The End of the Beginning

I can't believe that my first semester of college is already over. It feels like just yesterday I was in high school, performing in Phantom of the Opera my junior year, or going to Europe almost 9 months ago, or even graduating, which was over 6 months ago. Where on earth does the time go?

I think a lot of people had a lot to adjust to when they came to college. They found a freedom that they've never experienced before, which is both a good and bad thing. Partying and drinking is something that college students love to do, since they've always had mom and dad there to tell them not to. At the same time, a lot of people won't even make it to their second semester, let alone sophomore year, since they don't know how to handle this freedom or balance responsibilities with friends. I don't think this is the case with me. Since the end of my junior year, I haven't had anyone telling me what to do or what not to do. My mom moved a half hour away with her husband, and then my dad moved a half hour away in the other direction, so I was travelling between the two places and sometimes staying at the house alone that I grew up in. So when I came to college, it didn't really feel much different for me.

I did, however, develop much better study habits. In high school, I graduated with high honors without studying at all. Now that I'm in here, I'm sure I could pass by doing that, but I don't want to just get by. I want to do the absolute best I can, and I want to be successful in life. I can't do that by doing what I did in high school; I've realized that now. I've also realized that Penn State is not for me. I don't think I fit in here very well, since I don't usually go to parties, and because I've never been to a Penn State game (yes, I know). Coming here has made me realize that I really don't want to go to college just for a social life. I want to get an education that will help me be successful and will help me be the best person I possibly can be. My first semester here has shown me that Penn State is not the right fit for me, which is why I have filled out transfer applications for next year.

Although I know I don't really belong here, I'm glad that I made the mistake of coming to this school. It has helped me grow as both a student and as an individual. I now know what to look for in a school, and I know that I need to find a school less focused on partying and more focused on studying. Overall, I have definitely seen a change in myself for the better this semester. I think seeing so many people being irresponsible has made me into a more responsible and focused person, and I'm so thankful that Penn State has given me the opportunity to become that person.

Brave

Directors: Mark Andrews, Brenda Chapman, Steve Purcell
Writers: Brenda Chapman (Story & Screenplay), Mark Andrews (Screenplay), Steve Purcell (Screenplay), Irene Mecchi (Screenplay)
Starring the Voices of: Kelly Macdonald, Billy Connolly, Emma Thompson, Julie Walters
Length: 93 min
Released: 2012

Brave is one of the newest films by Disney-Pixar animations released over the summer. My nine year old sister, Cheyenne, went to see it with my mother and LOVED it, and told me it was definitely something I should see. When I saw the trailer, I could understand why Cheyenne would like it so much; the main character, Merida, reminded me a lot of her. Her crazy hair even looked just like my sisters (except it was a crazy reddish orange color instead of brown). My mom also told me it was worth watching. Finally, about a month ago, I saw it. 

The opening scene begins with a young Scottish princess, Merida, celebrating her birthday. While her mother (the queen) is very prim and proper and wants Merida to be that way as well, her father is a fun-loving, easy-going king who gives her a bow and arrow. Merida starts playing around with it, and wanders into the woods. She eventually returns to the clearing with her family, but a bear had followed her. The king, known for being the best bear hunter in the nation, takes on the beast, and saves the day. He loses his leg in the process, though. 

The movie then fast forwards to about ten years later. The queen has become much more strict with Merida, wanting her to be the perfect, lady-like princess. Merida, however, has become a skilled archer and wants to live her life the way she chooses. She also now has three brothers, who are complete trouble-makers (her mother doesn't care too much how they act, which makes Merida somewhat jealous). Within a few minutes, the king announces that they will be holding a contest with the three other clans with whom they are allied, and the winner of this contest will be Merida's future husband. The princess chooses for the contest to be one of archery. Two of the boys do terribly, and one, probably by chance, hits the bull's eye. Merida, being the defiant young girl that she is, decided she was not going to have this, and took her bow and arrow to shoot the targets herself. She hits every target perfectly, even splitting the one arrow that hit the target down the middle. 


This act of defiance infuriates her mother to the extent of throwing her bow into a fireplace, to which Merida responds by ripping a family tapestry down the middle so that she and her mother are separated. The princess then takes her horse and runs away. She eventually stumbles upon a witch, and asks for a potion to change her mother in order to change her fate. She gets the potion in the form of a cake, and returns home to give it to her mother. The queen eats it and, at first, nothing happens. But after some time, Merida and her mother are in the queen's room, and all of a sudden the queen turns into a bear. They escape from the castle (not being seen by the king who would kill the bear if he saw it) and set out to find the witch to fix this. They stumble across the witch's house, but she is gone. They find out, though, that they have until sunset the in two days time to change the queen back or she will stay a bear forever. Over the course of the next day, the bond between Merida and her mother eventually begins to heal itself. The queen also begins to become more bear-like; she is much less uptight. Merida figures out that she needs to fix the tapestry in order to save her mother, and once she does, the curse is lifted. 

Ultimately, this was not a typical Disney-Pixar love story; it was about the broken relationship between a girl and her mother. It was an incredibly touching film that told us that, no matter how bad things may seem, family will always be there for you, especially your mother. I can definitely relate to this, as I'm sure just about anyone else can. We've all had our fights and mishaps with our moms, but at the end of the day, my mom is the person I can always go to when I need someone to be there for me. 

University Choir Fall Concert

On November 11, the University Choir, along with the Penn State Altoona Choir, had its annual concert. I am privileged to be a part of this group. As well as the University Choir, I am also a member of a smaller chamber choir called Sine Nomine (which literally means 'without a name'). Both of these groups did an awesome job during the concert. Everyone seemed to be on the ball, which is always a good thing when you're performing in front of an audience. Looking back, I can't think of anything that went horribly wrong to the extent that it sticks out in my head, which is also a great thing.

The only bad thing was the horrible dresses that we had to wear. I got a size six, thinking I'd play it safe. Well, that dress could have fit a whale. It was about four inches too long, and fit like a size ten. So, to fix this, I went to Wal Mart and got hemming tape. I hemmed the bottom up, so it was the right length (and as difficult as that was since there was so much material, I think I did a pretty swell job). Then came the part when I had to take it in without a needle or thread. I tried using safety pins, but you could see them too much. Then I used black Sharpie to try to make them blend in. That didn't work because it rubbed off right away. Finally I ended up using the hemming tape, which looked like glue, and ended up coming undone during the concert. Oh well!

This concert was awesome; there was so much talent and it was a lot of fun! I'm so glad I joined the University Choir, and I can't wait until our next concert.