I know most of you are thinking that this is the “million dollar question,” the interesting fact is that there are many different answers. Some students are able to handle the stress with dignity, while others lose all sight of sleep, health, and hygiene. Fortunately, I only lost the health portion; and maybe only a couple hours of sleep here and there. How was I able to this, you may ask? One word: prioritizing.

I actually bought a journal this year and two weeks before finals I decided to write down all my finals dates and the dates when all my projects, homework, and presentations were due. From there, I started writing out “to do” lists for each day; mind you, I didn’t always follow them 100%, but having them written out told me exactly what I needed to get done and what needed to be finished first. Yes, I did procrastinate like many students will, but I figured out which assignments needed to be turned in first and which exams I had to begin studying for. In the end, I had 2 exams on Saturday, 1 exam, a 14-page research paper, and a take home portion of an exam due on Monday, and my last exam was on Wednesday.

It sounds like a lot, and trust me, it was. First off, I spent Friday studying for my accounting and psychology exam. Then after taking both exams, I spent the whole rest of my weekend just hammering out my research paper and take home exam. (The take home exam ended up being about 6 pages long). Sunday night I studied for my exam on Monday and then finished my last touches on the research paper. After my Marketing exam Monday, I felt a lot better! I only had one exam left…

I was a little foolish though to relax so soon because when it came time to study for my Macroeconomics exam, it took me a while to get going. But sooner than later, I started making flash cards and made my studying experience more fun. I also went over my flash cards with a good friend of mine who will be taking the exam tomorrow, on Thursday. I even gave her my flash cards before going in to the exam. I wanted them to be put to good use and I knew she would benefit from them. After 2 hours in the exam room, I finally finished and it all felt worth it. It is a huge relief and an incredible feeling to be done.

I am excited for this month break and will be sure to use it wisely with friends and family. Stressful times, like finals, make you realize how much you actually miss being home with loved ones. My advice for any student during the next “finals week” is to try hard not to procrastinate, learn to prioritize your time, (finish your work from what is due first to what is due last) try to make studying fun with new techniques and with friends, and lastly, BREATHE~ remember that these classes are for your knowledge and benefit, enjoy them and learn from them.

What’s the first thing you think about right after you graduate high school: “What should I do now”? Hopefully you think about this question before you graduate because it makes it a lot easier, and even then the road can be challenging because you may change your mind. That is where I am at now. I knew I wanted to come to Embry-Riddle and I knew I wanted to fly, but I wasn’t sure what I wanted to do with the rest of my life after college. When I sat down and weighed my options, I realized I didn’t want a piloting career; I just want to be a pilot for private use. So, my next decision was what degree would benefit me and would I enjoy it. I decided to go into the Aviation Business Administration degree program, but as I am taking a few more business classes this term I know that entrepreneurship is also not the career path I want to get in to. So, I recently switched to Global Security and Intelligence and it feels right! I am going to minor in Business (since I already have credits for it), psychology, and Asian Studies. I have always enjoyed psychology and forensics, so this degree program seems to fit my personality perfectly. I also love to learn new languages and it’s required to take a language in the Global Security and Intelligence degree program. I decided that I am taking Mandarin Chinese, but I am learning Arabic on my own, along with brushing up on my French (from high school), and learning some Spanish. I finally feel very excited about my upcoming classes and I know I will enjoy my future.

If you are not sure what degree program you want to get in to, don’t worry because you are not alone! Many people have no idea, even after they graduate college, they decide to go back and get a different degree. I would recommend just thinking about what makes you happy. What are your favorite subjects? Is there anything you are really good at? Would that be something you want to do for the rest of your life? I know we all think about salary, but how could you stand working 40+ hours every week at a job you dislike? I, personally, think working even more hours for a job you love to do with less pay is still better. I would rather wake up every morning happy for work, wouldn’t you?

So, if you read my last two blogs you will see that California was pretty fun since I got to spend time with family and friends, but the part I didn’t share was the horrible stress I encountered when I got back. I did encounter some car stress there, but for the most part I was able to try to relax on the other days. (The days I wasn’t trying to get to California and then back home to Prescott)

My car was supposed to be completely fixed and good to go, which I thought it was since I was able to finally make it back home. But when I tried starting my car the next morning, it was completely dead. It wouldn’t even try to start up. Bad news is that I had a mid-term exam to get to for my Marketing class, which I only ended up getting a few hours to study for due to “vacation” and getting home a day later (pushing my study schedule a day later). The other bad news is that Marketing is the only class I have on Wednesdays, so I was leaving at a good time so I can be a few minutes early. But since my car didn’t want to work I had to call a lot of my friends. Thank goodness I caught my good friend, Dan before he left to Washington! He not only came all the way from ERAU to give me a ride to class, he also jump started my car, so my roommate could take it to Wal-Mart and get it looked at.

I also called my teacher to let her know I will be late and she was very understanding about it. I arrived about 30 minutes late and took the exam. Luckily, I still had enough time to finish, although I was the last one done. After my exam I went to the admissions office to work a little since I had to wait for my roommate to get back from Wal-mart. Apparently, at first they thought it was the battery but they had to charge it so they can test it. Well, it wasn’t and they didn’t know what else it could be. So we went home with our battery charged from them for free. (Since the battery is brand new and we bought it from Wal-mart in California) We were hoping it would be okay, but just in case I took it for a late night drive to my friend’s house. Afterwards I drove back home and it was completely fine.

Next day- Thursday, I had a Macroeconomics Exam and an Accounting quiz. I was very nervous since I didn’t have much time to study for them either. But I got up and AGAIN the car didn’t start! I had to call my other friend and wake him up at a time that was WAY too early for him and he fortunately took me to class. I felt really bad because my roommate had to miss class since she didn’t have a ride and because she stayed and got my car looked at by a lot of different people. It had to be towed to Sears, which they said it was the battery. Then she sent it to Wal-mart and they said it was the alternator. After that, she got it charged so she could take it to Auto Zone. They also said the alternator, which I JUST bought in California as well. So I called my cousin and had him call Goodyear out here and they said if it is the alternator I have a warranty, so it won’t cost me. Thank goodness!!!

She got the car charged as much as possible by Auto Zone and then came to pick me up. I was very stressed that day and I took a lot of it out on her, but I was so grateful for her to help me out with the car. I wish I had more time to be there with her…classes seem to take over your life! Ha Ha. Thank goodness we both didn’t have classes on Friday, so in the morning we went to Goodyear and they tested the car, every way that they could. It cost me almost $40 for them to tell me that NOTHING is wrong with my car?! I felt like they thought my roommate and I were crazy. We just had two mornings in a row where the car wouldn’t start at all. And trust me, the first time it didn’t work I triple-checked ALL the lights to make sure they were off!  I couldn’t believe what they told me. I am grateful, but it is just very peculiar. I felt like I just entered the TWILIGHT ZONE! ha ha. The mechanic did say that it could be the starter messing up on me, but I’m pretty sure that is not it, because the battery was COMPLETELY drained, no lights would turn on or anything. Let’s just hope my car will okay from now on!

So, that was my stressful week after my so-called “vacation” in California. I guess it was not the best time to leave town. I should have waited til the next weekend. But it was still fun and worth it. And I hope the scores on my tests won’t be too bad due to limited study time. I’ll let you guys know.

The morals of this blog is that you should choose your vacation weekends as wisely as possible, always expect the unexpected, have a back-up plan to get back to school in case your car decides to stop, and try hard to keep an emergency fund so you can fix anything that may end up breaking. It may sound hard to do all these, but trust me- they are worth it! 😉

As promised, I am starting my second half of my stressful trip to California.

I left off at the basketball game which I fortunately got to see live. It was my first game and I thought it was really cool that it was outdoors. My next goal; however, is to see the Lakers live maybe even against the Suns. That would be so awesome and epic :]

So here are a few of the photos I took up in the bleachers:

How awesome is this shot? I think we had such a great view.

Danica and I sitting on the bleachers, second from the top. It was an amazing view!

Not sure which school they were from, but they did pretty well for a big group of diverse dancers

Danica Sitting next to me in the bleachers! 😀

Defense Suns!!! DEFENSE

Suns versus Mavericks Basketball Game at Indian Wells Tennis Garden in So Cal

So after the game, we stayed at our friend’s house since it was pretty late. We hung out and the next morning we went back to my grandma’s house. Fortunately, my car was acting just fine~ no problems whatsoever. We got to the house and I helped out my grandma with dinner, she was having a big BBQ for some of the family. She makes the best BBQ Chicken! YUMMY!

My Uncle John called me that morning and told me he was coming over and that I need to be ready to take a motorcycle ride with him. I have been waiting to go on a ride since Spring Break! But his other motorcycle kept breaking down, so he never had it ready for me whenever I visited. But this time he bought a new bike that has higher speed capacity 😀 

When he came over Danica asked me privately if she could take a ride as well because she has never been on a motorcycle before. I have only been on twice, but from the first time I fell in love. I was able to take a ride with my uncle up in the mountains to where we held my grandfather’s memorial. The second time was with a friend’s dad. We went on a LONG ride. At least a good hour or more. It was the coolest feeling in the world. Whenever I get a chance, I go on a ride. I am actually thinking of buying my own someday soon. Hopefully that will work out. My uncle said he would help teach me. So, anyways…My uncle offered Danica a ride after my ride. She was excited about it.

This is my Uncle John and his new Motorcycle. It goes pretty darn fast, it was a blast going on a ride with him!

After my ride Danica really wanted to try, she had never been on a motorcycle before. She enjoyed it.

I figured since it was a short ride I didn’t need to dress up awesome…now I wish I would have for the picture’s sake. ha ha.

After the ride, Danica and I took my car out to get a couple grocery’s and to make sure my car was still okay since we had a long drive home the next afternoon. It was running just fine. I got a little paranoid and thought it started jerking again, but I’m not sure if it did. If it did, it was only once and very quickly. We got back to the house and it was pretty crazy. There was a family issue that happened and in short words, my cousin is kicked out of my other uncle’s (his dad’s) house. Which I honestly think he should have been a long time ago. He is very disrespectful and he is 28 I believe. Yeah…time to give respect and move on in life, right?

Danica and I ate, which the food was amazing! Afterwards we head to bed. The next morning I got up semi early and cleaned my grandmother’s bathroom just to help her out a little. We packed all our stuff and headed on our way back to Arizona around 2:30 PM. Things were going okay until we hit Beaumont area. The RPMS started jumping again. I got off the I-1o Freeway and was fortunate enough to pull into a gas station. It almost died on me at the stop light! I called AAA AGAIN. It took them a few hours, but they finally got there and towed us to my cousin’s shop. He looked at it and found out that it was the alternator this time. Unfortunately, we arrived there around 5pm, so there was no way he could get the part. We had to wait until Tuesday morning! That meant we were going to miss all of our classes. How stressful. I called my teachers and left them e-mails, letting them know I could not make it. And they understood.

The next morning my cousin got the part and fixed my car up again. I had my sister drop us off at the shop and we packed our bags in the trunk and headed home. We got home around 7pm. With no car troubles, thank goodness. Although my car gave me a lot of trouble, it was still nice to see my family and friends. I also enjoyed getting away from the apartment for a while. It helped clear my mind and gave me a little time to relax. Although financially, there was no relaxing going on. HA HA. I don’t know what I would do without my grandmother, who helped me pay for my auto parts. It was the biggest help ever. I just hope my car will start being good. I am trying to look into another car, but I will have to wait until my Junior year when I sign up with the Navy and join their Baccalaureate program.

I hope when you guys go back home to visit your family, all will go well with your car! I would not even wish that craziness upon an enemy. 😛

This last weekend was supposed to be a great trip away from reality, but instead it was just a further trip inside of realism. 🙁

It all started on Wednesday, October 6th…I had an urge to go home to California to see my family and have some time away from Prescott. I asked my roommate/best friend if she was up to it and she totally agreed! So, we decided Thursday we would head out right after our classes. (We both don’t have classes on Friday). I went to Macroeconomics in the morning and my best friend went to her sociology class in the morning. She had a test and completed it very quickly. After her test she came and met me at school. We had lunch together (grilled cheese and chips) and then she went to my Deceptions class with me. She enjoyed it, even rose her hand and participated. After that, she was a little reluctant to join me in my accounting class, but she decided she had nothing else better to do…so we sat next to each other and listened to the lecture. After classes we went back to the apartment and got all our stuff together. I mailed my ex his birthday card with a farewell letter and we went on our way to California. We headed towards the back way of the mountains~ AZ-89. We had a lot of fun looping down around the mountain. Then we hit another set of mountains that had the most beautiful view, especially since the sky was such a gorgeous color with the sun starting to hit the horizon. It was amazing! After that we were on the US-60 headed towards the I-10, but then my car started acting funny 🙁  The RPMs starting spiking up and down. I knew it was a bad sign so I pulled over and when I tried to restart the car, it would just “click”. It was not fun that evening. We left the apartment around 4pm and we got AAA to tow us with my card and my sisters friend’s card. We were first towed to Blythe, CA and then to Palm Desert, CA. From there, my brother-in-law, sister, and her friend, Kim picked my roommate and I up and towed my car all the way to my cousin’s shop. They dropped it there and Danica and I went to my sister’s and brother-in-law’s place to spend the night. We arrived at their house at 4AM! Can you believe that?! Such craziness. The next morning we all woke up very late in the day. (Except my brother who had work at 5am, he didn’t get to sleep until her got off around 5pm).

My sister went to an appointment she had and afterwards took Danica and I to my grandma’s house. Once we got there we played some WII and found out that my cousin replaced the battery in my car, since it was old. My sister took us to pick up my car and it was running very great. We had dinner and then my sister went home. So, Friday was almost a lost day, sleeping many hours away and once we had dinner we were so mentally exhausted we went upstairs and just relaxed the rest of the time.

It’s weird how days seem to blend together and you forget what you have done, but Saturday seemed to past so quickly until around 3pm. Danica and I left to Palm Springs area (grandma lives in Fontana, Sister is in Upland). We met a friend of ours who got 3 free tickets to a basketball game in Indian Wells. It was the Phoenix Suns versus the Dallas Mavericks. Of course I was rooting for our Suns!!! We all went to the gardens and they had fun booths set up to try free samples and play games. It was entertaining. At 6:30 pm the game started. We had 2nd to last top row seats, it was a lot of fun. I have never been to a basketball game, and this one was an out door one, how exciting! The Suns won of course 🙂  The woman who sang the national anthem completely messed up, it was quite embarrassing. There is a video on You tube. It only shows the National Anthem song in the first minute of the video, but it’s there. She also messed up the last word and said “Free” again, instead of “brave”. National Anthem mess up.

I will post up the pictures of the game and finish the rest of the story … It doesn’t get much better 😉  haha.

Sometimes it is hard to balance out our lives. We feel that school and work is more important than spending the few hours that we have left over with our friends and classmates, but if one does not take time to relax they will become very stressed! Students can’t live life without some fun, you will start to become bored and unhappy at school. Having a social life is very important to humans, it’s in our instincts. Some say it is a desire or want, but in reality it is a necessity. The more alone you become, the more alone you start wanting to be. Sometimes being alone can even cause us to feel sad or down. Surrounding yourself with great company helps you live each day and gives you some extra meaning in your life.

I have come to realize this ever since my best friend moved in with me. Even though it is still very hectic right now, we continue to have great days together. Things go wrong all over the place, (rent, job, car, etc.) but I could not even imagine how it would feel to not have someone here with me to go through it all with. I am pretty stressed already, but if my best friend was not here with me, things would be so much harder for me. I have also took the time to talk to new people and get to know some classmates. It helps me when a huge exam comes up or if I need some extra help in a class. It has also been a life saver when I need a favor. Like today, my car not starting, but I had a HUGE exam to get to. (I don’t live on campus) I was able to call a friend/Embry-Riddle student and he came and picked me up. It was a huge help and now my roommate is getting the car fixed as I am at school. Thank goodness I have such great friends.

Another thing friends are grand for is helping you get over worries and hurt. I wasn’t feeling too great this year, but I am finally starting to feel like my old self again. It is awesome. I suggest that if any of you are feeling down you really should go hang out with a good friend or perhaps talk to someone. ANYBODY. A counselor, professor, family…Just talk it out, it feels a lot better. I come to realize writing down your problems can help to. Whether it’s in a private journal, or on random papers that you end up shredding/burning. It helps.

Well, that’s it for now. I’ll discuss my car troubles that  I experienced this last weekend soon. It was absolutely insane! Take care. Have a great week, and good fall break to ERAU students. 🙂

Hey, hope everyone had a great summer!

I know the word “school” usually has a negative connotation; but to me, hearing it makes me super excited. Ever since I started attending ERAU, “school” has had a different meaning to me. Yeah I’ll admit, sometimes waking up for my 9am class- Macroeconomics can be challenging, but once I arrive on campus and sit down in class, I am very excited to start learning. 9am may not be too early to many of you; especially to our flight students here at ERAU, but when you are up late due to homework or clubs, every minute of sleep becomes so precious!

I have only four classes this Term. Starting with Marketing on Mondays and Wednesdays with Dr. Sobotta. She is an amazing professor and she is also my academic advisor for Aviation Business. I enjoy her classes, she always provides us with as much information as we need to finish our projects and assignments. As of now, we are already formed into groups of four. I have a solid group, I am very lucky! I may be the only girl, but I guess you get used to that quickly in this school 😉  Our group had to come up with an original product, or at least one without a patent that is feasible within the next 5 years. We chose a product that will advance our abilities in electricity. We have “created” a magnetic electricity strip that can be placed either above or within the baseboards of your home. And this gives you the ability to plug your appliances in anywhere you please. The concept is like an electric toothbrush, it is also charged through magnetic ability. Of course there is the challenge of getting new plugs and making sure you won’t get shocked, but we are ironing out all those kinks. It’s actually very exciting!

My other three classes are on Tuesdays and Thursday (leaving my Fridays open! WOO HOO!). I start early in Macroeconomics with the wonderful Dr. Carreras! Some students find him very difficult/challening, I will admit I did as well last year. But this year is almost a complete 180 for me. I am understanding all the concepts, perhaps the change of attitude helped change my understanding? I came into class with a positive attitude and I have not missed any of his classes yet. Last year, due to relationship complications, I ended up missing a handful of classes; which probably left me in such a cloud of darkness. How I ended up with a B is beyond me. I guess I did understand it, I just needed extra practice to fix the errors. Anywho, I now enjoy that class a lot, only problem I have is getting my lazy bottom out of bed in the morning!

After Economics, I have an hour and a half break to get some homework and such done, then I go into Deceptions with Professor Lohn. I have always liked her. I love psychology a lot, and have taken a couple classes. (In college and high school) Deceptions is about how people lie and deceive others. She discusses the cues that one can look for and why people lie. It is very interesting and a fun topic.

My last class is accounting with professor Joliet. I am usually very good with numbers, but this class is already starting to confuse me. Hopefully with more practice, it will someday click! Thank goodness I have a good friend already in all my classes on Tuesdays and Thursdays. STUDY BUDDY! 😀

If I have learned anything from my first year of college it is to 1. Don’t be shy. Do not be afraid to ask for help and ask to study with a classmate. They are not going to bite you and there is only like a .01% chance they will deny you in a mean way. Either they will say yes, or they may be “too busy”. Never have I been told they just don’t want to study with me because they don’t like me. *Knock on wood*. haha. The more people you get to know and start to study with, the more help you can get when you really need it. And hopefully you can make really good friends, the kind that will be there during emergency situations! The second important tip is getting involved! Not only do you want to get involved with classmates, but join a club, frat/sorority, or sport! Not only will this open your social opportunities, it helps clear your mind and keeps “school” as a positive image!

This year I am finally getting involved. I am joing a new Christian club on the campus, I am also getting involved in the Horizon Newspaper, Nerf Warz club, Sky diving, hang gliding, Paranormal Club, and archery. Granted, I may not end up as a solid member in every club, but at least I am looking into them. I am also looking into this new physics club, I think that may help me to decide whether engineering is a good match for me or not.

That reminds me, I have not said that I am very confused on what I want to study. I have been thinking about my future and what I want to see myself doing. I am thinking about the navy, since there is an amazing naval program available; but my degree is what worries me even more. I know I have ALWAYS been good at math and science, which sounds like engineering to me. I love math and science, but engineering never appealed to me. I also adore psychology and sociology, always have. The human body and brain is so fascinating and exciting to me. Aviation and business is still important to me, but I don’t know what I want to do with that degree after graduating. I’m not huge on the business. I do love the economics and aviation part, but being an entrepreneur has never been in my check list of goals. Hopefully I’ll figure it all out soon, I am close to being done with the basic required classes! :O

 This brings me to a point that getting involved can also help with this type of confusion. I know many students who still do not know what they want to do after college, or what degree/area of concentration they want to get into. Trying a class is an option, but it can be a very expensive option. But a club is usually cheap or even free. Take advantage of all the clubs and resources the university gives to you, you can only get more experience by getting involved yourself. No one will force you anywhere you do not want to go, just try it out. Take it from the girl who did not get involved at all last year and is definitely regretting all the times she missed! My first year experience could have been just as good as this year! Don’t let anyone hold you back, no matter what! 🙂

Not many people would look at me and think I’m a geek, probably since I take time to pick out my outfits and do my hair. And once you talk to me I try hard not to get too smart on my peers, I don’t do those funny snorts (maybe once or twice in a year), and I am definitely not shy or socially awkward. I enjoy making new friends and talking up a storm with everybody.

Now the things people do not usually know; I go to Embry-Riddle so I can become a pilot, I am on Dean’s list, I actually LOVE math and science- they are my favorite subjects! One other thing is I am absolutely in love with Star Craft!!! They just came out with Star Craft 2! I got it a couple days after it was released! I even bought it for my new boy, Sean. He is half Koren and half American, so you know he loves Star Craft! He is really awesome at it!

Sadly, my laptop crashed so I had to wait until I got internet for the desktop to even download it. But the desktop cannot handle the awesomeness of the game, so Sean has been letting me play it at his house whenever I am down in the valley (since that is where he resides).  I thoroughly enjoy the new units they have created and the amazing story line and graphics. I also like how it is more interactive now, you have choices as to which mission you would rather do, there is even an arcade game in the game! That was creative. 😀  I know, I totally sound like a nerd, but that is kind of why I decided to write this, to share with you one of my passions, which is Star Craft/Star Craft II<3 

I plan on getting another laptop now, since the motherboard is now messed up from my old one. (Really sucks since I have only had it for a year and a half) But my good friend is getting me a nice deal on his laptop and is adding some upgrades and such. So, I should be set and ready to play Star Craft all night long… Don’t worry, I’ll still finish my homework- I always do. And it won’t cut into social time, like I said, not many people know I’m a huge dork, but I am. It is absolutely fun being a dork and I enjoy trying new games, whether it is a PC game, video game, or board/role play game. I’ll even admit that I have tried D n’ D, it was pretty fun 🙂 

So, now you know a little bit more about the secret part of me, but don’t let too many people know, because it won’t be much of a secret anymore 😉