Yom Kippur

Today is the Jewish holiday of Yom Kippur. Yom Kippur is also known as the "Day of Atonement", a day where annual forgiveness of sins is given via fasting and prayers. As many of you know, I am (partially) of Jewish heritage. And no, none of my family practices. By God's grace, a majority of them are saved.

This day has a lot of meaning for me. As a Christian, Yom Kippur has no hold. My atonement was paid when Christ died for my sins. My sins aren't forgiven once a year - they're forgiven for yesterday, today, and tomorrow. Like it says in Psalm 103:12, "As far as the east is from the west, so far has he removed our transgressions from us."

That gives me comfort. Christ - my sacrificial lamb - was offered as sin in my place. As a sinner, and as a Jew, that is truly amazing. I am not bound by an ancient, dead religion. My hope is alive and I live because of it.

First Day

Today was/is my first day as a UCLA student. And believe me, this wasn't my typical first day. This the day where almost everything went wrong. I'm not just talking stress - I mean fireworks. Well, let me recount to you the basic run-down of my day.

Wake up, shower/etc. Walk to class, seems easy enough. Right?
Well, I go to my first class, French 2. You see, I took French 1 at Santa Monica College. French 1 at SMC transfers to French 1 AND 2 at UCLA. Problem? I am re-taking French 2 because there is no way that I am ready for French 3 at UCLA. The instruction that I got at SMC was more like French 1 and 1/2. The problem?
I'd have to either
A. take French 2 for no units - headache
B. enroll in French 3 - no French 3 classes open
C. drop French entirely and add another class - almost impossible

I decided option A, after visiting the Counseling dept, the French dept, the English dept, and the financial aid office. I basically ran around campus all day figuring out if I'd be in big trouble for repeating. See, French 2 is necessary because I have to take French 3 - when I'm ready.
(sigh)

But, crisis is averted. My financial aid will not be revoked. I am okay. I'm just a little overwhelmed. How's that for a Bruin welcome?

But other than that, I really like my French TA. Her name is Katelyn and she's super nice and friendly. So, I think it'll all be fine. My art history class was cancelled - first day. So I'll have to wait until Tuesday to see what it's all about anyway. In about 50 mins, I will be attending my first ever English lit class at UCLA - Chaucer's Canterbury Tales. I'll be honest. Chaucer isn't my favorite author nor is the Canterbury Tales on my "must read" list. But, it's a requirement to graduate - so I'm taking it and I will like it, eventually. The consolation is that my professor is supposedly amazing. Phew.

Sorry this post is like one big diary entry but I just needed to get it all off my chest. As a whole, I LOVE UCLA and I'm really blessed that the Lord has placed me here. I know that I just need to work hard and be diligent. Praise God for bringing me this far, I know that He will carry me further.

The Final Stretch

Please forgive my absence this past weekend. I was in San Clemente with my Bible study, on our annual retreat. Did I go to the beach? No. Did I hang out outside and run around? No. Did I retreat? Yes. Did I love my time there? Absolutely.

This year's theme centered around the local church - how we fit in, why we do, what happens if we don't do our jobs, etc. It was refreshing to be re-introduced to this topic. We had 31 GOC-ers crammed into a house and I wouldn't have had it any other way.

At the present, I'm just organizing my room/school stuff. I'm pretty exhausted from the weekend, so I neglected going to the gym this morning. (womp womp) But in other exciting news, I bought myself a 5 cup coffeemaker with an auto-program option. THAT means that I can program it to make coffee and when I wake up, it'll magically be ready! That also indicates that I won't be buying coffee - therefore saving myself some serious cash.

But all of that is superfluous compared to the fact that I start classes on thursday. I'm anticipating work up to my ears on the first day. It's not that I'm lazy, I just like to know/have expectations for what lies ahead of me. So.... I have all of my books, all of my supplies, all of my pens/pencils/etc. I'm in the gate and ready to go.

Ready, get set...

Back in CA!

I'M BACK!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Yes, that's right, I'm finally back in Los Angeles. I don't think I need to tell all of you the excitement that I feel. I start classes next Thursday, I have GOC retreat coming up this weekend... It's looking good! Yesterday, I drove down to Costa Mesa and visited with my friend Tiffany and her lovely 7 week-old son, Asher. And let me tell you, he is a sweetheart. I think I'm in love!

Before retreat/school, I'm running all sorts of crazy errands here. There's quite a lot to get caught up on. One of those errands involves buying basic things, like toothpaste. Other errands are far more unusual, like registering the car in CA and setting up a primary care physician. (sigh)

As for today, I'm planning to buy my books, go to the gym, and make an epic Target run. I just need a ridiculous amount of stamina. Caffeine, here I come!

Summer 2009: The Video

That's right. I put my video-clip assembling skills to (some) good use and made a little video to commemorate my summer back in PA. It's a little rough, but kinda funny. I hope that you like it as much as I do! Enjoy!

Beatles Rock Band

Yup.

My brother bought Beatles Rock Band. As I'm writing this, my friends Kimmy and Melanie are rocking out with Johnny. Unfortunately for Kim, she doesn't have the particular "je ne sais quoi" that Paul McCartney does. Her vocals are... well... lacking.

Other than that, I'm enjoying my last days here. Everything is quiet, at least for now. John is having a big going away party tomorrow. He leaves Saturday morning. Sunday afternoon, my family is throwing a massive surprise anniversary party for my aunt and uncle. Then, I leave early Monday morning. So, the next few days are going to be pretty busy. That reminds me, I still have to pack and do laundry. (sigh)

I cannot express to you how STOKED I am to return to California. Ugh. I just want to dive headfirst into school and GOC and life!! Things look good, which is a first in a long long while. I'm just looking forward to being stable. I haven't been this solid in over a year - so I'm excited. I think that I'm just in a good place and ready to take on a full plate this quarter at UCLA. God is good, even through the tough stuff.

Sylvia Plath Quotations

Well, I (for once) am at a loss for words. There's really nothing new, or worthy of blog posting. I suppose that I could write about the mundane or the progress of the scarf that I'm knitting. But, I think that I'll save you the trouble and time. Today, I think that I'll post some quotations by one of my favorite authors/poets - Sylvia Plath. If you know anything about American poetry, you have some idea - to any degree - of who this woman was. Crazy? Yes. Poignant? Yes. Suicidal? Absolutely. But, I have to say, I appreciate the way she views human existence. She makes life seem so fragile, so full, and yet so empty. Deep thinker, that I can appreciate.

Now as a Christian, life is full because of Christ. It has limitless meaning and depth. But to Ms. Plath, it wasn't worth living. She ended up committing suicide. Tragic, no? Nevertheless, she remains one of my favorite feminine voices and authors. The point that I'm trying to make is this: I love her work. Little quips of hers are fantastic. I'm putting snippets in this post to whet your appetite. Enjoy.

"Death must be so beautiful. To lie in the soft brown earth, with the grasses waving above one's head, and listen to silence. To have no yesterday, and no to-morrow. To forget time, to forgive life, to be at peace."

"I can never read all the books I want; I can never be all the people I want and live all the lives I want. I can never train myself in all the skills I want. And why do I want? I want to live and feel all the shades, tones and variations of mental and physical experience possible in life. And I am horribly limited."

"I saw my life branching out before me like the green fig tree in the story. From the tip of every branch, like a fat purple fig, a wonderful future beckoned and winked. One fig was a husband and a happy home and children, and another fig was a famous poet and another fig was a brilliant professor, and another fig was Ee Gee, the amazing editor, and another fig was Europe and Africa and South America, and another fig was Constantin and Socrates and Attila and a pack of other lovers with queer names and offbeat professions, and another fig was an Olympic lady crew champion, and beyond and above these figs were many more figs I couldn't quite make out. I saw myself sitting in the crotch of this fig tree, starving to death, just because I couldn't make up my mind which of the figs I would choose. I wanted each and every one of them, but choosing one meant losing all the rest, and, as I sat there, unable to decide, the figs began to wrinkle and go black, and, one by one, they plopped to the ground at my feet."

"If neurotic is wanting two mutually exclusive things at one and the same time, then I'm neurotic as hell. I'll be flying back and forth between one mutually exclusive thing and another for the rest of my days."

Wrapping It Up

Well, I thought that I'd be getting into Los Angeles on Sunday morning. As it turns out, I was gravely mistaken. My flight actually comes in the morning after! Nooo!!! I'm a little bummed because I want to get back ASAP. I just want to get back into the swing of things, as far as school and GOC is concerned. I just miss everybody very very much.

But in other news, I'm just prepping my stuff to go back. And believe me, a whole summer accumulates a great deal of "stuff". (books, clothes, etc.) I have the feeling that I'll be lugging a whole lot of stuff home from the airport. (sigh)

I'm currently reading "Radical Womanhood" by Carolyn McCulley and "Night and Day" by Virginia Woolf simultaneously. Can we say "paradox"? I've been thinking of Biblical Woman's Studies. I wish there was a Christian University/College with a program like that. I think that it would be so beneficial to so many women (and men!). Maybe if the Lord allows me to get a PhD in literature and continue my education, I can design a program like that. Now, what would a program like that have? Hmm....

1. A Christ-centered focus

2. A realistic view of sin

3. An exhaustive history of American feminism

4. Female Biblical character examples

5. Study of a woman's Biblical expectations

6. Feminist literature matched with Christian literature

7. Overviews of movements, categories, cultural dynamics.

8. Study of Church government and structure

9. Global "feminism" and Feminine Culture.

10. Social consciousness (AIDS/Sex Trafficking/Rape awareness)

11. A lot of prayer.

Patience

It's time to check my bad attitude. I need to exercise patience and graciousness, specifically in the way that I interact with my parents. I need to be more respectful and loving, preferring them above myself. Am I doing that? No, not like I should. The Bible tells me that I need to be an obedient child - serving them and submitting to their authority. After all, they are fellow heirs and brethren in Christ. I need to see them the same way that I view all believers. What are some ways that I can be a better daughter/example? Given that I am predisposed to making lists, I thought I'd compile a short one right here to remind myself.

1. Pray - for self-control and patience

2. Hold my tongue when they say something that I don't like

3. Count to 10 before issuing said response

4. Increase my awareness to things that they need

5. Have a heart for compassion

6. Put aside my own selfish needs and wants in order to meet theirs

7. Remember that the Lord has infinitely more patience with me

8. Remember that I have nothing to boast in.

9. Remember that everything I have is a temporary gift.

10. My parents have been my biggest support - time to return the favor.

11. Apologize when I cross the line.

12. Pray for forgiveness from the Lord.

13. Construct ways to not have that response.

14. My annoyance = my sin.

MacBook Pro

Hello Hello Hello!

I am now the proud parent of a brand, spanking new MacBook Pro! I've wanted this type of laptop for quite some time and I am so so excited that I finally have it! This is going to be so convenient for school work, as well as all of my photo stuff.

Bonus: I got a free iPod touch too! So I've been loading it up with tons of free apps and music. Sounds pretty sweet to me!

All I have to do now is think of a name for it. Any suggestions?