Field Trip

For class on Wednesday, we took a field trip to go see the movie Ana's Playground being filmed. This is the same film that I have interned for a couple times, so it was definitely a unique experience seeing it from my perspective.

I don't think people know how much work goes into making a movie... You know those barriers that you barely see of in the distance of that 10 second action shot? Yeah, that took me 3 hours to paint... (see what I mean?)

The was another thing I noticed while I watched them film a couple scenes... It looks extremely fake.... Yeah, when all the editing and post-production is all done, the movie may look like it came right out of a scene in the middle of a warzone... but, while we were watching the filming process, there were about 50 people standing behind the camera and watching everything that took place. It kinda makes you appreciate the work that the actors do.. how can an actor act something out with so much emotion while 50 people are watching every single move.

Anyway... Later that night I went to the downtown Target with Katie. She needed to get some groceries for her trip to Georgia. The Augsburg CSA (Coalition for Student Activism) is bringing students down to Georgia to protest the School of Americas (which now has a different name... not sure what it is). Thanks to Augsburg Day Student Government, the cost of the trip is only 5 dollars per student. That's right.. wanna go to Georgia? Well, then pay 5 dollars.

I really wanted to go, but I had my honors play and I couldnt skip that... Anyway, we went downtown to the Target, and since it was so cold we took the skyways... and got lost. We walked from the lightrail to Target in the skyway, got there, bought our groceries... then we started to walk back to the lightrail, somehow went in a circle, and ended up back at Target. It was frustrating. And i missed the new episode of the Office.

But that's what the internet is for.

Title and Registration

Tuesday was registration for next semester's classes... which meant that basically every First Year student was sitting at their computer and counting down the minutes until 5:00 pm.

First Years were the last to register, so I was pretty nervous when I saw that some of the classes I wanted were already half full (or half empty???).

Each student is given an adviser to help them through the registration process. I was pretty confused at first, mostly because I wasn't sure which college credits from high school transferred into which classes.

And then it came down to picking classes... I was kind of disappointed that I did not get to take any film classes next semester. My film professor suggested that I wait to take my production classes so I can take them with fellow First Years... mostly because I will be more comfortable taking them with the same people for the rest of the film classes. Either way, I'm already ahead of the other film majors in my grade anyway because I had so many english credits transfer.

So I decided to take the required business classes for a business major.

I'm almost 100 percent confident that I will double major in film and then business. I'm not quiet sure what kind of emphasis I will have on my business major though... Either Business Administration or a combined major in Business and Economics.

So here's my schedule for next year (I luckily got all the classes that I wanted):

Principals of Marketing
Honors: Science, Technology, and Citizenship
Honors: Liberating Letters, the Humanist Tradition
Principals of Microeconomics

I'm really not looking forward to that Science class, however... I hate science.

To be, or not to be?

At this very second, I am sitting backstage for the Honors Play 2008.

I am nervous.

After 2 months of writing, directing, practicing, gathering props, etc. the night to show off our play is here.

I am nervous.

This has been one of my favorite experiences here at Augsburg so far. I've grown so close to all the other honor students as we've put this play together. It's been stressful.. It's been fun.. I'm excited.

And nervous.

I've never been nervous in front of crowds before, but this is different. We've put a lot of work into this play.

And it's 7:05.. the play is starting.

I'll let u know how it goes :)

Meet the Parents

I woke up at 8 in the morning on Sunday... Tragic, I know.

And it was all because I am a nice boyfriend and decided to go with Katie to her relatives house for their early Thanksgiving... which happened to be all the way in Moorehead.

I guess it was a good thing though. I got about 100 pages of reading done for Scholar Citizen.. which was very good. I probably would have waited until 10 o'clock that night to do the readings if I didn't have the car ride to do it. I even got a little bit of a nap in there. So it was all good.

And then, the moment finally came for me to met Katie's family. I already had met her mom before, so I wasn't really worried about that. Maybe just slightly nervous about making a good impression to her grandma and her other relatives... So I was expecting a nice little get together, some small chatting over lunch, watching the football game in the living room, etc...

That was until Katie's aunt gathered the entire family up in the kitchen and Katie had to formally introduce me to everyone. Here I am, in the middle of the kitchen, surrounded by her entire family as they stare at me and measure me up... I felt like I was being judged. I felt like a dog at a dog show... Yes, that's the best comparison I could think of...Yes, I am slightly exaggerating... but yes, it was still a slightly terrifying experience...

After an excellent home-cooked meal that I had been looking forward to all week, it was time to watch the Vikings game. During the entire meal and the chit-chat that happened afterwards, I had been thinking about that game... I was cringing over the fact that I did not know the score (how could there not have been a single vikings fan in her entire family?!?). Luckily, perhaps by chance, one of her uncles turned on the TV, exclaimed "OH.. the Vikings game..." and I was relieved...

That was until we fumbled a kick return that basically lost us the game....

And then the Bucs missed a field goal that would have gaurenteed them a victory....

And then we failed miserably at our last-ditch efforts to make a drive down the field. And we lost... of course.

I wanted to scream... I wanted to cry....

But then that wouldn't have looked very good in front of her relatives.

So instead, i decided to bottle up all my emotions no matter how painful that might be....

Hey Jealousy.

So I spent most of my day Saturday in freezing temperature and 20 mph winds.... Why you might ask?

Well... Remember that film internship? Yeah... I helped Set-Dress the set for 6 hours. It involved carrying fake barriers and then setting them up to look like those cement barriers used in war zones. Oh, and did I mention that I forgot to bring gloves? I felt like my fingers were going to fall off... Until a merciful man let me borrow his gloves... Which didn't happen until AFTER I cut my thumb between two of the boards... Yeah, it wasn't exactly a glamorous day.

But it was a great experience... I was amazed at how the set was set up. It didn't look like much. Just a fountain here, a wall here, some pillars over there... But with a little movie magic, BOOM... I couldn't help imagining how I would shoot a particular scene a certain way, and all that jazz...

And then, the director came to the set... I was so jealous watching him walk around and talk with the director of photography about how they were going to shoot the scenes. I was sooo jealous. I wanted to be in his shoes, and not lifting plywood boards... You gotta start somewhere though, i guess.

If your interested in the film, it's called Ana's Playground. Check out the website here:
http://anasplayground.com/

And so that was my Saturday... I got back to campus around 6:30, which felt like 10 at night because it gets dark so early... And then i did absolutely nothing. I was exhausted and tired, and wanted to sleep... So Andy and I watched Superbad instead.

Down and Out

I just (most likely) failed my Spanish test.... So I went to Cooper's and bought a Mocha Auggie to drink away my sorrows....

I actually studied for this one too... I studied last night and I studied for a solid hour and a half before class.... It feels pretty crappy.

I think I'm going to blame the fact that I got absolutely no sleep last night.

First of all, Nathaniel was watching TV until 1:30 in the morning... Finally, he falls asleep... Luckily, I brought ear plugs with me to college (a necessity considering Nathaniel's snoring can be heard from the opposite side of the hallway), however, the radiator in my room sucks.

We did not even have the heater on last night, yet it makes the most terrible noise ever. Imagine someone hitting a metal bowl with a metal spoon next to your ear every 11 seconds. Combine that with Nathaniel's snoring and you have a full-piece band.

Considering this was one of the worst days I've had in a long time, my weekend has officially began. Hopefully things will start to look up.

Temple Israel

Today for my Augsem we went and visited Temple Israel in Southern Minneapolis.

Until I got to Augsburg, I had never met a Jewish person. Ever. That was until I met Dan, a kid from Plymouth who lives on my floor.

And then today, we went and visited the Temple. It was definitely a great experience. Temple Israel is a Reform Jewish Temple. Reform Judaism is a form of Judaism that is a relativily modern, middle of the spectrum sect of Judaism. Rabbi Saks gave us a tour of the Temple, explained the foundations of Judaism, and then answered some questions.

After today and last week's tour of the Mosque, I've come to realize that the great three monotheistic religions are more similar than one might think...

All three follow the Old Testament.
According to Islam, Moses, Abraham, Jesus, and Noah (along with many other Old Testament characters) are all important.
All three are peaceful, loving religions that value social justice.
And there are many many more similarities.

But I've got a lot of homework to do... And I have an intermural Volleyball game tonight at 10:30.