Tuesday, March 29, 2011

March Madness

I love March. I love it because it starts to get warm, the days start to get longer, Spring Break comes not a moment to soon, and I can start to see the end of the semester off in the distance. But all of these things do not compare to March Madness!


My whole life I have always been a fan of basketball. I feel like it should go without saying being from Kentucky. However, my excitement about March Madness grew tenfold when I came to UK. There is nothing like going to a school where basketball is everything. We are famous for it. And we set the standard for college basketball across the nation. This is not debatable, we have the most wins of any other college basketball team in the country, not to mention, 7 national titles, 44 SEC championships, and we have been to the final four 14 times.

"When you see Kentucky's fans, you just wonder. You think how wonderful it would be to go to their school. You wish you could trade places for a day, just so you could experience that feeling." - UCLA player Kris Johnson

When we beat Ohio State on Friday, I was ecstatic!! They were the best team in the nation and it was a long shot. Then when we beat UNC on Sunday I honestly couldn't believe it, we were going to the Final Four for the first time in 13 years and I was here for it. Lexington was crazy this weekend! People burning their couches, mobs of people rioting down streets near campus, fire alarms being pulled at the library.

And this was just because we made it to the final four.

I don't know what next weekend holds for the Wildcats, but I hope with every cell in my body it promises a win. Every time I even think about it, I get a little choked up. Oh and I also feel like I could throw up out of nervousness. But we will just have to see what happens.

I am proud to be a Wildcat and a UK student. I love my team for better and for worse and I'm going to pray like hell that we have what it takes to be NCAA Champions!!!!

Thursday, March 24, 2011

Mind the Gap

For whatever reason I have really been missing London over the last week. On any given day I think of London or something in Europe at least three times but this last week it has been consuming my mind. There are so many good memories that I have from our crazy days across Europe so I decided to compile a list of my four favorite places to go in London.

(I just looked back over my blog and I saw that I already reminisced about London in one entry but I'm going to do it again because it is my blog and you don't have to read it if you don't want to.)

1. O'Neill's (Wardour Street)- In our first days of coming to London, we discovered that nearly every pub/bar closed at 11:30 because that was when the last tube ran. We were so disappointed until a bartender recommended O'Neill's because it stayed open until 4 am. Oh man if I had a nickle for every Strongbow I had at this place, I would have enough to fly back to London and live for a month. Though it was tricky at first because we didn't know how to use the bus system, O'Neill's provided us some much needed practice. To this day I can read a bus map, no matter how drunk I am. This was the host of some of the best nights out that I've ever had. We met tons of great people from all over the world and this was where I got my first raspberry to the cheek (eww!). 


2. Caffe Forum (Gloucester Road)- We probably hit up this amazing coffee shop at least 4 times a week. They have fabulous pizza for like £3 its thin and delicious. They also have the most amazing chocolate cake and if you ask them really nice they will microwave it and add ice cream to it, just ignore the look that says they think you are crazy. The original draw to this place was the fact that they were open 24 hours and we could come here after a crazy night at O'Neill's. By the end of our trip they not only knew us but they knew how we liked our pizza and how we like ice cream with our cake and had a pretty good idea if we were drunk or not.


3. The Muffin Man (Wright's Lane) You thought I was going to say Drury Lane didn't you? This is one of the most charming places that I visited while I was in London. It is in Kensington and though it doesn't look like much on the outside it is SO CUTE! They have delicious sandwiches, great tea (I hear) and absolutely amazing cupcakes!


4. Eclipse (Old Brompton Road) This was the swankiest bar I've ever been to. They have delicious cocktails that taste more like candy than alcohol, but they give you the feeling of alcohol. This is a great place to go and have one drink, however, we had like 20 between the five of us so things got a little expensive. I would totally recommend this bar for a special occasion!

Sunday, March 20, 2011

Beach, Books and Best Friends.

Yesterday we got back from the beach in Delray Beach, Florida. We had an amazing spring break that consisted of mostly just laying on the beach and drinking strawberry daiquiris. I love the beach so much. Every time I go, I try to think of ways that I can just live there forever.


I went with four of my very best friends. I love these girls more and more everyday but nothing builds a bond like driving 32 hours (16 each way UGH) in a small car through the night. This included two stops at Steak-n-Shake in the middle of the night and a whole lot of road rage. However, I cannot complain too much about this trip as it was a lot less eventful than the trip last year where we broke down and had to be towed a 110 miles and had a bubble on the top that threatened to fly off at any minute.

While laying on the beach I got some pretty good reading done with my Barnes and Noble Nook. I feel like I should tell anyone that will listen about the first book I read called Heaven is For Real: A true story of a boy's trip to heaven and back. This is one of those rare books that will forever stick with you. Though I don't want ruin it for anyone that would like to read it, a short synopsis is that it is about a little boy, Colton, that gets sick and has to have serious surgery. During that time testifies to visiting heaven and meeting Jesus and his great-grandpa and sister that was miscarried. His story so powerfully tells of the great love Jesus has for us and all the joy and happiness that exists when we get to heaven.

The biggest thing I felt about this story was that heaven is such a real place. Having been raised in a Christian home, I have always been told about heaven and even as I've gotten older I have read what the bible says about it, but this was the first time I really have thought about it in the sense that one day I will truly be there in the presence of the God of the Universe. The book was thrilling and touching at the same time, and I can honestly say that I have considered what heaven is going to be like a lot more since I read it less than a week ago.

Okay so now I have to confess that my challenge was an utter failure. Not that that comes as a real surprise to me or anyone else. However, I have not completely ignored my blog for the past month but instead have been far more thrilled with the idea of making a personalized background for my blog. I have been obsessed with learning to use Photoshop to make the background and writing code, that far exceeds my Computer Programming 101 class, to make it exactly like I want it. And then when I finally get everything perfect, I make another one and start again. So I cannot promise that I will have a thousand new entries this month, or even 10 but I will promise that before long, by blog will get a whole new look again.

Wednesday, February 9, 2011

Some are Gold.


I think back to the decision I made not so long ago to go to a little Christian college over 5 hours away from home. I hardly knew anyone and I was not used to being so far from my family. It was without a doubt the boldest decision I have made in my life (so far) and ironically, one of the most worthwhile.

I think back to the couple of weeks in Birmingham. I was very fortunate to meet someone that I could call a friend within a half-hour of my parents unloading my stuff and heading for home. I think back to those terrifying days of wondering if I was going to have to eat every meal alone, or spend every night in my single dorm room. Those were some dark days. However, it didn't last for long, soon I was going through rush and meeting people that were a lot like me. However, someone came creeping into my life and on day one, I never knew that she was going to change me forever.

Apparently, when Kelley first met me she thought I was weird. Luckily, I make great second impressions and she was willing to change her mind. Isn't that usually how it goes though? It always seems like the people I write off first are always the ones I end up

closest to. I feel like maybe there's a lesson there but I don't care to read too much into it. So anyways, we met through mutual friends, did not hit it off, rushed, joined the same sorority and the rest is history. Okay it's not quite that simple but that is a quick synopsis of our friendship.

Kelley is the first friend I've ever had the nerve to fight with. This is really saying something for someone who rarely is willing to yell and fight. Kelley and I have really had our share of doozies. My favorite is when we booked an airport hotel in Munich thinking it would be in a good location to catch an early flight, but realized that we actually booked it near the wrong airport. Who was to blame was unclear. And there wasn't a whole lot to be done about it besides booking a new flight. However, a good 15 minutes of yelling was necessary, probably just so that I could tell the story now. 

Kelley and I have been all over the world together. Ten countries, in fact. We have traveled over 10 hours on a plane together. Oh Lord, that was rough! Kelley was constantly screaming at me to sit still, stop talking, let her sleep. I followed Kelley around London from about 6 pm to about 6 am while she made me go to "all the best clubs". Then had to try to sober her up enough to get on the tube so we could go greet her family. Yeah good times. We traveled to Italy, just the two of us, walked through the streets of Venice and Rome, lived off pizza and wine, and slept behind the desk of a hotel.

Though I am not with her all the time like I used to be, when she used to sleep on my futon or I would sleep in her roommate's bed without her knowing (sorry Lauren!), I feel like when we get together, it is like nothing has ever changed. We talk nearly everyday, get together about once a month and vent about everything going on in our now-separate lives.

This weekend I am going to Birmingham to see Kelley and I'm sure we are going to have a rockin' time. We have big plans for karaoke, step sing, shopping and maybe, if I'm drunk enough, the Beiber Movie. I cannot wait!!!!!



Oh and it should be noted that I have consistently blogged three days in a row now. That's really impressive.

Tuesday, February 8, 2011

A Challenge

This past weekend, I have spent countless hours on Facebook. It truly amazes me how much of a time zapper that stupid website is, not that I have any intention of cutting back my facebook time. One of the more recent things that i have seen that I found interesting was this crazy 30 Day Picture Challenge. Now I am usually not one to jump on any bandwagons, especailly when it comes to facebook (i.e. Farmville, event week status, ect.) but I decided this is something that I would really like to do. However, so as not to completely fall into the crowd and clog up everybody's newsfeed, I am choosing to do it on my blog, because quite frankly you don't have to read it.

I am not making any promises about being completely consistent with this everyday deal. I am a little unreliable when it comes to my blogs (this was really brought to my attention when I logged on and saw that the last time I even thought about blogging was the beginning of January) but I do promise to give it my best shot. So here goes nothing...


Natural Science Museum in Cardiff, Wales



Apparently on day one I am supposed to post a picture of myself and ten random facts about myself. Hmmm,,,

1. I want to be a nurse that works with babies (NICU or Labor and Delivery) because I adore babies.
2. I was named after my greatmama Emma and I share my middle name with my mommy.
3. The best five months of my life was when I lived in London with my best friends and traveled all over Europe.
4. I currently live with two of the greatest women I know.
5. I am a very picky eater. I do not like any food that is green and I am very suspicious of all meat.
6. I have been obsessed with the Sims for over half of my life.
7. I love butterflies because I think they are beautiful but also because they are associated with Coldplay concerts.
8. I am addicted to Dr. Pepper. I have to have one everyday by about 2:30 pm or my head goes crazy.
9. I am easily bored and constantly looking for something extraordinary to do.
10. The most important thing about me is that I am a child of God and he has saved my soul more than once.

Okay well day one complete. I will be back tomorrow.

Monday, February 7, 2011

Fearless


I am one of the most fearful people I know. If I were to really think about all the things I'm afraid of, I could probably think of about a thousand things in just five minutes. It really is somewhat crazy how much I fear the future, and the majority of the time, what I spend so much time worrying about never even happens. That's the funny thing about fear, it can completely drain a person of their energy and joy without ever having to actually come true. Mark Twain said, "I'm an old man and have known a great many troubles, but most of them never happened." Anyone who knows me knows that I spend half of my time gripped with fear. I am always swerving my car to avoid a car that never intended to pull out in front of me. When reassured that nothing bad is about to happen, my mind immediately thinks up a thousand "what ifs..." that overrides all reassurance.

The bible discusses two types of fear. The first is a good kind that means a fear of the Lord. This is more of a kind of awe and reverence for the Lord and a respect for his power and potential wrath. Unfortunately, this is not the type of fear that consumes my mind. My problem is the second kind, more of a "spirit of fear". This is nearly the complete opposite of the healthy kind. This is the idea that life is constantly endanger of spinning out of control. And what I am really learning is that it is a symptom of a lack of faith.

Last week I went to church, having no idea that the sermon was going to be about me. As I sat there listening to the pastor talk about fear and worry, I began to fear that everyone was thinking about how this was about me. That's when i finally faced the music and realized that all the things I fear are completely stupid. And then I realized that all the things that I fear are really just the world's way of diminishing my faith. My constant worry, does me no go and nothing can be changed just because I spend countless hours worrying and fearing it. Instead I need to build up my faith in Christ, because it is only then that my fear can be defeated.

It is so difficult to change habits of the mind. However, I am commited to decreasing my fear and increasing my worry. This, I am realizing more and more, is not something that I will be able to change overnight. However, I am trying to rely on God's help and power to do it.

I feel like this is really the root of my blog. I have always dreamed of being carefree and willing to just "dance through life" and just when I think I am getting there, I slip up. I am determined to defeat fear. I am determined to be faithful and content with the idea that I am not in control. Instead, I am giving my life to someone who is far greater than I am. Someone who loves me more than I can understand and promises the best for me if I trust Him. And just the thought of not having to wake up every morning with a list of worries, but instead being able to wake up to prayer that gives my fears to God, is a total relief. I already feel like a weight has been lifted.

Cast all your anxiety on Him because He cares for you. 1 Peter 5:7

Friday, January 14, 2011

Pisces

Okay, so first I need to apologize, not that I am banking on having any regular readers (besides my close friends who I force to read my blogs through the art of persuasion and a little guilt) but I definitely have been slacking on my blogging responsibilities. Every time I thought I should blog I couldn't think of anything to write about and then I just felt sort of stupid.

So in a sort of quick catch-up. I will talk about what has been going on with me, starting with January 1st, because in all honesty that is about as far back as I even remember. Don't even ask me what I did in 2010, I really have no idea.

First my New Year resolutions. Well 12 days in, I can proudly say that I have yet to lose my keys. Anyone that knows me should be very impressed. This resolution came after the realization that I probably spent a good month of 2010 looking for my keys. I finally reached my breaking point when I thought I was going to have to spend my entire Christmas break in Lexington, because I could not find my keys to drive back to Owensboro. After 3 solid hours of looking under every piece of furniture, emptying every bag I packed, crawling under my bed, and a little bit of crying, and with the help of my wonderful roommate Jill, I managed to find my keys, and Christmas was saved. I bet if you guessed for the next three weeks you would not be able to figure out where I found them, so I'll just tell you. They were under the stairs of my apartment, outside, partially buried in the snow. So having finally learned that enough is enough, and facing the fact that I waste far too much energy on finding things that i just had in my hand, I have decided to at the very least, always know where my keys are. And as of 1:53 am on January 14th, it has worked!

The next biggest thing that has been going on in my life is that I have once again, fallen victim to the dangerous and consuming addiction to the Sims. This has gotten  little out of hand, with me playing it for 12 hours at a time, completely unaware of the happenings on Earth or even in my own bedroom. Due to this addiction, I have a common problem, that a lot of babies experience, where I have gotten my days and nights a little mixed up. I cannot even consider going to bed before 5 am (hence me blogging at 2 am) nor can I pry myself out of bed before noon. This has made starting school a little complicated. I really struggled to make it to my 10 am class yesterday and I face the same battle tomorrow morning. I decided it was a bad thing when I asked myself, on the first day of school, if it was too early to start skipping classes. Even while I struggled to get out of bed yesterday at 9:30 am, I realized that it would be pretty pathetic if I could not even managed to make it to class on the first day and "Emily the good student" prevailed and I went (grumpily).

Okay enough about that, time to move on to bigger problems. I found out today that the person I have considered myself to be all my life is wrong. I am talking about my astrological sign. While I never really put much stock into that astrology crap, I do have to admit finding out that I am no longer an Aries but a Pisces has come as a bit of a blow. I think about reading Seventeen Magazine and looking up my horoscope. It was always so great because Aries came first (I assume because it starts with an "A") and I never had to look very hard for my horoscope. Now I'm a Pisces, and frankly I find this shocking and unfamiliar. While trying to find the silver lining in my identity crisis, I looked up the characteristics of a Pisces, and they are remarkably on point. Pisces are compassionate, emotional, easily bored, demanding of lots of excitement, spiritual, and prone to bad luck. That sounds like me. I also looked up the characteristics of Aries and I find it a huge relief not to have to pretend to be highly competitive, and I'm pretty sure no one has ever accused me of being "a force to be reckoned with". But this isn't the point. The point is you can't just go changing who people are and the sign they have identified with their whole lives, its weird and cruel and a lot to deal with when starting a whole new year.

So with the new realization that I am not who I thought I was but a whole new person indeed, I go to bed tonight with a lot on my mind. I do promise that I will blog a little more often than once every couple of months. That's assuming I have anything to write about, which the way my life is headed should be almost a guarantee. Goodnight!