I leave for the Peach Tree State in under 24 hours and there are way too many feelings going through my body that I cannot possibly describe them all. As I've started packing up my little Iowa life I realize how small I am and how much of the world there is out there and I'm only traveling across a few states. I just can't fathom what life is going to be like in Georgia, but I know I'm excited for it. In the meantime, I hope to shape my experience (at least a little bit) by making a bucket list of things to complete while I'm there. So here are a few of the ones that came to me recently.
1) Take the obligatory "school" picture by either the Bulldog, the Bell, or the Arches. (Or all three!)
2) Complete my "Wreck this Journal." This is a Christmas gift I received from one of my best friends and he wants me to finish it and bring it back so he can see. The entirety of it is absolutely hilarious and I aim to finish it!
3) The Workout regimen...this excites me because everyone back home won't see me for five (maybe more) months, so if I work on running and strengthening my body I could come back a changed person.
4) Buy an owl. Okay, this one needs some explaining. No, I don't mean a real owl. But if you know me personally, I have a strange fascination with these winged creatures, so much in fact, that I have a mini collection of figurines. I would like to find one to represent my time studying at UGA so that I can add it to the mix.
5) Make art and appreciate art. I love art history and that has decided my future of wanting to eventually work in a museum setting. I aim to make things and learn to crochet, knit, etc and also go to museums!
6) Make genuine friends. I cannot, cannot, cannot wait to meet new people! This will not only be a blast, but will truly help me grow as a person. Meeting new people always does. :)
And that concludes your sneak peek! I'll add as more come to mind!
Today is the day that I officially decided to make the switch from my "Cyclone" lanyard to the "Bulldogs" one that has been sitting in my desk drawer, anxiously awaiting this day. I've been cleaning and packing up since last week and decided to start loading my car. I found the lanyard and figured it was the perfect time to switch them out! It seems unreal. Pretty soon Athens is going to be my home!
It's coming down to the wire. I leave for Georgia in TWENTY-FOUR days. That notion gives me a weird sensation that's both wonderful and terrifying, to say the least. I literally have no idea what is going on. I feel that life is moving way too fast, almost beyond my comprehension, but in a good way. I know Georgia is going to be a great experience, but I am starting to get the jitters. It's sinking in that I'm leaving on the 29th of this year. How is this even real? I used to be chatting about Georgia and how God got me here and it would seem so far away, because it was far away, almost like a dream and now it's practically upon me. I can't believe it, really. I'm going to blink and it'll be here tomorrow.
Despite the initial shock, I am beyond excited. This is real, this is happening. I'm going to meet new people, make new friends, go to a new church, be somewhere completely different. It's going to be great, I know it is. I'm there for a purpose, because it certainly wasn't by chance and that IS something that I need to remember. God has gotten me this far and He will continue to work in my life as this new season progresses. I can't wait.
So I know this blog is entitled, "Peachy Keen in Athens, Georgia," but I'm starting to think I can be peachy anywhere in Georgia. And I may or may not have had a geek out, (slightly beyond peachy) moment last night.
My family was downtown exploring Atlanta when we accidentally stumbled upon...take a wild guess...
DID YOU GUESS??
<3 <3 <3
A MAROON 5 and BON JOVI concert, I kid you not. We couldn't see much, a little bit of the large screens and some large white tents, but the sound was phenomenal! It was a private event for Microsoft salespeople, but I was completely content enjoying it from the outside. Both bands were fantastic live and I was impressed with their sound quality. It was a pretty exciting night to say the least.
For our family vacation this year my family decided to travel to Atlanta, Georgia so we would be able to visit The University of Georgia and the Athens area. Today was the official UGA visit and it was a blast! The first stop was the visitor's center where we met two guys who were pretty much the equivalent to ISU Cyclone Aides. Not only were they cute (I can't help it, I'm a girl) but they were a huge help, answering our questions and giving my family restaurant recommendations for lunch. (Thanks Zach and Peter!)
After lunch we got a tour of campus. Even though I felt like a freshman again it was interesting and provided a sufficient look at the huge campus (WAY bigger than ISU). During the tour I got to hear about UGA traditions like the arch (which you don't walk under until you graduate) and the church bell (which is rung when someone has a personal achievement or during a football game win, UGA is all about their football) When the tour finished we found our way to Dawson Hall where I met with Emily Blalock, the Textiles, Merchandising, and Interiors Internship Coordinator/Instructor. We hit it off right away and she talked about her involvement in other countries and her numerous connections. She will definitely be an asset when I start looking for internships at art museums. I wasn't originally supposed to meet Ms. Blalock that day, but it all fell into place perfectly.
As soon as we were finished chatting with Emily we drove to visit the church I plan to attend called Athens Church. The church is fairly large and looks very promising. It's smaller than the one I attend while at school (Cornerstone) but I've watched a few of their sermons online and I'm excited to visit a service. Once we were finished we stopped at the Goodwill (which is right across the street) HOLLA! I'm a thrifter at heart and to know there is a giant Goodwill excites my shopping soul. I ended up buying two dresses, and they're both name brand. It was a great day.
Later we explored historic downtown Athens and ate at Clocked, a local burger joint. Another fact that I learned during the tour was that most of the restaurants in Athens are Mom and Pop places (there are only about 6 chain restaurants in the entire area). Clocked turned out to have one of the best burgers I had ever had. It had some very interesting burgers on the menu, like the peanut butter and bacon burger. My Dad was even adventurous enough to try it, although he wasn't a huge fan like some of the locals. When dinner was over we headed back to Atlanta. All in all it was a great visit. I am even more excited to attend! I know that God is going to do great things and that I'm going to have an extraordinary time!
God is so good and with each new day I realize this more. He has given me a mission and I am so excited to fulfill His plan. I get goosebumps just thinking about how He has been working through me and how He will continue to do so when I spend time next year at UGA. So without further ado here is my crazy awesome God story!
It all started when I was at work in Exam Accommodations. My job entails setting up tests for people who have learning disabilities, trouble taking tests, etc. Well, I was sitting at my desk listening to some worship music on my Pandora radio. It was a particularily slow day so I was just sort of absorbing the music when missions came to mind. Now, I've never been felt led to do missions before or anything of the sort, so it was really out of the blue, but I took it to heart. I grabbed a sticky note and wrote "MISSIONS" in all caps at the top of it and stuck it to the desk. I decided to just pray and meditate on that when suddenly thoughts of "Greece" popped into my thoughts. Now, keep in mind I know of about three Greek people, I don't speak Greek, and at that point in time I couldn't even locate Greece on a map if you wanted me to. I began to pray on this too when about ten minutes later a student walked in and said, "I'm here to take my Greek 101 exam." It had just turned into one of those, "What? Could you repeat that?" moments. As you can imagine I'm thinking this is so bizarre and later that night after work I called my Mom to tell her my story. She was very encouraging and said, "Well, if God really wants you to go somewhere He will give you the signs to point you in the direction you're supposed to go." I agreed. She then asked me what Salt was about. (Salt is one of the Christian college ministries at Iowa State University) Normally I don't know what the message is about but my friend Katie's boyfriend Zach was playing in the band for the first night and he had told us a few days prior what the topic was. I had forgotten until my Mom had brought up the topic, I stopped for a moment and replied to my mom, "Mom, it's Nations night, it's all about missions!" She said, "Well, I guess you're going to go learn something, huh?" and learn I did. That night I was in total awe before God, tears streaming down my face, wanting to go wherever he wanted to send me and I thought it was Greece. The next day I started researching missions trips to Greece (both of the churches I attend were going to places like Africa, China and Turkey), I couldn't find any - most were trips to the Holy Lands, but no specific missions trips. I didn't get discouraged but I just sort of put it to the back of my mind.
In the meantime, I started researching National Student Exchange. I've always wanted to study abroad somewhere and NSE looked like the perfect opportunity. God had also placed Georgia on my heart, I feel like it's the state I'm supposed to reside in after I graduate college, specifically Savannah, but I've never been there. So I figured, since I've never been to Georgia I might as well see if I can study on exchange there. So I began to research and the only school that participates in exchange is the University of Georgia. So I click and check to see if they have my major and they did! I'm an apparel merchandising major so that's not super common in most state schools. I was excited at that point, but I knew I needed some back up schools so I started looking in warm places like Texas and California. I couldn't really find any schools there that interested me and only one had my major, so I decided to go back to mess around on the University of Georgia website. I'm looking at the textiles section and then I found the location. I almost fell out of my chair when I reazlied UGA is in ATHENS, Georgia! That was when it clicked and I'm thinking, You have got to be kidding me.
Right away I started the application process for National Student Exchange and found out that I needed a $225 dollar down fee. Now, remember that I am a poor college student and the sum of that money is two paychecks without buying anything else...pretty impossible to come up with that amount in a quick time. So I started praying, if God really wants me to go He will provide me with enough money to go on the trip. So I waited. In the meantime I walk into a class after coming back from Christmas break to hear that one of my teachers went to University of Georgia and studied there. It just kept coming at me from all sides! I got to talk to her about Athens which psyched me up more. In the meantime I continued to work on my application.
A few weeks ago my Dad called me to ask how much I paid for my books because he was working on taxes. I found the information and gave it to him and then asked him, "Hey, do you need how much I tithed?" He said that he didn't need that yet, but after I got off the phone with him I added it up. I couldn't believe it when I saw the amount...$225.16. There was the amount, again! I knew I wouldn't get all the money back, but it was crazy to see $225 staring back at me. Soon after the money was provided for me, although not in the way I expected! I was about to drive back to school (I had been home due to illness) when I got rear-ended not even out of my own neighborhood. When I got the insurance money $1,100, it was more than enough to cover the cost of my bumper AND pay for the down payment of my exchange. Crazy, right? Well, it keeps going.
When I got to the NSE office to turn in all of my paperwork and payment, Debra, the NSE coordinator looked through my forms and said, "You want to go to Georgia?" I said, "Yes." and she said, "Do you have a second choice?" My eyes widened. "No, should I?" She replied, "Georgia is one of the hardest places to get into." She basically told me it was impossible to get in. In the back of my head I'm thinking, I am supposed to go to UGA for a reason, and one reason only, to follow God's calling. At this point I was nervous, but decided that if God really wanted me there He would make it happen, and if He didn't, then it wouldn't be the right time. Debra told me that I would know within the next week where I would be headed and said, "I can definitely get you into Texas State" (this was the second choice we finally agreed on) but I knew Texas State was not where I belonged.
It was Thursday night (funny how a lot of these things happened on Thursdays now that I think about it) I had come back from dinner and decided to quickly check my e-mail and there it was, "Congratulations, you've been accepted to your first choice in NSE." I was so excited (and still am!) I can't believe it even now, but I knew God could do it and would do it if it was His will. I'm not completely sure what I'll be doing when I get there, but I continue to pray for His guidance. I feel like God will point me in the direction that I need to go when I get there. That night I got to worship God and we sang two of my most favorite worship songs at Salt Company. It could feel his presence and it was amazing. I pray that He will continue to lead me in the way I should go. I'm excited for the journey.
When you read the "About Me" section of the blog you get a small glimpse into the person that I am, but I feel like I should give you more of a background - how I got where I am, what I'm studying, what I plan to do with my time at Univerity of Georgia in Athens, and more! So here's your look into my world.
First and foremost my trip to Athens is God ordained - believe what you wish, it's your choice, but if you want to read why that is I'll post a link to the amazing story that got me to this place. I will say as a disclaimer that Jesus and God are a big part of my life, so there will be some religious aspects to this blog. You can take it or leave it.
Anyways, moving on...I've been researching Athens since I found out it was the place I was meant to go to. When I first walked in to submit my NSE form, Debra Sanborn my National Student Exchange placement advisor pretty much told me that it was impossible to get into University of Georgia. It was the only place I had written down. I started preparing myself for Texas State University (my researched second choice) but when I opened my e-mail stating my placement a week later it said, "Congratulations you've been accepted to your first choice!" I couldn't believe my eyes. It was such an exciting moment. Two of my friends were sitting in my room when I screamed, "Guys! I'm going to Georgia!" The initial excitment of getting to go to the place I so longed to go to is a moment in my life I will never forget.
While I'm in Athens I will continue to study in my major of Apparel Merchandising. I look forward to meeting new people and getting invovled on campus. National Student Exchange is the opportunity of a lifetime and I don't plan on taking it for granted. One of my main goals for this exchange is to find an internship for the summer so I can stay in Georgia and complete one of the necessities essential to earning my degree at Iowa State University. I also have a goal to do well in my academics and raise my GPA further. Some of my fun goals include road trips. Like I've mentioned before I love to travel. One of the things on my bucket list is to visit all 50 states and I've never been to the east coast. Well, wouldn't you know I'm only about 3 hours or less from North Carolina, South Carolina, Tennessee, and Alabama - none of which I've been to. So I plan to visit each of those states. Another fun goal I have is to thrift like no other. I'm a big thrift shopper. I love all things vintage and unique, so I absolutely love to scour small thrift shops for the best bargains and awesome clothing. I'm very excited, I've already found some shops through online research. Another goal is to find a great church where I feel connected and can continue my walk with God. I found an awesome church called Athens Church and I couldn't be more excited to go and pursue Christ!
This is all I have for now, but I can't wait for the time for my arrival to draw near. I still can't believe it! I hope you continue with me on the journey. Over and Out!
When I first learned about National Student Exchange upon coming to Iowa State I knew that it was an opportunity that I didn't want to miss out on. Meeting new people, traveling to new places, taking the world by storm - these are some of the things that I love. I am eager, willing, and itching to get out of Iowa (hey, it's not everyone's slice of pie) (don't worry, I still love Iowa State ). Luckily for me, National Student Exchange is my means to do just that and I couldn't be more excited! This blog is dedicated to documenting my time leading up to and participating in my exchange to University of Georgia for the spring semester of 2013. Although I've been "enjoying my adventure at Iowa State" this time next year I will be in the midst of a new adventure. Hey Athens, ready or not, here I come!
