Happy Thanksgiving!

I am thankful for family, friends, and most importantly FOOTBALL. There is nothing like relishing food, football, and sleep during this wonderful break. Thursday night, turkey and Lions-Packers. Friday night, leftover turkey and LSU-Arkansas. Saturday night, pig roast and GT-u[sic]ga. Sunday night, leftover pig roast and Falcons-Vikings. Could this break get any better?

http://thwuga.net/

Here are some great u[sic]ga jokes for Hate Week:

1. A lady called the UGA police to report a car jacking. They said they were too busy right now and for her to just get the jersey number and call back later.
2. Why were the UGA football players so upset about the library fire? Because most of the books hadn't been colored yet.
3. Three UGA players drowned when their pickup went into the creek. They couldn't get the tailgate open.
4. Once upon a time, three co-workers were out on a company hiking retreat. One was a rabid Notre Dame fan, another followed the University[sic] of Georgia, and the last was a Georgia Tech alum. As they climbed the mountain a fierce debate to decide which was the more passionate fan broke out. The higher they ascended the more heated the argument became until finally they reached the top and overlooked a steep cliff. The Notre Dame fan finally snapped and declared "Fine, I will PROVE that I will give ANYTHING for my school". Then he sprinted toward the abyss screaming "THIS IS FOR THE IIIRRRIIIISSSSHHHHH!!!!!!" and threw himself over the cliff! The U[sic]GA fan was astonished and rushed to the edge to see what happened. Then the Georgia Tech alum, not to be outdone, yelled "OH YEAH, well THIS is for the Yellow Jackets!" and he sprinted toward the cliff even more ferociously than the Notre Dame fan did! ...And slammed right into the U[sic]GA fan knocking him over the edge to his death.
   The moral of this story is that janitors are easily replaced.
5. Three UGA players are riding together in a car. Who is drving? Answer: The state trooper.

"I'm a Ramblin' Wreck from Georgia Tech" was whistled by John Wayne in a movie, was the first school song sung in outer space, and was sung by the President of the United States with the Premier of the Soviet Union at the time, Nixon and Khrushchev. Lastly, it was sung by Allied forces while crossing the English Channel on the morning of D-Day in order to calm the soldiers' nerves. "Glory, Glory (to Georgia)" was sung in Athens last week.

To Hell With georgia!

"Our Greatest Glory is Not in Never Falling, But in Rising Every Time We Fall"

What is better than Disney World? What is better than Oreo Cheesecake? What is better than a ice cold Coke after a long day at Six Flags?

RUSHING THE FIELD:

So I decided to take her back. Georgia Tech football has proven herself worthy for my support week after week. I couldn't believe it. I don't think anyone on campus could believe it. After a long week of Homecoming activities, it was great to see the Yellow Jackets walk out with a "W". And rushing the field was exhilarating. I can now say that I have done it twice. Both times have been during a Homecoming game. And both times have been during an upset of a top five team. Speaking of Homecoming activities, this is probably one of my favorite weeks at Georgia Tech. Why? Because there is just so much school spirit. It is contagious. We have the classic Homecoming events such as Mock Rock, Talent Show, Mini 500, Freshman Cake Race, and Homecoming Parade. This year, I played for two different teams: Delta Chi and Matheson, Perry, Hanson (dorm).

What are all these traditional Homecoming events? Here is a quick run through:

Mock Rock: A lip sync and dance competition.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CIdsJi4RT64

Talent Show: Pretty self explanatory. A showcase of one's talents.

Mini 500: A relay race around Peter's Parking Deck on tricycles.

Freshman Cake Race: A foot race by the freshman class.

Homecoming Parade: A timeless parade of contraptions and floats made by the students.

Finger update? Can you guess which one is the before and after x-ray?

I'll give you a hint, the first one is not the "before" x-ray. It is approximately eight weeks out now, and the doctors have told me that my finger should have full functionality. There is no need to re-break it or anything! I am currently going through physical therapy, and I guess my finger will just have to have some "character." So no more Chinese doctor for me cause I think I'm on a fast track for recovery!

A couple of very important decisions have presented themselves in the past few weeks. I am registering for classes, as well as considering graduate school at Georgia Tech for Mechanical Engineering. Now I know most of you are thinking, "I don't want to hear about grad school, I haven't even thought about undergraduate schooling yet!" But let me tell you this, I don't care. Just listen. Within the George W. Woodruff School of Mechanical Engineering, you actually have the great opportunity of not only co-oping and studying abroad, but also enlist in the Bachelors/Masters (BSMS) Program. What is the BSMS Program you may ask? What a smart kid. Let me tell you. The BSMS Program allows you to enroll to get your Bachelors (first degree from college) in Mechanical Engineering as well as your Masters (second degree from college) in Mechanical Engineering. And it allows you to double up some of your classes to count for both degrees! This means, you can graduate in five years with both degrees. Isn't that RADICAL?!

I recently read an article about how your life is directed by the questions you ask. Think about this, when you ask a question, it comes with certain answers, these answers come with certain emotions, these emotions come with certain actions, and these actions have certain results. If you limit yourself with certain questions that you ask such as, "Why am I so unlucky?" You are only living in regret. When asking the right question, "What am I grateful for? How can I move forward and learn from this?" You can move forward and empower yourself to improve your life. Well, I am taking this thought by the horns. I did terrible in a phone interview with Apple last Friday. As I self reflect, I look to improve myself. To move on and learn from my first phone interview and make myself a stronger candidate for the next time or the next potential employer. If you are ever feeling down, instead of pitying yourself, look to how you can improve. Empower yourself! Wow, I sound like one of those, "How to change your life and empower yourself" audiotapes.

My hectic week of work, physical therapy, and morale leader interviews ended on Friday as I jumped in one of my fraternity brother's cars, and we rode down to Indian Springs for Brotherhood Retreat. Except... we went down to the wrong Indian Springs. Instead of being an hour and a half, it took us five hours as we back tracked back across I-75 through I-85. The good part, I had a belly full of Tin Drum and Zaxby's. I got a chance to spend the rest of the weekend playing brotherhood football, playing board games, and chatting around a fire.

Great few weeks capped off with an even greater weekend.

Virginia Tech, bring it. Google application, in progress. BSMS application, also in progress.

Lesdoit.

Greetings from the Office of Admission!

My name is Tera and I am Assistant Director of Admission here at Georgia Tech. I will be blogging throughout the year letting everyone know what is going on in the Office of Admission. Some of you may have submitted your application for our October 1st application date and I am sure many of you are working hard trying to complete your application by November 1st. Regardless of what stage you are in, the best advice I could give you is to RELAX! I know applying to college can be stressful, but don’t forget to enjoy your senior year.

This is the time of year where our admission counselors are out and about visiting high schools and attending college fairs. When our travel is complete, we will be back in the office reading all the applications that have been submitted by students. Our first round of decision notifications will be released November 18th. We are here to help so if you have any questions about the process or your application, check Buzzport or contact our office.

One of the best things about my job is interacting with all the students and parents I get to meet along the way. Another perk is I get to travel! I love Atlanta but it’s nice to escape every once and a while. I just got back from Cincinnati, OH and Chicago, IL. I was a little concerned about the weather in the Midwest, but it was perfect fall weather the whole time I was there.

It’s Homecoming Week here at Georgia Tech so there will be all kinds of fun activities happening on campus. Our office participated in the Door Decorating contest. We participated in a category titled “Buzzin’ thru the French Quarter: Unmasking the Spirits of New Orleans.” We have a “Fun Committee” to make sure every once in a while we take a break from work.

I’m here to keep you updated on everything happening in our office so if you have any questions, feel free to comment on the blog!

Aft facing forward

Monday, October 17th, 1:46 p.m

Countdown to my 20th birthday… 6 days, 10 hours and 14 minutes, but let’s just call it “countdown to breakdown”. What I am going through right now is what people would refer to as a “quarter-life crisis”. I don’t know if this term exists but it should. The most terrifying thing about turning twenty is that you are finally putting your teen years behind and really beginning adulthood, no excuses.
We use the term aft facing forward at work when referring to the orientation of the engine, but in my case, I am trying to reflect on my past teen years (aft) while looking ahead to my unfolding future (forward). The problem with turning twenty is carrying around the regret of wasted teen years. What have I done in all these years that would make me feel like I am ready to move on to the next chapter of my life…my twenties?
And that should explain why I have decided to go jump out of a perfectly good airplane today. Yes, I am going skydiving and yes, I feel pretty good about it, I will finally have something significant to mark my teen years. Whether this is a good idea or not is not up for discussion. I mean isn’t that how people decide to do risky things? No? Well that’s how I did it :/

I hope to feel a sense of accomplishment; I expect to feel relieved when it’s done. I definitely need to enjoy the thrill and excitement. But every time I imagine myself standing on that edge, I have to remind myself all the reasons why this is good for me. The best one I have come up with is that since I am a pilot-in-training, I might actually need this experience at some point. So…that’s what I am going with, and the fact that I won’t get a refund if I chicken-out at the last minute. This is happening.

Tuesday, October 18th, 9.22 a.m

http://www.youtube.com/watch?feature=player_embedded&v=3D-2ytYHv44

Folks, I did it! I saved the legacy of my teen years and, with 5 days left to spare! I am now officially a risk taker. This should define and shape my future, somewhat. The best part of jumping out of an airplane at 13,000 feet? The landing, for sure. It’s a bit bumpy and awkward when you are have a person strapped to your back, but it’s solid ground, you can’t beat that.

Despite my anxiety at the beginning, I finally decided that it was probably the coolest thing I have ever done, aside from learning how to fly. Would I do it again? Sure …maybe at my next major life crisis? It was exhilarating as much as it was dangerous. I do feel accomplished, I am extremely relieved to be back on earth and I enjoyed every heart-throbbing, free-falling, parachute-flying, ground-landing moment of it. I wouldn’t advise against it, for all you adventure-seekers out there!

I feel better now about turning twenty, it’s still scary when I think about all the things I could have done and didn’t, but I am sure that there will be plenty of time to travel the world, stop world hunger and invent a side-walk escalator-like thing (everyone who has had to go up freshman hill should understand why this would be important, and urgent.) I will change the world, just not right now and not all at once.

Monday, October 24, 7.20 a.m

So….. I turned twenty and surprisingly, there was no meltdown or breakdown, imagine that!

I have now officially stepped into my twenties and with a good story to tell about my teen years. As I turned twenty, my friends congratulated me on defying teen pregnancy and I gracefully said “Thank you,…. I think”.
Now that I have put that behind me, maybe I should start working on this saving the world gig, maybe take it one day at a time. And to all you twenty-something year olds out there, I am now your fellow and the world is our oyster (I’ve been told) and the rest of you, the best of luck as you try to figure out this thing called life.

Always facing forward!

The Clough Undergraduate Learning Commons

I currently work in the Clough Undergraduate Learning Commons, also know as the CULC. Yes, we have an acronym for EVERYTHING here on campus! Well anyways, I work on the floor of the main entrance and I don't have any classes in the building, so I've never really explored it to see what exactly it has to offer. Approximately an hour and a half ago, my boss sent me on an errand to the top floor. The errand should have only taken me 10 minutes at maximum. But of course my curiosity got the best of me (don't you hate when that happens?) and I decided to explore a little bit... okay, a lot.

(me at work in the Center for Academic Success)

I can't believe what I've been missing out on! This building has so much to offer. From the warm smell of Starbucks coffee that reels you into buying a Cafe Misto every time you walk in the building to the contemporary study areas that MAKE you want to study, this building is definitely something to see. Even the modern design of the biology labs makes me want to take another bio class! Okay maybe not that much, but almost.

The CULC serves a variety of purposes. It is the site of GT 1000 classes (a mandatory freshman seminar class that teaches students how to balance life in college successfully) and many other classes. You can also find academic support here. For example, The Center for Academic Success (where I work) offers One-to-One tutoring which allows you to sign up for a free one hour personal tutor for the class of your choice. What I find most breathtaking is the roof of the Clough Commons. There you find a beautiful green garden where you can eat lunch, finish up some homework, of simply relax. Simply put, this place is amazing.