Day 16 - A Picture of Someone Who Inspires You

Ain't she purdy :)

I love my mom, she inspires me everyday!

MERRY CHRISTMAS EVERYONE!

xoxo

Day 15 - A Picture of Something You Want to do Before You Die

Hmmmm. . . my bucket list is still somewhat long, but the number one thing

I want to do before I die is:

See the 7 Wonders of the [Modern] World!

Empire State Building

The Itaipu Dam

The CN Tower

The Panama Canal

The Channel Tunnel [Chunnel]

The North Sea Protection Works

The Golden Gate Bridge

The only one I've seen and experienced is the Chunnel going from England to France.

xoxo

Day 14 - A Picture of Somebody You Couldn't Imagine Your Life Without

Well - Let's start this post with a story.

Freshie CP was interested in doing SGA Assembly (which is AWESOME!).

In order to be on the ballot I needed 25 signatures from people who lived in my "district" (aka my dorm).

So little me went door to door on the 3rd day of classes (petition and pen in hand, HUGE smile on my face), looking for willing people to sign my paper.

The first signature I got was that of my darling then-roomie AB, but then I went two doors down. (The next door neighbors weren't in).

I knocked, mentally prepared my speech, and who should answer the door but the lovely:

LADY FUNK!

WHAT!?

Training for army lab.

I tried to climb the HUGE rock using her back. . . it didn't work.

She tried to eat me.

HEYYYYY!!

*sparkles*

honestly college wouldn't have been the same without her, nor would life for that matter.

love ya girl!

(no I'm not as ghetto fab as you)

xoxo

Day 13 - A Picture of Your Favorite Band or Artist

It's pretty weird, but as a general rule, I don't listen to one artist/band/genre of music.

Not to put down any one artist/band/genre of music, I would just soon become bored.

That being said, my favorite artist whose music I will always enjoy is:

*should you feel like it, insert drumroll here*

Carrie Underwood.

The American Idol winner is always classy, and keeps life real.

xoxo

Day 12 - A Picture of Something You Love

It's not someTHING, it's someONE.

LittleNosk, my babysoul, and little brother.

I love him more than anyone (save for MommaSoul, naturally). ;)

xoxo

Day 11 - A Picture of Something You Hate

OKAY, finally a food-based post. I was really looking forward to it.

I hate:

*no drumroll please*

UGH! It's AWFUL!

Le boyfriend thinks it's ok, but I canNOT eat it.

(CP secret: he thinks I hate tomatoes more, not true.) ;)

xoxo

Day 10- A picture of the Person you do the most screwed up things with.

Hmmmm tough call. I don't often do very screwed up things, don't get me wrong, it's fun, but often kind of pointless.

The person with whom I do the MOST screwed up things with is...

*drumroll please*

AngelinaBallerina

Love this girl to pieces. She was my first friend at college.

We did some WACKY things freshman year.

xoxo

(ps: sorry for the lag on day 10, I was getting home and settling into the groove here.)

Day 9 - A person who has gotten you through the most

Can't be done. I'm changing it to PEOPLE!

MommaSoul and CritterBear

(mom and little brother)

Geekster

(and his galpal from college)

Naturally Lady Funk and Angelina Ballerina

(this was taken like 3 days after we all met.)

Not to be forgotten Queen d'Clarinet

(The blue tongues are from blue airheads, we split the blue one from the multipack every time we go see a movie). (ps. sorry about the bad picture).

So there you have it folks A [the] person [people] who have gotten me through the most.

xoxo

Day 8 - A picture that makes you laugh

See that bow in the vveeeeeeeeeery bottom of the picture?

Yep, that's me, CDTPrep.

I was running for SGA Vice President and had to take a "nice" picture.

ie one with a sincere smile.

In order to get me to smile two things happened simultaneously:

AngelinaBallerina leaned back in her char and flailed wildly &

LadyFunk screamed at the top of her lungs "Balls and Weiners!".

Those two made me fall over with laughter, and this photo is the result. :)

xoxo

Day 7 - A picture of your favorite item

Sorry y'all this is a picture-less day.

See my favorite thing is my DVD copy of 101 Dalmations. I can't give you a picture of it because, well, it's at home. It's my favorite (ok it's tied for favorite with Disney's Robin Hood) Disney movie of all-time.

I was obsessed with dogs when I was a little Brynna. Evidently I had dozens upon dozens of stuffed animal puppies. My dad tried to buy me a cat while we were shopping at toys 'R' us and I chose a dog instead.

xoxo

Day 6- A picture of a person you'd love to trade places with for a day

PHEW long title for this post.

This is my brother, DramaKing.

He's an adorable 16 year old (ladies, he likes long walks and is TOTALLY into going to see musicals)

DramaKing is really cool, but also oddly sensitive, which is why I'd like to trade places with him.

I love him to pieces, though didn't fully realize it until I went away to college. (I know, trust me, nobody saw this one coming).

xoxo

Day 5 - Picture of Your Favorite Memory

Last November my Dad took me to meet his Army Unit - 691st Forward Surgical Team.

These guys were AWESOME! After getting off to a rocky start, we bonded, and some of the medics taught me how to start an IV.

COOLEST.THING.EVER.

I felt very important to my Dad then, it made me feel special. I'll always remember this, because I felt really cool in that moment.

xoxo

Day 4 - A Picture of Your Night.

Recently I had a lovely night outside in the sub-zero weather with

my armyman.

Obviously, since my post is boyfriend-centered, I'm going to take a moment to

describe him in one word - adorable.

Yes, we are kinda dorky, but it's sweet.

xoxo

Day 3 - A picture of your favorite Cast

Chicago the movie is my all-time favorite version of this musical.

Naturally, being a Chicago resident originally, I had to see it the moment it was released onto DVD.

Richard Gere is a PERFECT, I mean spot-ON, Billy Flynn.

I've never been much of a Renee Zellweger person, but for Roxy Hart, she was outstanding.

LOVED Catherine Zeta-Jones in this also, she has EXACTLY the right range for Velma Kelly.

SO, if you have yet to watch this, either as a movie, or live, go to Netflix, Blockbuster, or the like and RENT IT! Pinky swear you'll enjoy!

xoxo

Day 2

Day 2: A picture of you with the person you've been closest with the longest.

Me, Mom, and AuntieDear

This one requires a bit of explaining.

I love my mother. She's always there for me if I need her, and often when I don't. I miss her like crazy while I'm away at school, which means I LOVE spending time with her while I'm home.

She's a beautiful strong woman, whom I admire very much. My mom is my rock, my light, my all.

(and for those of you who think I'm a big cheese, she's gonna call me a

dork for writing all this sentimental stuff.) :)

xoxo

ps: yes, Mom, I'm a dork, but I'm your dork. :)

Day 1

This is me, one super preppy cadet, with 15 "facts".

Here they are:

1. I work at LLBean.
2. I talk about my youngest brother as if he's my son.
3. My mom is my best friend, and I miss her.
4. I love to dive, but I miss swimming.
5. I am a champion discus thrower.
6. I can only eat M&Ms in even numbers.
7. My lucky number is 3.
8. I went from politics to bio to politics to nursing.
9. Ebola is an amazing thing.
10. At 20 I've never been in love.
11. Also at 20 I've only had one boyfriend.
12. Said boyfriend is wonderful, thankyouverymuch.
13. Ladyfunk is my "school best friend".
14. I love all things disney.
15. I am Army Strong - they just disagree. - Stupid arthritis.

So there you have it folks, 15 things about me. My personal favorite is the M&M thing, it's just nifty. Any facts about you that are interesting?

xoxo

30 Day Challenge

Hey readers! Sorry I've been MIA recently, life became interesting, and surprisingly busy. BUT to bring in the new year and fill your heads with pictures of a random cadet, I'm doing a 30-day photo challenge.

-It may be tough.

-It may require finding very embarrassing pictures.

-It most certainly will force me to blog once a day for at least 30 days.

Here's the list:

Day 01 - A picture of yourself with fifteen facts.
Day 02 - A picture of you and the person you have been closest with the longest.
Day 03 - A picture of the cast from your favorite show.
Day 04 - A picture of your night.
Day 05 - A picture of your favorite memory.
Day 06 - A picture of a person you'd love to trade places with for a day.
Day 07 - A picture of your most treasured item.
Day 08 - A picture that makes you laugh.
Day 09 - A picture of the person who has gotten you through the most.
Day 10 - A picture of the person you do the most screwed up things with.
Day 11 - A picture of something you hate.
Day 12 - A picture of something you love.
Day 13 - A picture of your favorite band or artist.
Day 14 - A picture of someone you could never imagine your life without.
Day 15 - A picture of something you want to do before you die.
Day 16 - A picture of someone who inspires you.
Day 17 - A picture of something that has made a huge impact on your life recently.
Day 18 - A picture of your biggest insecurity.
Day 19 - A picture of you when you were little.
Day 20 - A picture of somewhere you'd love to travel.
Day 21 - A picture of something you wish you could forget.
Day 22 - A picture of something you wish you were better at.
Day 23 - A picture of your favorite book.
Day 24 - A picture of something you wish you could change.
Day 25 - A picture of your day.
Day 26 - A picture of something that means a lot to you.
Day 27 - A picture of yourself and a family member.
Day 28 - A picture of something you're afraid of.
Day 29 - A picture that can always make you smile.
Day 30 - A picture of someone you miss.

The journey begins tomorrow everyone, wish me luck!

xoxo

Recruits?! WHAT?!

Hey y'all!

It's my first post in awhile because I've been MONDO busy with school.

That being said, I've also been quite busy diving. I finally got 5/6 dives, which is MUCH better than I had initially.

This week the PotsdamBears are hosting their annual meet the NCIs (North Country Invitational).

It's SUPER swamped, swimmers and divers all over the place! I love it!

With all that, my coach had a diving recruit come stay with myself, ladyfunk, and queenie for a night! It's very fun to show off all that is awesome about POTSDAM(!).

She's very sweet, and excited about visiting different schools.

This brings me back to three years ago when I was visiting all of my potential schools...good times. :)

xoxo

Roommates

I love Queenie and Lady Funk a lot. They're my best friends here at school, and I can't imagine having other roommates-besides my darling roomie from last year, nobody beats her.

That being said, I spent the weekend at my boyfriend's and it was very nice. We watched a lot of movies, saw a soccer game, and basically just vegged out.

He has a single. So when I got back to Potsdam (He goes to a school one town over), I went into what can only be described as shock. My roommates weren't going to simmer down just because *I* returned, nor should they. I just wasn't prepared for the onslaught of bestfriends I met when I arrived.

I did feel bad, though. I usually take what the girls say and don't let it faze me, but Queenie said some things that hit the wrong nerve with me, and I kind of snapped. No yelling, but there were some sarcastic comments thrown around. It was somewhat harsh, what I said.

No worries, blogosphere, I apologized right after, but I was still somewhat justified in a small portion of my snap. (She kept whining about having joint pain, but refused to take medication to numb the pain. I have arthritis...I don't handle whining about joints well at all).

So now I have to work on coming back to Potsdam and just accept everything that hits me. I'm not terribly concerned, as I really do love my roommates to pieces. It's just a matter of saying: "okay, you left the boyfriend's, now we're back in triple-land."

xoxo

Pool

So this Cadet is learning to dive...it's going swimmingly (ba-da-chhh), except for the

more than occasional bruise of course.

With all that chlorine exposure, the dry cold of Potsdam, and generally dry hands, I went on a lotion hunt.

This is seriously the best I could hope for. It keeps my hands feeling happy all season.

Without the annoying greasy feeling!

As far as hair care goes, it's next to be hunted down, as my hair gets very slimy due to exposure to chlorine.

First meet is the 30th! Go POTSDAM BEARS (and all that jazz)

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3OE4E_lcxS4

xoxo

Time Management

This Cadet recently got a huge wake-up call.

I got a C on a midterm! This isn't cool. So, I've made a decision that beginning Monday, October 18 I'm going to take school much more seriously.

I'm not a bad student, I just have a tendency to get distracted easily.

These are my tips for staying on task during long nights of reading when you'd rather be somewhere else:

1. Use post-its, they help you take notes without the seriousness of notebooks. (They're also cute and often come in fun colors).
2. Set goals for yourself. If you only have the class two times a week, set goals to read X number of pages each night, then review the material the night before class.
3. Allow time for little rewards. Don't get crazy here, but if you've read 50 pages, written an essay, and started your math problems, it's ok to skype with your boyfriend for a little bit.
4. Make a list of what you have to do, and try to alternate tasks. If you have to read for 2 of your 4 classes, alternate readings for classes with more practical things, like writing essays or solving problems.
5. Don't fall asleep with highlighters in your hands, your sweaters don't like them.
6. Keep coffee, snacks on hand. It's easier to stay awake for those long hauls with munchies around. You can always go to the gym the next day, especially if you have practice.

That being said, if your study habits work, keep going with them. These are just ideas that I'm going to try. Also, any tips you have, feel free to comment!

xoxo

Small(ish) Rant

I love facebook. I really do, I'm talking 100% addicted to it.

I met my roommate on facebook (AngelinaBallerina), I keep in touch via facebook, but honestly...

Y'ALL TAKE IT WAY TOO SERIOUSLY!!!!!!

Certain inside jokes are permissible on the site, and though you might not understand them, accept them and MOVE THE HECK ON!

I apologize for the potential confusion, but let's not take things too seriously.

If I "friend" a person on facebook a week ago, do you honestly think we're actually "married"?

NO!

Clearly a joke, considering you don't have the full story, please chill out.

THANKS! ;-)

Birthday Fun!

I have great friends! Hands down the best bunch I could ask for!

Today was my *gasp* 20th birthday! A big day in the life of this cadet. It's my golden birthday and I've been a-waitin' for a long time.

In the picture we have

ChucksGirl CadetPrep ManlyMan LadyFunk QueenDclarinet

They bought me cake at WEGMANS! (I'm kind of obsessed with Wegman's.)

LadyFunk made them stick with a PINK theme (how perfect?).

She always does a fanTAStic job with parties.

Tonight was also the premier of the show CHUCK on NBC! It was beyond awesome!

Overall, excellent 20th for this prep!

:)

Land Navigation

During any cadet's ROTC career, she/he will undoubtedly have to go through the grueling process that is known and loved as Land Nav.

Land Nav(igation) is a good idea in theory. Learning how to read a map and get from point A to B, and from A to any number of check points.

Cadets are issued

a compass

a protractor

and a map of the area being navigated. We have three hours to locate eight points, which are indicated by an alpha-numeric code.

EX: A1

I look forward to Land Nav every year, but for some reason, I just can't get the hang of it. It's easy in THEORY, but in practice. . .not so much.

Today, I tried the same lane twice, and only found two of 8 points total. It's very upsetting, considering this is a big HUGE-mondo part of LDAC.

So, to sum up, I have GOT to get better at Land Nav or I won't do as well as I should at Camp next summer.

Wish me luck, Cadets!

Who saw this coming?

CollegePrep, the wonderful blogger from Georgetown is hosting another

GIVEAWAY!

^Seriously, how cute are these flip-flops?

So, enter the Giveaway and win some adorable stuff from the Tipsy Skipper at

www.thecollegeprepster.com!

Happy shopping :)

LOVE this book!

I discovered it one afternoon going through my late grandmother's attic since then it has been my prep bible.

Thankfully, according to lillypulitzer.com, I found a more updated version!

It's neat because it's by the same author as "The Official Preppy Handbook", but it's a more up-to-date version. I must get my hands on a copy, but Mommasan said I need to wait until my birthday. Which isn't too bad as it's in just over a week.

Happy reading Preppies!!

Diving?!

That's right ladies and gents, this Cadet will be

starting off her sophomore year of college as a part of the

Potsdam Women's Swimming and Diving Team!

(go bears!)

I cannot WAIT until the real season starts. Currently, I can only

dive off the board with no coach (don't fret, he sits on the deck and watches), but

he can't actually begin coaching me (and the other divers) until the 20th! <-EEK!

Diving is SO scary, flipping off a board is something I never saw myself

doing. I also have to get used to the spring in the board...further eek moment. I've landed

on my back on the water too many times to count! Let me tell you, it *hurts*.

I've just been getting back up, which I guess is kind of the point.

Kudos to divers from my high school, I had NO IDEA how hard it was to do this!!

Anyway, since I'm going to be on an official NCAA DIII team, I won't have to

go to typical PT (insert tiny HOOAH here). I'll still go in to take the

APFT (hopefully I pass), but other than that, I'm gold!

This is going to be a very VERY welcome thing since the PT+Swim/Diving practice has been killing me. (Since the season hasn't started yet we've been doing

captain's practices.)

Off to start my homework, second week of college and I'm already wishing for Christmas break :P

Quick, quick, quick post

Hi all! Just had one heck of a workout at PT this morning thanks to one of the MS4s!

It occurred to me as we were running down a hill with what seemed to be a vertical drop that this is something I really need to be consciously doing every. single. day. I've been doing doubles, don't worry, but evidently not to the standards expected of me.

PHEW! PT is tough, but as I may have mentioned before, I'm trying out for the swim team at Potsdam, so that *should* (coughcough gods of PT hear me please coughcough) help me pass the APFT come September 22.

*APFT=Army Physical Fitness Test

Females in my age group (17-21) must do:

• 19+ push-ups
• 53+ sit-ups
• and run 2 miles in under 18:54

Trust me when I say it shouldn't be this difficult (it is, which is a BLATANT indication that I'm seriously out of shape).

Good luck cadets!

Crafts and Headbands and Belts, OH MY!

It's been a long time coming that I've wanted to start being a crafty girl.

I have tried scrapbooking in the past, and I think I may have just been too young because it led me to believe that I wasn't A. very good at crafts, or B. very interested in crafts.

Little did I know that Mommasan would come to tell me that I could make my own accessories!

GASP! <-who would have thought this to be possible!?

(clearly a lot of people, ribbons, bows, d-rings, and headbands abound at Michael's craft store in Victor, NY)

This one is one of my favorites! Argile-esque print is so preppy, and I love how it alternates between dark and light pink! Naturally, I had to add a bow to this one. :)

Believe it or not, this one has ladybugs on it! So cute, right? I'm not sure if it'll turn into a present for my friend Grace (she's 8).

I'm a lover of all things footwear. I own easily 30 pair, and work in the footwear dept at LLBean. So when Mommasan found this beauty, I knew it had "Belt" written all over it!

I loved this ribbon! I cannot wait to wear it, mostly because it's adorable, but also because I'll wear it almost every day.

CadetPrepster's craft excellence.

This was an excellent way to relax. No stress, because until everything was glued down, everything could be changed.

First Day!!

It's the first day back at school, and I couldn't be more excited!

I'm taking really fun and interesting classes (plus two intro classes, which should be very meh).

Intro to International Politics

Politics and the Judicial Process

Imagining Asia

Intro to Literature

Military Science 2

It's turning out to be a pretty exciting year!

SO! CadetPrep and Queen d'Clarinet thought a lounge room would rock.

Little did we expect Potsdam to accept too many students.

Hence the need to triple with LadyFunk. I'll admit, I'm the one who didn't have to bunk the bed, but it's with good reason: I'm going to be swimming at 5am 6 days a week.

This way, I won't bother them as I sneak out the door every morning. Let's face it, roomies that wake each other up, SO not kosher.

Believe it or not, I have less room (spatially speaking) than either of them.

Here's a close-up of my little section

My desk area...Queen d'Clarinet's desk is opposite mine :)

My bed, with an LLBean puppy named Mozart.

Gotta use under the bed space too, and i left enough room to access all of the stuff toward the back

This is my section in its' entirety, it's quite small, but livable.

Ciao :)

A few Online shopping items

I know, I know, Ebay and the like have been around for ages,

but here are some things to keep in mind when using sites like that:

1. Set a limit and stick to it

-don't raise your max bid just because someone outbid you, something else will come along.

2. Keep in mind that how fast you make your payment impacts your rating.

-A bad rating can lead to bad service.

3. Keep things private.

-Avoid giving out emails to other users, things can get tangled very easily.

4. Remember that all credit/debit cards have limits.

-DO NOT forget them!

Now that that is out of the way, I personally just discovered the wonder of Ebay!

I don't come from a super-well-off family, so I made do until I discovered said website (ahem, Ebay!).

I found the CUTEST Lilly Pulitzer skirt! First, it was only $21.00, including shipping!

Happy (and safe) Shopping! :)

Alter Designs!

First off, let me state that @CollegePrepster is

hosting another GIVEAWAY!

I love the state charm necklaces, but my FAVORITE is this

*Belt Buckle*

It's very nautical, which is a favorite summer theme of mine!

Alter Designs has the cutest accessories, be sure to check out their site:

www.alterdesigns.com

CollegePrep Giveaway!

Hey guys, on one of the blogs I follow, they're having an amazing

GIVEAWAY!!!

Nico and LaLa make different fonts for things,

it's super preppy and completely adorable.

So cute, right?

Anyway, I'm also getting a pair of glasses today, but while I was looking,

and before I found the pair, I found:

Lilly Pulitzer glasses!

I LOVED them, sadly Momma-san didn't agree...they

don't frame my face well.

Any cute accessories that you just discovered?

FINALLY!

Yesterday was a Most Exciting Day in CadetPrepster's life! I finally purchased a cellphone!

Now, I realize for most this isn't big news, but for a cellphone addict like myself,

going without a phone from March until now was pretty tough.

It's a simple prepaid plan from Verizon, and it's all I need for now. However, if anyone can think of a better (ie more cost efficient) don't hesitate to holler out and let me know!

ArmyROTC update time!

As some of you know, I have been trying to get into basic training. This week I found out that after WEEKS sitting at the desk of the Army Surgeon General:

The Army said "no".

So the CoC at Potsdam ROTC is attempting to get me in that way. Mjr Toth (aka the most awesome ROTC recruiter EVER) says that if I improve my PT score (ie PASS) he can contract me, and when I graduate I can be an Army Officer.

(fingers crossed that THIS works out)

anyway, ciao for now :)

New Items discovered thanks to...assorted sources!

There are several things I've come to accept:

1: I really need to go shopping.

http://justmadras.com/index.htm

2: I seriously need to buy a car.

http://www.johnholtzhonda.com/Vehicles/VehicleDetail.aspx?t=certified&vin=JHLRE48357C046983

3: School needs to start again, as I'm mondo bored and I seriously miss my

awesome friends!

http://www.potsdam.edu/index.cfm

4: I've discovered the most amazing thing since books! E-books!

http://www.barnesandnoble.com/nook/index.asp?cds2Pid=30195

And

5: Thanks to my friend PosterChild, I found THIS:

http://www.mizozo.com/tech/06/2010/09/the-future-of-sticky-notes.html

I hope that this very info-filled post is enjoyable, since I LOVED finding all of this

stuff!

Ciao for now! :)

Wonderful OS

So my darling guy NerdHerder introduced me to the best thing to hit computers since the internet!

Ubuntu!! It is a GODSEND!

In my mind it's the mac for middle class people. Faster than windows, free online downloads, and way less waiting for things to load.

go to Ubuntu.com for more info, and for heaven's sake stop waiting for

applications to load!

Ciao for now :)

Spook!

It's May 17! How did this happen?! I'm almost completely done with my first year of college! So much has changed, but so much has stayed the same. I cannot wait until summer begins, but I also don't want to leave school!

I love "the Dam" as everyone calls it. It's a second home, and I love my people here. It's odd, but at the beginning of the year I had nice categories of friends.

ArmyROTC

Student Government Association

Upstairs Guys

Besties

I was reluctant to allow the different groups of friends I had mesh together. Now, however, I've seen that it only leads to MORE fun!

I'm going to miss this place SO much over the summer, but I cannot wait to come back.

I'll be:

*A sophomore!

*An MSII

*In assembly again

*Hopefully chair of a committee!

Best wishes on final exams, and have fun over the summer!

Adventures in Dining

It's always good to keep a log of what you eat and when. I rarely need to do this because:

I take it to a WHOLE NEW LEVEL!

I'm so lame, I get the same sandwich every time we go to dinner...

Wheat Sub

With:

Italian Dressing

Turkey

Lettuce

Cucumbers

and EXTRA dill pickles