California Dreamin

In a few short hours, I will be embarking on a 1,600 mile journey from the midwest to the west coast. Leaving Chicago yesterday was very interesting.  The last week had been a curious one.  I met some fun people, did some fun things, saw Slumdog Millionaire (which was phenomenal, I highly recommend it), caught up with old friends, said goodbyes, visited my old school, heard the car alarm on my street for the last time, lost my driver's license in a cab (not good when you're about to drive a couple thousand miles), found someone to live in my apartment, finally went to the Western Round-Up, stepped in dog poo, neglected to see people that I wanted to see, packed all my belongings, strategically packed them all into my car (it was pretty amazing actually, I would say my second most notable packing feat of my lifetime), and shed many tears.  I am sad to be leaving Chicago.  I learned many things there, had many life changing experiences there and leave Chicago a different person than I arrived.  I think it was my time to go.  I am going to miss my roommates and my friends a lot, but I think I make the right decision to leave. It wasn't easy to go, but I know I will be back. I will always love Chicago.  

So I'm westward bound.  My brother is driving with me, for which I am so grateful.  I enjoy driving, and I enjoy driving by myself, but I think 24 hours of it may have been a little too much me time.  Until next time...keep your feet on the ground and keep reaching for the stars.  

Playing Doctor

My friends, today was a great day because for the first time in my life, I am taking a lab that is somewhat relevant to the rest of my life. I took my first throat culture today. This lab is especially fun because we get to wear white lab coats that make us feel like we are doing more than just culturing bacteria. So anyway, after putting on my lab coat and a fresh pair of nitrile gloves, I stuck a tongue depressor in someone's mouth and stabbed them in the throat with cotton. I thought it would be a lot more difficult, that the tongue was bigger, that I would be able to get it through the tonsils, I don't know, I just thought it would be hard. In reality, there's actually a lot of space to stick this swabber in, and my friend didn't gag too much. From there it is just a fairly simple process of spreading around a specimen on a plate and sending it to the lab to grow over night. Meanwhile, they taught us the little 5-minute diagnostic test, which involves sticking a tester in fluid and stirring for five minutes. This prompted us to wonder...is this really what your doctor is doing when they leave you in the exam room for 20 minutes? Stirring? It seemed a little silly, but in a program that seems to be a lifetime of prerequisites, it was fun to play doctor for a day.

The Wheel

Where would we be without it?

iAct = iAm OnALargeSandwichBoard

Well, folks, welcome to Marquette University's Mission Week! Mission Week, in my opinion, is about half celebration and half publicity stunt, but it is typically pleasant nonetheless. It was kicked off this afternoon by an All-University Mass celebrated by everyone's favorite, Fr. Doug Leonhardt, complete with a parade of the brown-haired Jesuits. I was running late this afternoon though, so I showed up to Mass in the middle of the opening procession. I managed to squeeze myself in to the aisle-end of my friends' pew, about halfway up inside the church. Mass was nice, particularly the Gospel choir that joined the Liturgical choir for a rousing emsemble. However, things definitely got awesome during the closing recessional. As hallelujahs were being thrown up during "This Little Light of Mine" (and yes, I did consider how crappy of a song that was, thank you Joseph and my summer of Mass planning), the priests were on their way out and Fr. Mathie was sort of shaking hands with students as he passed them. Now, as Fr. Mathie was passing me, I assumed he would desire the same. But as we stuck out our hands, his wasn't open in the typical handshaking fashion. Unable to make a decision in the clutch, I did what any closed-handed handshaker would do: I went in for the pound. Yes, my friends, during the recessional, I pounded 65-year-old Fr. Mathie on the way out of church. It was almost triumphant, and I got several comments about it post-Mass.

Now, another thing has happened to me this Mission Week that you would expect a few comments about, but alas, none have come. I have become a poster child for Marquette's Mission. All over campus there are 6-foot-tall "sandwich boards" (kind of like big easels) with different students and staff's pictures and quotes about how they live this year's theme: "iAct:The consequences of faith". I reluctantly agreed to doing this, and so here, my friends, in all its glory, is my huge poster:

Profound, I know. You can make fun of me later. Anyway, this is great and all, and there's gotta be about 20 or 30 of these boards all over the place. Would you like to know where mine is posted? The rotunda of the student union. Just kidding. That would actually probably be worse than where my placement actually is. My board is on a sidewalk directly between the smallest freshman dorm and the construction of a new administrative building. Yes, I have been placed within the wall of the dorm, two sides of construction, and the other side of the board (with a different person) is facing the street. This means that throughout Mission Week, approximately 12 people will see this board. Now, look, I know this sounds bad. But all I'm saying, is if you're going to blow up my face and stick in on a huge board, at least give me a little traffic, you know? Make it worth it. I suppose I will survive, even if I am not the most infamous Mission Week poster that is up. In fact, most people's Mission Week will come and go without ever thinking about the consequences of my faith. But you know what? That's ok with me. Because deep down I know, that somewhere, sometime this week, on some beam, some construction worker will look through the commercial plastic surrounding his building and think, "Damn. At least I can write a sentence using more than one word."

'I got two white girls'

That's what the charming third grader that I tutor said today.  One of the other kids was talking about this girl he used to like and he said he doesn't like her anymore and that was his reason.  Well, that's what this blog has too.   

Now, obviously I am biased, but I think everyone should be a teacher at some point in their life.  If nothing else, it will provide you with endless stories with which to entertain your friends at parties.  No matter what kind of shitty day you might have at the office, its no where near  as bad as having a student smear shit (yes, real, human feces) on a classroom floor.  

Oh, the joys of teaching.  I'm not entirely certain what to write about in a blog, so things may be a bit random at times.  I have lots of things to comment on, I've thought about writing a book.  The thing is, I don't think I know anyone that wants to read a fifty word blog that's free, let alone anyone that will want to read hundreds of pages that they have to pay for.  Hmm...

The Mostly True But Slightly Embellished Adventures of Safari Sam and Wilderness Wanda

It has been a year and a half since the fateful Sunday night when Lindsay Becher made a decision that would change these two lives--and hundreds of others--forever.

"Program Area 1 - Nature - Monica and Knaus
Program Area 2 - Nature - Monica and Knaus"

Yes, it was then that two Camp Gray camp counselors would lead 25+ children on a ridiculous Southern adventure through the Baraboo wilderness, testing the strength and stamina of all involved. Yes, children walked away bloody and yes, these counselors walked away without voices. But no one could deny that there was only one word to describe what had happened that week: "Extreme."

Since that week, Laura (Wilderness Wanda) and myself (Safari Sam) have experienced other extreme things. For Laura, the inner-city Chicago school districts would prove a lifethreatening experience. For myself, living in inner-city Milwaukee would do the same. However I think it is safe to say that the most extreme thing the two of us have done to date is. . .establish this blog.

You might be asking yourself, "Self, why did Monica and Knaus make a blog?" This is a good question. Your first thought might be that after the Pulitzer-prize worthy submission to the Camp Gray blog, I felt that my fame had outgrown that venue, and I needed my own outlet. But that would be false. Or you might be thinking that Knaus, after discovering that everyone else in the world has a blog, felt a little left out, that maybe there was someone who really wanted to know completely irrelevant details of her life. This would also be false. The truth is, this blog was created after we both tried to convince each other to create a blog. This turned into an "I'll do it if you do it" mentality, which culminated in the creation of a joint blog.

What will this blog entail? It is unclear at the present moment. Hopefully profound thoughts that will change your life. However, we don't want to get anyone's hopes up. So for right now, it will likely contain unrelated posts from two unrelated people who will soon live thousands and thousands of miles away from one another. The rest? Well, we shall find out soon enough.