And my monster mash is the hit of the land! For you, the living, this mash was meant, too.

HAPPY HALLOWEEN!!!!

Because Halloween is MY FAVORITE HOLIDAY, I wanted to share some of my favorite Halloween traditions with you!

1. Ever since Pandora came out, all I listen to on October 31 is the "Halloween Party Radio" Station. I've been listening to it since 7:30am, and all of my favorite songs have already come up :)
2. Another thing I always do at (the very) least once, is watch the Simpson's Treehouse of Horrors. Edgar Allen Poe has always been one of my favorite poets, and The Simpson's rendition of 'The Raven' is pretty entertaining. I'll try to read some of his other works throughout the day, since he's such a dark poet, but I don't think I'll have that much time today in my busy schedule...

3. When it comes to costumes, I am the queen of Halloween costume ideas. Or at least I like to think so. I've made all of my own costumes since senior year of high school (with the exception of last year), and I always gt some pretty nice compliments. This year, I'm going as Quorra from Tron. It's not as elaborate as I'd like it to be, but that's what happens when you're a senior on a budget :p

4. The final thing that I LOVE to do around this time is watch "The Nightmare Before Christmas." I just love the music, the storyline, the artwork. Even if I do not get to watch it the day of Halloween, I'll always watch it (multiple times) between now and Christmas. It's so perfect because it's a combination of the two holidays!

I'll post pictures of my costumes when I get the chance! :D I hope everyone else has a fantastic Halloween full of monster mashes, time warps, and much more! 

The Perfect Storm.

So I hadn't heard about Hurricane Sandy until this morning when it was like, you know, SLEETING outside on my way to class. I don't know HOW I didn't know this, but I seriously had NO IDEA that a massive tropical storm was approaching the East Coast until it was just about to strike. Many of my friends have been talking about it on Facebook whether they're wishing their family, friends, and acquaintances safety, posting pictures or news articles about the storm's intensity and damage done already, or they're LIVING on the East Coast and are informing their friends and family through social media that they're still safe and well. I honestly don't even remember the last time a storm this bad blew threw the area..

The one bad thing about social media and this storm is that everyone is posting and re-posting INCORRECT information, data, or photos from the storm. I saw this picture and thought it was wicked cool for the photographer to capture it at the exact moment, but at further inspection I realized it was photoshopped.

That's pretty darn cool, isn't it? Too bad the Statue of Liberty and the surrounding New York area was just photoshopped on to another image which I'm pretty sure came straight out of a movie. Here's a link to some other phony photos that you've probably seen thrown around the internet: Hurricane Sandy Strikes! (Except not really)

Despite all the craziness going on with what is and isn't true, it does remind me how important it is to be prepared. Even though we Michiganders live far from the coast, we can still feel the effects of the storms hundreds of miles away. Not to mention some of the crazy winter storms we can get that can knock out power for days. My mom told me the best way to deal with the storm is to be prepared both mentally and physically. Keep nonperishable food on stock, a first-aid kid, extra and fully charged batteries, an abundance of blankets and pillows in case the power and heat are to go out, a radio, phone chargers that don't require an outlet (if you can), and anything else that can keep you occupied if you're stuck inside for a long time. Even though, I've never experienced a storm as bad as Sandy, it's always important to be prepared for the worst!

Touch-a-touch-a-touch-a me, creature of the night.

Okay, I've got a bone to pick with touch screen technology innovation. Are electronics getting bigger after the revolution of making them smaller?! Being a '90s child, I remember when cell phones were gigantic bricks and being able to touch the display screen for regular use wasn't even prototyped. With the revolutionary technology to make the core processors and control systems smaller, we were able to create smaller electronics without compromising performance, processing speed, or memory.

Then we discovered touch screen technology. Initially, it was a fantastic idea because it eliminated the use of having multiple buttons and keys that could only perform specific tasks. Touch screens became quite popular with cellphones as we with successful corporations like Apple, Samsung, and Google.

Next came the tablets and touch pads. I remember when the commercials for advertisements for the first iPad were released. It was SO COOL to see all the tasks performed on a cell phone could be performed on a larger screen, in addition to gaming, wi-fi, and a better way to watch videos and movies. Plus, it was one of the first MOBILE electronics to be able to do anything like that!

So here's the scoop, Intel recently released a demonstration of the largest touch pad so far: a 27" that truly doubles as a computer and a television monitor. Here's a description of what it contains:

"The display of Intel's new prototype has 1080p HD resolution, is about 2.5 inches thick, and contains a processor and all the components a PC needs, as well as two large, flat batteries. For desktop use, it can be set on a dock that charges the computer, connects to a keyboard and mouse, and contains a DVD drive, ports, and a graphics processor to allow high-performance gaming. The touch interface can be used both when the display is docked and when it isn't."

Please tell me, what is so darn attractive about this?! A mobile phone? Great. A 13" mobile computer? Even better. But a mobile television monitor?! I personally would not want to lug a 2.5 in thick FRAGILE electronic around my house for recreational use. I mean, I thought people using touch pads to take notes in class was a little excessive (cool, not definitely not necessary), but this is just a little over the top for me.

To read the full article on Intel's new technology, click here.

But really, would YOU consider buying something like this for your home/apartment? I'm just curious how other people feel about this too.

You've arrived at Panic Station.

Well everybody, it's officially halfway through Fall semester 2012! And you know what that means?!

It's midterms week.

Of everyone I talked to though, I think I've gotten the worst of it. A lot of my friends have had there exams and projects and presentations between the beginning of last week and the end of next week. Me? I get 4 exams in a 72 hour span. I haven't decided if that's a good thing, or a bad thing yet. It's kind of like finals week, so I'm used to the constant studying, but having classes, work, and Phi Rho in-between all of it is making it pretty difficult. But I really do like the fact that I can get everything done and over with in one week... Hmm, I guess my grades will just have to show me how well I like these kind of weeks!

I hope that everyone else is having a better week, at least academically. Everything else is going well this week for me! My boyfriend and I are celebrating our one year anniversary, planning for Initiation and Installation for Phi Sigma Rho are going smoothly so far, and I get to go to Cedar Point on Saturday! I think it'll be a great wrap up to a crazy, dedicated-to-studying week.

Oh! I forgot to update about my experiences at the Career Fair! I talked to about 10-12 companies that day including, Ford, Chrysler, GM, Eli Lilly, Whirlpool, Belden, General Electric and Marathon. (I really went for the big companies this year, didn't I?) Out of that four hours, I received interviews with Chrysler (x2), Whirlpool, and Belden, and I'm still waiting to hear back from Ford this week! I had also had interviews with Shell Oil and GE Aviation earlier in the day, so that brings my total interview count up to 6 now! Now I just have to cross my fingers and wait to see if a company offers me an internship because I've done all that I can do :)

Good luck to you all on midterms, projects, presentations, and everything else going on this week! And let's hope for a HUGE Spartan victory at the school down the road this weekend!

GO GREEN! :D

Just a spoonful of sugar helps the medicine go down.

I don't think my body could have chosen a worse time to get sick. But then again, EVERYONE is sick. Have you noticed that? This is the first hay fever season that I've actually noticed that the majority of my friends (aka. everyone who lives in the engineering building like me) has some sort of cough, head cold, or aching body. Unfortunately, I feel all three. And it doesn't get better because everyone else is constantly sick too. But that makes sense though: we all share the same computer labs in the Engineering, we all eat while we sit there and do our homework for hours on end, and if we're all sick... well, that just means we have to learn to keep clean!

My suggestion?
     1.) Carry a travel sized bottle of hand sanitizer on you whenever you're out of your dorm room or apartment. You never know when you're going to need it, especially because you won't always have the opportunity to wash your hands, especially before you eat.
     2.) If you're going to be studying in a public place for a while like the library, International Center, or Student Union, bring a little bag of cleansing wipes to wipe off the surface of your study area. Being cooped up in a small, germy space for a long time makes it easier for you to catch a bug.
     3.) Always wash your hands! I know your mother has probably been telling you to do this since you were three years old, but this is one of the most important and easiests ways to stop the spread of germs on campus.

I just hope that I can get over this cold really quickly! I have four interviews this week, and midterms are next week... it's going to be rough, but I'm positive I can get through it! The answer is: sleep. Lots of sleep, and tons of daily naps :)

Ohhh 1, 2, 3, 4 fires in your eyes, and this chaos, it defies imagination.

Aaaaaaand guess what day it is again?

It's Career Gallery at the Breslin Center!

And I already have two interviews! I'm really excited for this year, because now that I have an internship under my belt, I feel a lot more qualified to work for and contribute to other companies. I am also looking at several different companies this year than I did last year. Last year, my mind was set on getting an internship anywhere with any company, no matter what I was doing engineering related. This year, I'm a little more focused on who I want to work for and what I want to do for them. I have a list of all the companies I'm going to talk to and a little spiel about why I would be a good candidate for their programs.

I feel much more confident this year as well, and I think that's one of the MAJOR things that helps you talk to employers. You can have all the experience and knowledge and technical skills you want, but if you can't communicate or present your opinions well enough, a company won't want to hire you first.

I'm off to my first interview now, but good luck to everyone who will be attending the Career Galleries over the next two days! If you want more information on the times for each day (Science & Technology is Wednesday, and Business is on Thursday) then go to www.myspartancareer.com to check it all out!

:)

I wanna see it painted, painted, painted black.

Since I am a senior this year, I have decided that I am making a Michigan State University Student Bucket List. I know I'm a little late in the game and there's probably plenty of things that I've missed out on already, but I want to bleed as much green as I can before I go alumni status! 

I did happen to cross one item off my list the other day: participate in painting the Rock! September 24 is Phi Sigma Rho's Founder's Day, and I wanted to do something special with our colony, considering we are so new, so I came up with the idea to recognize it on campus by painting the Rock! Many of the sisters had never done it before either, so it was a fantastic new experience for all of us! 

Now the rules for painting the rock are simple: get their early, guard it, paint it after the sun sets. Since we were guarding it on a weekend, we had to get there extra early on Sunday afternoon to stake our claim. And luckily we did because no more than half an hour after I got there did another group show up in hopes to paint the Rock as well! They were pretty disappointed, but at the same time they were happy to learn that they'll need to get there earlier for the next time they try! 

It was pretty cold while we were waiting to paint, so a couple of girls brought blankets and hot chocolate to keep us warm. :) When the sun finally set, we sprayed the whole rock with a base coat, let it dry, and then wrote the following:

It works because our colors are Wine Red and Silver :)

It was so exciting to see our finished product! All of the girls who spent the night guarding it (I mean, we had scheduled shifts until 6am!) ended up initialing the bottom position, and we put an alpha and beta in the center to signify our two classes. I am so happy with how it turned out, and I'm really happy to say that I finally painted the Rock on Michigan State University's campus :D

Here's more pictures!

I couldn't be happier, right here.

The sisters of Phi Sigma Rho at Michigan State University have successfully completed our first RUSH week! :D :D Well, it was over a span of two weeks actually, but that's besides the point. We had been waiting for these events since the end of last spring semester, and it's already come and gone. My friend, Mariah, is our Rush Chair and she had been working on all of the rush stuff ALL summer long. This including, planning what events we were going to do, where and when we were going to do them, coordinating how we would advertise our sorority to new girls, buying all of the materials needed for the events, planning our bid acceptance event, AND the new class induction ceremony. Boy, did she have her hands full, and she did SUCH A FANTASTIC JOB. Seriously, I'm so proud of her and how well everything went!

From the beginning, we had about 75 girls on the email list, which cut down to about 30 that attended at least one rush event, and now we have 17 that accepted their bids and have been inducted as our Beta class. :) I cannot believe that we're close to doubled in size, with so many new faces!

Rush week was so much fun though. Here's what we did:
1. First Night: General Information with Q&A session to learn about who we are, what we do, and why you should join. Then we got into groups (mixing the potential new members in with the Alpha class!) and played an awesome engineering game called Bigger & Better. Each group is given a bag full of random items from glow sticks to toilet paper to plastic bags and the goal is to make the "biggest" or "best" something. All of the girls were so creative and it was a great to get to know them for the first time in that kind of setting.

Working together in groups since that's what we do in all of our engineering classes!

The winners: Most Creative, Biggest, and Best awards!

2. Night 2: Craft Night! This was definitely a lot of the girls' favorite night. Mariah found a whole bunch of penguin and star related crafts on Pinterest (because those are two of our symbols) and the girls just had a blast making them. It was awesome because there was enough time for each girl to make multiple crafts so they could meet new people at each station. And once again, we could all show off our girly and creative engineering side :)

So many penguins and stars!!!!

Penguin Family :)

4. Third Night: Game night! Mariah brought about 12 board and card games from home, many of which I had never heard of but were definitely fun to play and learn. We split up into groups and played each game for about twenty minutes before rotating to another group and another game. The winner of each game would record points, and whoever had the most points at the end of the night won MSU Dairy Store Ice Cream Coupons. This was one of my favorite nights because I LOVE board games, especially the classics like Scrabble and Monopoly! 

4. The fourth and final night was an ice cream social! Unfortunately, I do not have any pictures from this night.. This is mostly because I was volunteered to scoop all of the ice cream since I have had two summers of previous experience :P. It was delicious though because we had MSU Dairy Store ice cream (I mean, who doesn't these days?!) and the girls were able to ask all of their final questions. We also played "Speed Sistering" so that the potential new members could tell us last minute anything about themselves that would help them get a bid.

In the end, I liked all of the girls who I talked to that week, and I'm so excited to welcome 17 new wonderful ladies into our family. :D

Something there that wasn't there before.

I love discovering something new. Whether it's a new type of technology that makes life easier, a new type of food that I find that I love, or just learning something new about myself, I just LOVE expanding my knowledge of things in general.

What I discovered new the other day was a place on campus that I had never been before. And after being here for over three years, I feel like I should know this place like the back of my hand. Completely randomly, I had decided to leave the Plant and Soil Sciences building out of a different exit than I normally would have taken, and I stumbled upon a beautiful garden, that I had never seen, let alone heard of, before. It was about noon, so the flowers were in full bloom, the sun was highest in the sky and the wind was blowing a soft, cool breeze through the trees and flowers. I couldn't help but stop what I was doing and just stare at the beauty of the scenery. And of course, being me, I couldn't help but take pictures as well :)

It's actually much larger than it looks in the pictures. I would definitely consider taking a break from class and wandering around the area some days. It's peaceful enough to curl up and read a book :) 

Have YOU discovered something recently that you never realized before?!

A very merry (un)birthday!

Today would be my unbirthday (referring to Alice In Wonderland, of course) but this past Tuesday it wasn't! I just celebrated my 21st birthday, and oh boy, do I feel old. :p 

It's always been nice to have my birthday around a national holiday because it means about the half the time it's on the extended weekend of Labor Day, so I can relax and not stress about having to go to class. This year, unfortunately, was not the case. Luckily it was my Tuesday classes which, for most engineers, means one or two labs and maybe a lecture. I had both a lab and a lecture, but it was basically still "syllabus" week, so I didn't stress too much.

I think I had more fun the night BEFORE my birthday, than on the actual day, though :p. Since I was in fact turning 21, my 21-year-old friends wanted to take me out to get a drink at midnight, and we decided to have a get-together for a few hours before so I could still celebrate with my non-21-year-old friends. And it was a ton of fun! I got all dressed up and my roommate baked me a cake and everyone sang happy birthday. :) I was really excited because the majority of my MSU friends were there, and my friend volunteered to take pictures all night on his very nice camera. He said he ended up taking over 500 photos! Normally I'm the photographer at all of the events I go to, so I was so happy to finally be IN the photos rather than just taking them. I narrowed it down, and here are a few of my favorites from the night:

Cake my roommate made :))

My roommate Amanda! 

Steven!

Eric, the photographer! :D

Geo and I laughing at something :p

Rachel, BRO :)

Mark and Rachel, MSU Quidditch represent :)

Jeffrey & Geoffrey :)

Jack <3

Haha, silly roommates!

Jeff!

Riah :)

Teagan!

Marianne! :)

6 West (Junior year)

5 East (Sophomore year)

Okay, I know, I know, it's a TON of pictures. But I told you I had fun, right? :)