Tyler

Woohoo! Spring Break is just two days away, and I am in some desperate need of a break! I am going home for break, but I am still so excited to just relax and spend time with the family. The weather in IC has been perfect this past week. I actually wore shorts the other day! It is just making me more excited for summer. I am going to make a countdown on my calendar of how many days until I will be lounging at the pool.

This week has been a great week, not only because of the gorgeous weather! The dance department has been crazy. We have had multiple guest teachers as well as a some amazing performances last weekend and this week as well! I am so blessed to dance at the University and there is nothing I’d rather be doing instead!

“There is a bit of insanity in dancing that does everybody a great deal of good.”  ~Edwin Denby

This quote cannot be more accurate right now! With all the stress of midterms, dancing is what keeps me going!

I am already in my sixth week in my second semester during my freshman year at the University of Iowa.. And boy is it going by quickly. I have seen so many eager seniors in high school walking around campus with their yellow folders scoping out the campus. It has been a great year, and I can’t wait to finish out the semester strong!

I just had my first dance performance this semester at Space Place last weekend. The show went great, and it has been one of the most fun dances I have performed in! I am pretty busy this semester with all my rehearsals, but of course I am still making time to study for my academic classes too…I actually just aced my first test in college, human biology no less. I am starting out strong, so hopefully I end strong as well.

The weather has been B-E-A-utiful!!! and I cannot wait till I can start wearing t-shirts and jeans again! Let spring begin 🙂

There is usually a first time for everything, except when it comes to me and the library. I somehow managed to go an entire semester at the University of Iowa without going to the library once, for either a book or to just study. I usually go to the IMU or the Blank Honors Center instead to study. So My best friend and I woke up at ten in the morning on a cold, snowy Saturday to study for a few hours at the Library and then decided to head over to the REC center for a good work out. I was actually looking forward to the new experience and getting to explore a little, but as we reached for the front doors of the library we saw a note posted on the glass door. “The library will be closed February 4th for maintenance cleaning.” Go Figure.. the one time I try to go to the library it is closed. I have never been that mad about not being able to go to the library!! So Katie and I went to the REC since we were right across the street anyway, and than after we worked out we headed over to the Blank Honors Center to study. About halfway through my work out I had an epiphany. “LETS STUDY IN STARBUCKS!” So of course after we burned all these calories and sweated a ton, we would walk over to Starbucks and slurp down that Caramel Macchiato. Needless to say, our library plans failed miserably, but the Starbucks was so worth it! Maybe next week we will venture to the Library again….

This week was an eventful one for the girl’s art floor in Burge. At 2pm on Friday, my best friend, Katie’s room was filled with 500 balloons, and by 11 pm the same night we popped them all. And since then our Prank War has begun!!! It all started when two of my friends approached me with a brilliant idea. They said we were going to buy a ton of balloons and fill someone’s room with them. So over the course of this past week, we blew up the balloons and hid them in our rooms. On friday, we were all giddy because it was finally time to play out our big prank. As two  o’clock rolled around, we asked to borrow Katie’s key in order to get a water bottle out of her room, but really we just needed to get in her room without her knowing what we were up to. And within the next five minutes, there were about ten people who corralled 500 balloons across the hallway, while Katie and I were eating lunch. I made sure we ate slow until I got the “ok” text from my friends, meaning that the room was stuffed with the balloons. As Katie and I walked up the three flight of stairs, I had to hold in my excitement. When Katie finally opened her door, she froze in her tracks and had no idea of what to expect. I mean, I wouldn’t know what to think if my room was overwhelmed with that many colorful balloons either! Katie at first was confused and thought maybe the balloons were for her roommate, but eventually she knew it was us. And of course she thought it was hysterical, but it is only a matter of time before she gets us back. So from now on I will be watching every step I take and being suspicious about everything. It is going to be a fun semester for the girls of the 3300’s of Burge!  Let the games begin!

Yes that is 500 Balloons!

My winter break was everything I could ask for… a lot of nothing. I basically laid around for four weeks straight with the exception of a dance class or a treadmill run. It was great to be home with my entire family for the first time since August! But I am ready to go back to school, so bring on the freezing Iowa weather because I will be back in Burge tomorrow! I am spending my last day in Indiana packing, because of course I left everything to the last minute. I probably have twice as much stuff than I did coming home for break with a few new necessary items that definitely need to come back to Iowa City with me… a Nerf gun that Santa brought me for Christmas, an original spice girls t-shirt that I found in my attic from when the group went on tour that still fits me from about 3rd grade, an “I LOVE LONDON” mug that my sister got me for Christmas from her semester long study abroad that I am oh-so jealous about, a fresh pair of contacts to replace my pair of glasses so now I will be able to see the beautiful snowy campus, and a huge jar of trail-mix that will hopefully last me more than a week! I can’t wait to see all my friends, and I am even looking forward to start my new classes on Tuesday! I hope everyone has a great and successful second semester!!!

I just successfully finished my first semester at the University of Iowa. It flew by…it feels like just yesterday I was moving into Burge. I did not know what I was getting myself into as I was walking in with all my suitcases,  my eyes opened wide and my skin still glowing from the summer sun. Even though it has only been about four months since I have been at school, I feel more independent and  unique. And being at Iowa has showed me the importance of being true to myself even if that means being crazy, spontaneous, studious, or taking risks. As long as I am being myself I will be happy! That is why I want to share a few things that I have learned from going to the University of Iowa…

1. Take risks in all aspects of your life, because taking risks will push you to be a better person academically and socially— As a dancer, I am taking risks in every dance class. Even when it is something simple like trying to do three turns instead of two…Taking the risk of maybe falling on your butt in front of the class is going to push you as a dancer and eventually make you better and stronger in the future! Because of the risks I take in dance, I was able to perform in the Dance Gala!
   

   There is me on the left *photo credit to Erin Fitzgerald

2. Don’t care about what other people think about you. Be yourself, and people will fall in love with the person you really are— I tend to be a shy or reserved person when I am around people I don’t know, but coming to Iowa I really wanted to step outside of my comfort zone by being more outgoing and friendly to people I don’t know. Coming to Iowa, I did not know a single person, and I am so happy to say that I have some many friends now. These friends have fallen in love with my wacky, nerdy, goofy, sarcastic self!
   

   I love my friends

   3. Stay positive!—College is harder than high school, no doubt about it…But when I stay positive, my mood is happier and my work ethic is stronger too! So whether it is with dance, school work, or even with my friends, staying optimistic is always better than being a debbie downer!

   4. Family will always be there for you!— This was the first time I was away from my family for that long of a time, and I definitely missed them. Even though I wasn’t home sick, I really missed seeing them! Especially having home cooked meals, sitting around the fire place, and taking family walks with the family, are things that I took for granted and definitely missed while I was at Iowa. So when I came home for Christmas break, I made sure I took a family photograph, so I can take it with me back to school for the spring semester!

   

   I love my family

   5. Lastly, Have fun!— Life is short, and even though I just turned 18, I am already technically an adult. Next year I will be living in an apartment with my two best friends, and we already had to sign the lease. We will be paying the bills ourselves, and it makes me realize how time flies. I am already done with my first semester at Iowa and time is not slowing down by any means. This just shows that I need to take advantage of every opportunity and have fun and do things that make me happy! Life is too short to hold grudges, stress the small things, and to sit back and watch things happen. I am looking forward to having a great 3 and a half years at Iowa and paving the way to a successful dance career ahead of me, as well as making life long friendships!

    

   

   Go Hawkeyes <3

Iowa City is freezing, so I can no longer roll out of bed and run out the door to class. I have to bundle up in my winter coat with my scarf, hat, gloves, and boots with the fur in order to stay warm. Though I was very excited to have the first snow fall of the year which made the freezing temperatures seem bearable.

As the rest of the school is studying their hearts out, I have been able to catch up with all my television shows! Thank god for Hulu! But seriously, having no finals is kind of nice and I can definitely get used to it. But unfortunately next semester, I am sure will be a different story! Four days until I am back home in Indiana, so I am looking forward to my last weekend in Iowa City for a few weeks! This weekend the dance department is performing another production. Grad students and undergrad dancers have choreographed some really great dances this year, and I am so excited to go! I am actually going two nights in a row 🙂 So I encourage anyone who can go to go, it is free for students so head over to Space Place Theater at 8 pm this weekend for a fantastic show like usual!

This semester has flown by! i have less than two weeks until I will be home for Christmas break. But before I can make my way back to freezing Indiana, I have a lot of stuff to do. I have projects, papers, and speeches that need to be done… and time is ticking and I am stressing! And on top of this, I have to register for classes still. So much to do and so little time! But if anyone is not as busy as I am this weekend, definitely go see the Collaborative Performance, “Tales of Mortals, Gods, and the Things They Do.” It is in  Space Place Theater! I saw it last night, and it was very out of the box, but I was entertained and laughing through most of it!!!

Thanksgiving break starts tomorrow and I am so excited! I have not been home since August 17th! It is crazy to think about because I am beginning to consider Iowa City my new home. I am going to miss all my friends, but I am SOO ready to sleep in my own bed and see my family and Fort Wayne friends! I leave tomorrow morning at 10 am. I am taking the megabus to Chicago and then my family is picking me up there, and then we will have a lovely 3 hour drive home to Indiana! I am not looking forward to the even colder weather in Indiana, but at least I will have the comfort of a blanket and a fireplace at my house! Goodbye Iowa City and have a happy Thanksgiving break! see you in 9 days!

gross!!

It has been a good two weeks since I have done dishes last. After I use a plate or utensil, I just leave it on the top of my dresser. I let it sit there until I have no choice because I have nothing else to eat with, and then I am forced to do my dishes. This was a record though, I literally had no bowls, utensils (forks, spoons, AND knives), or cups left. Everyday this week I have been putting it off, but yesterday I finally did them. It took me over thirty minutes!!!

Anyway the rest of my weekend was great! Thursday I walked over to the Theater building to go see the theater department perform their first main stream production of the year, Stick Fly. It was so good, I was really impressed! Friday night I went to Space Place Theater to watch the Dance Alumni Concert. It was really neat because this week at dance, alums have been teaching our classes at Halsey. It was inspiring because we got to work with past students just like us who are now dancing in professional companies in St. Louis, Chicago, and New York. So this past weekend, they all performed themselves or had their personal dance company perform. It was an interesting show with a lot of variety, and the best part was that it was FREE!!! The rest of the weekend has been devoted to practicing my speech for rhetoric class which has to be 6 to 8  minutes…As of right now my speech is exactly 7 minutes and 57 seconds…But I have a lot more practicing to do!!