustments that go a long way in life and change your attitude. bring your own sunshine.

i'm Marci and i love life.

Wow what a summer!

i'm Marci- i love spontaneity. it adds unexpected excitement to life. it causes more memories to be made and new experiences to be had. at the beginning of summer 2010 i thought i would be home for all four months only leaving for one week for a family vacation. after being home for a few weeks and not feeling like i was making any progress with my life i decided i needed to do something different. one day, while talking to my sister on the phone she told me that i could come to NYC for the month and babysit for part of my summer income. at first i was not so sure but after some convincing (how dumb am i- having to be convinced to live in NYC for a month) i realized that it would be just the right change for me. of course, convincing the parents was a little more difficult luckily in the end they agreed to it. so a month into summer i left to the biggest city in the nation in hopes that i would make money and knowing that i would make many memories.

soon after arrival i was bombarded with possible activities and opportunities that i knew most people aren't lucky enough to consider. by the second day i was figuring out the bus system on my own praying i had it right and on the fourth i was riding the subway by myself dreading the outcome of any mistakes i'd make. fortunately it's a lot easier than people make it out to be.

the first week i took up the opportunity to be in the all famous Coney Island "Mermaid Parade." because Karley had other engagements i participated in the parade with a group of her friends who i did not know but grew to love. you can't share an experience like the Mermaid Parade and just forget those you shared it with.

this trip provided me with many other amazing experiences like:

walking across the Brooklyn bridge

rockin a mechanical bull

spending priceless time with my 2 yr old nephew, Xander

spending 4th of July weekend on Fire Island; and island with no roads or vehicles aside from emergency vehicles

and makin some mulaaaaaa!

i am so grateful Karley and Al provided me with this opportunity- i gained so much in many areas of life from it. 

two short weeks after making my way back home and working a little at the Lake Chelan Winery i had to leave to California for my brother's wedding; another event that was not planned at the beginning of the summer. In fact, the wedding was being considered to occur in December and then was moved to August and then again to July. Luckily Zack was marrying my close friend from college (yes i did set them up). Before attending the wedding we went to Disneyland and that was just a hoot. The wedding turned out to be perfectly beautiful and all eight siblings were able to attend! it was wonderful. 

the day after the wedding we left for Oregon where we stayed in a beach house (not all of us were there) for a week. it was a very relaxing week.

after Oregon i was able to stay home for three weeks and in that time i worked, went to the lake, attended a wedding reception and enjoyed a few more days with family.

i was also able to snap a couple of pictures of my beautiful home before i left for college.

this summer was full of spontaneity and fun. i think living life planned all the time causes people to miss out on random and lovely opportunities. though planning and structure is important, make sure you take a leap of faith and participate in something of which you're not sure of the outcome. a lot of times it will take you furthur than following your plans. 

i'm Marci and i love spontaneity.

Color Craze

i'm Marci -i crave color. color brightens my life. a day with out color is a day i don't want to be awake for. i love the effect color can have on my mood. i love color so much that often i will wake up in the morning and decide that i am not going to match that day because i want to wear 27 different colors in my outfit. on those days i usually end up getting a lot of stares and interesting looks from those i don't know. i don't care. if it makes me happy-gosh darn it i will wear it. it's funny though- if people do know me they don't even think twice about my outfit. they just smile and continue with their day.

recently i went to the festival of colors. it is a hindu holiday when they celebrate the arrival of spring by throwing colored chalk on people. we drove up to a beautiful white hindu temple and surrounding this temple were thousands and thousands of people waiting to be colored. i was so excited. i bought my scented chalk dust and joined the crowd of eager people. walking around i already started getting covered in chalk dust. the colors staining what used to be my plain white t-shirt filled my heart with warm fuzzy happy feelings.

after goofing with friends for about an hour the big moment finally arrived. we started the count down at twenty. at about "five" i inhaled my last few pure breaths. "three, two, one".....CHAOS. Dust erupted into the air. it was so thick you could see nothing but color. it dominated all senses. you could not hear anything because the dust muffled the screams erupting from every person's mouth. you could not breathe. everything smelled of the rose scented dust. not one person had any exposed skin that was not covered.after the dust settled barely anyone was recognizable. there were no black or white people, shoot; there weren't even any black or white shirts. thousands and thousands of people were all the same- covered in color. i was in love with the moment and i couldn't help but smile (some people's teeth were covered in chalk; it was quite funny).

this experienced just further proved my love towards color to myself. i loooove love love it. i love it to the point of looking like an idiot but ya know what? i'm okay with that. all in all color makes me amazingly happy and i take advantage of that when i can. i figure if it's not hurting anyone else then who cares what people think. if they think i'm nuts cuz i'll wear a purple bow on my head along with neon yellow shoes then they just don't have to look at me. :)

i'm marci and i crave color.

Go Cougs!

i'm Marci- i bleed blue! in honor of march madness my blog this week is on my school spirit! i always take great pride in anything i'm involved in. for instance: awarded most school spirit in HS, love my little arm-pit-of-nowhere-hometown with all my heart and am proud to be from there and i can't help but love any sports team (no matter how badly we do) i am part of. now i'm filled with byu school spirit and have no shame whatsoever for being here. i love my school and am proud to say that i go here.

i love the fact that you can smile at anyone and they will smile back. i love that you know you have at least one thing in common with every one here. i love that our beloved gospel is a common topic in each class. i love that i don't feel like i have to cover my ears or eyes walking around campus. i love that byu makes it a point that everyone has a family here, no matter how far from home they are. i love that going on dates is an everyday activity and not just a special thing for dances or special occasions. i love knowing most of the guys surrounding me have gone on missions or are giddy to go on one. i love that the book of mormon is  required text for some of the classes here. i love that there is a piano in at least 60 percent of the classrooms. i love the weekly church, spiritual building meetings, ward prayers, fhe, devotionals and religion classes and the monthly ward activities, break the fasts and ward testimony meetings. all in all i love it here.

i think that if anything is worth your time to be a part of, you should be proud to be apart of it. i don't care what it is- school, community, occupation or club- if you're in it, you can be proud of it. if you honestly can't say you are proud of it then maybe you should re-consider what you're apart of. to live your life doing and being involved with things that you love and of which you aren't ashamed is the best way to live.


i'm Marci and i bleed blue.