Month: November 2008

Categories Education

Confessions of a Seminar-Stressed Nutrition Student

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With less than two days ’til seminar, I’ve been totally stressed out today–especially when my internship case study took all morning and my health program planning took all afternoon. I had no choice but to spend all evening on seminar. So, when I got out of class a bit before 8 this evening, I went shopping.

And what, you may ask, does a dietetics intern and nutrition grad student purchase to tide her over during what is sure to be a late night writing?

basket full of junk food

Try donuts, potato chips, Veggie Tales fruit snacks, sardines in mustard sauce, Swiss rolls, Hot Tamales, Boston baked beans, a hot spiced cider packet, dried apple rings, sour gummy worms, cherry sours, ramen, and grapefruit juice.

To my credit, I didn’t eat it all–apparently my binge eating powers have decreased in the last couple of years. All I had this evening was the sardines, a third of the bag of chips, a donut, 3 packets of fruit snacks, a few pieces each of each of the candies, and half the jug of juice.

It’s a sore blow to my olden days eat everything in sight motto–but if I maintain this level of “moderation” (if you can call it that), I may have some snacks to finish my seminar with tomorrow. And if I’m really lucky, I may have some for finishing up my project proposal on Thursday night. It’s too much to hope that I’ll have anything left for Tuesday night, when all my papers are done and my roommates are gone and I’ll be vegging out.

And then I won’t eat another bite of junk food for another couple of months until the next big stress event occurs. (Or Christmas, whichever comes first.)

Such is the life of THIS dietetic intern!

Categories None

Wasting Time

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I’m not exactly procrastinating. After all, I’ve gotten a lot done today. But I have been wasting a significant amount of time seeing what celebrities I look like. What do you think?

In this case, first is a charm. Christina Ricci and I really do look pretty similar in these particular photos–wouldn’t you say?

Second time around, I begin to see a theme. Big mouths. Great. At least I wasn’t matched to Julia Roberts. Gah!

Hmm… This layout doesn’t have any names. Which means I don’t know who any of those people are. They’re all really pretty though.

I’m a guy, apparently. Or at least I look like one.

It really is all in the photography. ‘Cuz my jaw doesn’t always look like that. But in this picture at least, they’ve got my jaw matched pretty well.

Now those are some new faces. Amazing what a sneer can do for you. I’m a whole new person!

MyHeritage: Family trees – Genealogy – Celebrities

Oh, this is exciting. I put in a photo of me as Posh Spice–and guess who one of my matches was? Victoria Beckham! And guess who Victoria Beckham is? Posh Spice! (Sorry, I’m getting a little “Firefighter Swenson”ie about now.)

I can see your question plain as day. “Did you really do 1000 photos?” No. I definitely did not. I did what you saw here plus two or three more. I simply lost count and started writing random numbers.

But, having wasted entirely too much time choosing faces–do me a favor by comparing yourself and sending me a link so I can waste some more time (without being an absolute narcissist).

Categories Education

A Recipe for Stress

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    Nov. 4

  • The United States of America elects Barak Obama president
    Wed, Nov. 5

  • Get to bed REALLY late
  • Wake up pretty EARLY
  • Go to class
  • Go to work
  • Stay up way too late AGAIN
    Thu, Nov. 6

  • Collect data for research class
  • Moderate at seminar
  • Seminar abstract due
  • Research methods homework due
  • Attend sister’s white coat ceremony
    Fri, Nov. 7

  • Food Chemistry test
  • Work 7 hours
  • Attend Barn dance
    Sat, Nov. 8

  • Work 10 hours
    Tue, Nov. 11

  • Case study due
  • Medical Terminology competition
  • Lab values competition
    Thu, Nov. 13

  • Present seminar
  • Research methods assignment due
    Fri, Nov. 14

  • Non-thesis option project proposal due

Recipe for Peace:

“Be anxious for nothing, but in everything, through prayer and supplication, with thanksgiving, let your requests be made known to God. And the peace of God, which surpasses all understanding, will guard your hearts and minds in Christ Jesus.” Philippians 4:6-7

Categories Faith, Politics

Not all bad news

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I told myself I wasn’t going to stress. Wasn’t going to watch the news. Wasn’t going to follow the play-by-play’s online.

So guess what I’ve been doing this evening?

If you guessed stressing and following the play-by-play’s online, you’d be right. Bonus points if you included an Excel spreadsheet with my own predictions for the winner.

I have to say I’m disappointed that the presidential race is leaning at Obama (I have little doubt that the networks have already proclaimed him the winner.) But, at least in Nebraska, there are small victories to celebrate.

Mike Johanns beat out Harvard boy Scott Kleeb in the Senate race–keeping one of Nebraska’s Senate seats in the Republican fold. (And Johanns is a much more conservative Republic than Hagel, who he’s replacing.) Jeff Fortenberry has been re-elected to the House of Representatives. I was also pleased to see Adrian Smith be re-elected. I enjoyed listening to him when he visited UNL’s college Republican’s a couple of years ago when he was running against the aforementioned Hahvahd child.

Even more exciting is the triumph of Tim Clare over Earl Scudder in the University of Nebraska’s Board of Regents race. Scudder made his support of embryonic stem cell research a main player in his advertising campaigns, euphemistically calling it “support for life-saving research.” Clare took a more ethical stance and proclaimed his support for the TRULY life-saving (and life-enhancing) adult stem cell research, but his opposition to the death-dealing embryonic stem call research. If you didn’t already know, adult stem cells are already being used for life-saving and life-enhancing therapies. Despite many years of research (and tons of research dollars spent), embryonic stem cells have failed to produce even one mildly successful therapy. YAY for CLARE! I’m glad you (and life) won.

Another big woohoo for Nebraska is the passing of an initiative to ammend the Nebraska constitution for the prohibition of Affirmative Action by any government entity. Equal Opportunity triumphs at last! Down with discrimination–up with getting the best guy (or gal) for the job!

But the biggest reason to not kill myself come January 19th (and perhaps even to celebrate despite the impending destruction of a nation I love) is what I read this morning in Revelation 19:6 “Alleluia! For the Lord God Omnipotent reigns!” And what I read this evening as I was copying Obadiah 21 “And the kingdom shall be the Lord’s.” I am temporarily a citizen of this earth, and a citizen of the United States of America. Despots rise and fall here, and every so often, a decent ruler comes into power. But I have a permanent citizenship in a kingdom whose ruler has never been voted out of office, never been overthrown by a coup’d’etat, never had a veto overruled by a two-thirds majority of senate and house. I have a king who has never cut military spending, who always keeps His men clad in the best of defensive armor and fighting with the most up-to-date offensive weapons. I have a king who has never taken from me what is rightfully mine to give it to another who does not deserve it–instead, He has taken what was rightfully His and given it to me (who cannot even begin to deserve it). The United States may be going to hell in a handbasket–but I’m not going with it, because I don’t belong here. “The Lord God Omnipotent reigns!”

Categories Family & Friends, Reflections

World Without My Glasses

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I don’t really need my glasses around the house. Not when I’m at the computer or reading or puttering. I only need them for my distance vision. So I didn’t have them on when I left for class at 4. By the time I realized I had forgotten them, it was too late to turn back. Welcome to a whole new world.

It was odd, asking a question of a blob on a television screen. It’s always odd doing the teleconferencing thing–but not being able to see makes it even more unusual. Navigating rush hour traffic on two of North Lincoln’s busiest streets was also interesting. I could feel the tiny muscles in my eyes straining to focus.

The library was an adventure. I couldn’t scan the stacks like I usually do–or my head would start spinning with blurry blocks of text. Instead, I had to kneel so that my head was level with whatever shelf I was looking at–so that my eyes could focus on the spines of the books directly in front of me.

I dropped by my parent’s house to ask my brother John about his day at the College of Business Administration’s “Big Red Welcome.” I asked him, teasing, if they had convinced him to join the Business College. He replied, quite seriously, that he thinks they have. I’m excited for him–I think he’ll do great in business. He’s smart, he’s a people person, he’s a go-getter. It’s just that he’s really growing up. Tomorrow he’ll vote in his first ever election–helping to make a decision that’ll shape the destiny of our nation.

I sat down for some pumpkin pie (made by my brother Daniel and his girlfriend Debbie) and my sister Grace began a lament about her civics class. The teacher has switched her teaching style and Grace prefers the old one–in fact, she’s pretty much sure that the old way is the only way she (Grace) can learn. I listened and thought, “External locus of control.” Then I thought, “You’re a nerd.” Then I realized that Gracie is growing up. She’s in high school now–the place where grades start counting. She’s learning our governmental system. She’s learning how to learn on her own (somewhat unwillingly, but oh well.)

The phone rang and we ignored it. The phone wasn’t in its holster anyway. But Joshua bounded up the stairs with the phone to announce a call for Timothy. It was the army recruiter. Tim jumped up and paced towards the school room (soon the piano room)–and then changed his mind and went the opposite direction, into his bedroom. He’s pretty serious about this thing. He’s researched his options. He’s looked into schools. He’s gone over costs and benefits. He’s considered the risks of war. He’s looked into genetic engineering in the military. He’s on the cusp of making his decision. If he decides to join the Army Reserves, he’ll be heading to boot camp next summer.

It seems like just yesterday, they were this:
Tim and Grace as children
and now–he’s talking of joining the military.

I take off my glasses for just a day and the world swirls by, leaving me with a foreign landscape. What happened to yesterday? Where’d it go?

I don’t know–and I can’t waste time trying to figure it out–I’d only end up losing today.

Categories Reflections

Halloween Reflections

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We never dressed up for Halloween when we were kids. Mom and Dad never made a big deal about our not “celebrating” Halloween. We just didn’t. Instead, we sat in the living room with a big vat of candy and tracts and vied to answer the door when the doorbell rang. One piece of candy for the trick-or-treaters, one piece of candy for us. I never felt deprived.

Fast forward to the last couple of years, when I’ve discovered how much I enjoy putting on new identities. It started for a youth group “Sponsor Seek”, in which sponsor’s disguised themselves and attempted to evade the youth while walking around a shopping mall. I painted my face a chalky white, wore my friend’s best approximation of dreds, and stepped heavy in big pants and a jersey. Then came work spirit days, where I dressed as a nerd, a superhero, a football player (a wifebeater and sweatpants positioned strategically below my buttocks, revealing my red athletic shorts beneath.)

So when a costume contest was announced for Halloween–I dressed up.

Rebekah dressed as an old woman

I won first place (Thank you very much!), probably due to a last minute thought to bring along some photos I had lying around.

After making the long trek indoors–around the building and through all sorts of doors to get to the elevator–I asked Fatima and Marilyn if they might have seen my grandson (producing a picture of my brother Daniel). It took them a few seconds to realize that it was me–then they just laughed and laughed–while I continued with my story of trying to surprise my grandson, who was a student here.

The story was so successful, I couldn’t help but continue it. I stayed in character all day, discussing my pillies and my grandson. “This is the University of Nebraska-Lincoln? My grandson’s a student there.”

The older ladies in the kitchen–the morning cooks–enjoyed the costume most. Carolyn proclaimed me her grandmother and was quite anxious about me. “Are you sure you don’t need to have a seat, Grandma?”

Anyway, that was my Halloween costume.

Check out more, mostly children’s, costumes at Becky’s Costume Parade.
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