"Oika" is part of my 40+ Greek vocabulary words that I have to have down by TOMORROW. It means "house." I'm trying to think of things that remind me of each word, so oika gets Peristroika. It works better with other ones, such as "anthropos" (meaning human being- differentiating between humans and gods), and "anthropology."
Greek is a little ridiculous, and in fact I shouldn't even be on here right now but I need a break.
Classes are going pretty well, and so is work. I think I'm getting my own office! How cool is that? With a name plate and everything. I'm so excited. I submitted my first proof yesterday, with "Hannah Jones, Editor" in it. Oh, so fun. And they are even ordering me a graphics tablet... wow (I've been bringing mine because I do some of the illustrations)!
So far I have been up to my eyeballs in work, and right now I'm going off of 4 1/2 hours of sleep, the norm so far. Yay me.
On a more positive note, I LOVE seeing friends and people I know randomly around campus. Today I saw Kelly (an old high school band bud), Amber (an even older bud from JH), Becca (from Hebrew last year!) and made friends with one of my co- workers who is also an undergrad (he's going to be an engineer). And all of these people were happy to see me!
I am also the newest member of Sigma Alpha Lambda, another honors organization. And I'm adding to the Undergrad Student Colloquia series I'm in charge of this semester- now, professors will have their own lecture series. :)
Life is hard, but it is good. And it will all be worth it in two years when I walk across the stage or more likely field and pick up my two hard- earned degrees and certificate. :)
Thursday, August 26, 2010
Wednesday, August 18, 2010
Summer Goals Update!
So, how did those summer goals go?
I found a job working as an assistant for someone at the beginning of the summer. Score! So that took care of the employment part... plus, I got hired by ASU as a writer/ editor for an ASU publication, so Double Score!! Today was my last day of summer, first day of grown- up job. :)
As far as losing weight, I have not lost as much as I wanted to, but it's ok. The point is that it's slowly coming off, and it took a while to put it on so it makes sense that it will take a while to get it off. But I'm happy with the progress.
Organizing= Success! I moved a bunch of books to the guest room, and went through all of my school papers. All of my other stuff is organized now, too.
Drawing/ Painting... eh. I did do some drawing, but hardly any painting.
My quilt? Not finished surprise surprise, but I have done a lot. Quilts are so expensive, and I'm sure if I had the money it would be done now, but oh well. It isn't a race, and what matters is how it turns out.
Cooking? I bought myself a Magic Bullet, and LOVE IT. I have made so many smoothies with it, as well as home made pesto and different pasta sauces. My grandma even bought me my own basil plant so I can have as much pesto as I want. Wasn't that sweet of her? My mom went to Minnesota for two weeks, and I cooked while she was gone. I loved it! And my dad & brother did too (not that they weren't happy when mom came back, but hey they liked what I made). :)
A far as guitar goes, I DID learn more!!! I can now play a few songs and I'm learning more.
And I did read my books ahead of time! Yay. I also bought a tablet for my Mac, and figured out how to make my own flashcards with it!! Hebrew and Greek don't have very usable fonts to make flashcards with, so now I can draw my own (as well as draw whatever else I want to!).
This summer was great. I hope next summer is at least as good!
I found a job working as an assistant for someone at the beginning of the summer. Score! So that took care of the employment part... plus, I got hired by ASU as a writer/ editor for an ASU publication, so Double Score!! Today was my last day of summer, first day of grown- up job. :)
As far as losing weight, I have not lost as much as I wanted to, but it's ok. The point is that it's slowly coming off, and it took a while to put it on so it makes sense that it will take a while to get it off. But I'm happy with the progress.
Organizing= Success! I moved a bunch of books to the guest room, and went through all of my school papers. All of my other stuff is organized now, too.
Drawing/ Painting... eh. I did do some drawing, but hardly any painting.
My quilt? Not finished surprise surprise, but I have done a lot. Quilts are so expensive, and I'm sure if I had the money it would be done now, but oh well. It isn't a race, and what matters is how it turns out.
Cooking? I bought myself a Magic Bullet, and LOVE IT. I have made so many smoothies with it, as well as home made pesto and different pasta sauces. My grandma even bought me my own basil plant so I can have as much pesto as I want. Wasn't that sweet of her? My mom went to Minnesota for two weeks, and I cooked while she was gone. I loved it! And my dad & brother did too (not that they weren't happy when mom came back, but hey they liked what I made). :)
A far as guitar goes, I DID learn more!!! I can now play a few songs and I'm learning more.
And I did read my books ahead of time! Yay. I also bought a tablet for my Mac, and figured out how to make my own flashcards with it!! Hebrew and Greek don't have very usable fonts to make flashcards with, so now I can draw my own (as well as draw whatever else I want to!).
This summer was great. I hope next summer is at least as good!
Wednesday, August 11, 2010
Job Update!
I have some exciting news!! I landed my first real career job as a writer!!!! I will now be working for ASU, under the Vice Provost of Mathematics as a writer/ assistant. I am so happy with this, because it is the first step to becoming a technical writer, and because the job counts towards my writing minor (that equals one class I don't have to take!!!!).... and, as an added bonus, I get to work with my brother's Prime the Pipeline project at the Polytechnic campus! How awesome is that?!
Just wanted to share.
-HJ
Just wanted to share.
-HJ
Thursday, August 5, 2010
Question & Answer
A couple of weeks ago, I was asked an odd question by someone who doesn't know me very well. He asked me, flat out, "Are you happy with your life, and where you are right now?"
And I thought about it for a while.
Eventually I smiled, and answered truthfully, "Yes, yes I am."
He gave me this funny look, and said, "Well how did you manage that?" and I replied, "Well, a lot of prayer."
"No, really- I pray a lot too, but how did you get there?!"
"Um, really, a lot of prayer."
It was the beginning of a Priceless conversation.
But you know what, I was honest with him. I really am very happy and content with my life right now, and I know that is a direct result of praying and taking care of my relationship with Christ.
That is the key to happiness and fulfillment- that long- term contentment people crave.
Let me explain what I mean.
Many people think that you have to work to get to heaven, but this is not the case. Ephesians 2:8-9 says, "For it is by grace you have been saved through faith, and this is not of yourselves; it is a gift of God, lest anyone should boast." There are MANY other verses that back this up, but this one states my point very well. Rather than works, we acknowledge that Christ came to earth in the form of a man, that he died for our sins, was buried, and rose again. He took the punishment for all of our sins, past and present, and all we have to do to secure that our future will be in heaven with Him is to acknowledge what He did, and invite Him into our hearts.
Something amazing happens when we do that.
There are three parts to man: a physical body; a soul which encompasses our mind, emotions, and will; and then we have this third part of us called a Spirit. When we invite Christ in, our Spirit is where His Spirit (the Holy Spirit) comes in and takes residence. Here's a diagram I drew to illustrate. In olive green are the Greek words for these found in the New Testament so you don't think I'm just making this up.
Ok, so Christ takes up residence in our Spirits. Now, there are 2 parts to being a Christian. The first part we already covered- asking Christ into our lives. That's the easy part. The second, however, is much more difficult and is a continuous process.
The second part of being a Christian is allowing Christ to change us from the inside out. If we let Him, He changes us into different people that exhibit His characteristics (this is what is meant when people talk about becoming "Christ- like"). It works like this:
He changes our mind, emotions, and will from the inside out. It's amazing, but it's a choice. We have to let Him- He won't do it without our permission and active involvement. This is what the Christian Life is all about- this process of changing our very nature into His; of allowing Him to come in and clean up. Out of this stems our works, our habits, our everything- purpose in life, figuring out our calling, how to serve those in need- everything stems from this process. In my life, this is not a result of my "working and trying harder," but rather a result of listening to God's voice nudging me into a new way of being; of letting Him take over every area of my life.
This is what my life is about. I've surrendered to this process. And you know what? IT IS AWESOME. Painful, full of tons of learning experiences, but nevertheless awesome. And it is the sole reason that my life is so good- I really can't take much credit for it on my own. This is why I answered the way I answered that question, The Question of Questions: "Are you happy with your life, and where you're at?"
Thank God, yes! :)
Just some thoughts from my heart (and years and years of study and personal experience),
-Hannah
And I thought about it for a while.
Eventually I smiled, and answered truthfully, "Yes, yes I am."
He gave me this funny look, and said, "Well how did you manage that?" and I replied, "Well, a lot of prayer."
"No, really- I pray a lot too, but how did you get there?!"
"Um, really, a lot of prayer."
It was the beginning of a Priceless conversation.
But you know what, I was honest with him. I really am very happy and content with my life right now, and I know that is a direct result of praying and taking care of my relationship with Christ.
That is the key to happiness and fulfillment- that long- term contentment people crave.
Let me explain what I mean.
Many people think that you have to work to get to heaven, but this is not the case. Ephesians 2:8-9 says, "For it is by grace you have been saved through faith, and this is not of yourselves; it is a gift of God, lest anyone should boast." There are MANY other verses that back this up, but this one states my point very well. Rather than works, we acknowledge that Christ came to earth in the form of a man, that he died for our sins, was buried, and rose again. He took the punishment for all of our sins, past and present, and all we have to do to secure that our future will be in heaven with Him is to acknowledge what He did, and invite Him into our hearts.
Something amazing happens when we do that.
There are three parts to man: a physical body; a soul which encompasses our mind, emotions, and will; and then we have this third part of us called a Spirit. When we invite Christ in, our Spirit is where His Spirit (the Holy Spirit) comes in and takes residence. Here's a diagram I drew to illustrate. In olive green are the Greek words for these found in the New Testament so you don't think I'm just making this up.
Ok, so Christ takes up residence in our Spirits. Now, there are 2 parts to being a Christian. The first part we already covered- asking Christ into our lives. That's the easy part. The second, however, is much more difficult and is a continuous process.
The second part of being a Christian is allowing Christ to change us from the inside out. If we let Him, He changes us into different people that exhibit His characteristics (this is what is meant when people talk about becoming "Christ- like"). It works like this:
He changes our mind, emotions, and will from the inside out. It's amazing, but it's a choice. We have to let Him- He won't do it without our permission and active involvement. This is what the Christian Life is all about- this process of changing our very nature into His; of allowing Him to come in and clean up. Out of this stems our works, our habits, our everything- purpose in life, figuring out our calling, how to serve those in need- everything stems from this process. In my life, this is not a result of my "working and trying harder," but rather a result of listening to God's voice nudging me into a new way of being; of letting Him take over every area of my life.
This is what my life is about. I've surrendered to this process. And you know what? IT IS AWESOME. Painful, full of tons of learning experiences, but nevertheless awesome. And it is the sole reason that my life is so good- I really can't take much credit for it on my own. This is why I answered the way I answered that question, The Question of Questions: "Are you happy with your life, and where you're at?"
Thank God, yes! :)
Just some thoughts from my heart (and years and years of study and personal experience),
-Hannah
Tuesday, August 3, 2010
August
Why, school- why are you only TWO WEEKS AWAY?
I need more summer. I don't want more summer, I need it. I have spent a good deal of it reading school books, making a TON of flashcards... I even have my own flashcard page on a flashcard- making website. My brain could really use more of a break, seriously.
On a more positive note, I rock... I got all the textbooks I need for next semester for $45!! Yep. Of course, it helped that I already had one that I need for a Classics class; you know how I know I'm a nerd?! I bought the book about a year ago, on my own, because I thought it looked cool. Apparently so does one of my proffs... that's like the ultimate nerd test. You buy textbooks before you know they're textbooks! Well, yay, one less book I have to buy right?
Also, I am making great progress on my adorable owl quilt.
This photo really does not do it justice, but it'll work for now. I still need to add leaves on the branches, and a few more little owls, and then I have to sew everything on right, stuff it, and finish it. But hey! I'm mostly there!
**This is my ORIGINAL work, and I'm copyrighting it. You won't find a pattern for it anywhere else, because I completely made it up. So don't take it or claim it as your own- you'll regret it.**
And, today was a great day. I went to lunch with my mom and a bunch of other awesome moms from Trinity, and I got to work from my computer there too! It was like work, and socializing, and there was pizza, and all around awesome company. It's a weekly summer tradition we all have, and growing up with it I guess I love it, and am sad that we only have one more "Pizza Tuesday" left this summer. Sad!! But it made me appreciate today even more. :)
Aaaand on a final note, I just finished watching this little cutie again, and I caught this funny behavior on my phone... it turns out the dog is a great hamster watcher!
Well, summer is almost over, so I'll have to post my follow- up to my Summer Goals! Hmm... :)
I need more summer. I don't want more summer, I need it. I have spent a good deal of it reading school books, making a TON of flashcards... I even have my own flashcard page on a flashcard- making website. My brain could really use more of a break, seriously.
On a more positive note, I rock... I got all the textbooks I need for next semester for $45!! Yep. Of course, it helped that I already had one that I need for a Classics class; you know how I know I'm a nerd?! I bought the book about a year ago, on my own, because I thought it looked cool. Apparently so does one of my proffs... that's like the ultimate nerd test. You buy textbooks before you know they're textbooks! Well, yay, one less book I have to buy right?
Also, I am making great progress on my adorable owl quilt.
This photo really does not do it justice, but it'll work for now. I still need to add leaves on the branches, and a few more little owls, and then I have to sew everything on right, stuff it, and finish it. But hey! I'm mostly there!
**This is my ORIGINAL work, and I'm copyrighting it. You won't find a pattern for it anywhere else, because I completely made it up. So don't take it or claim it as your own- you'll regret it.**
And, today was a great day. I went to lunch with my mom and a bunch of other awesome moms from Trinity, and I got to work from my computer there too! It was like work, and socializing, and there was pizza, and all around awesome company. It's a weekly summer tradition we all have, and growing up with it I guess I love it, and am sad that we only have one more "Pizza Tuesday" left this summer. Sad!! But it made me appreciate today even more. :)
Aaaand on a final note, I just finished watching this little cutie again, and I caught this funny behavior on my phone... it turns out the dog is a great hamster watcher!
Well, summer is almost over, so I'll have to post my follow- up to my Summer Goals! Hmm... :)
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