Reflection and Conclusion

After finishing my 20th post and looking back at the last semester in Writing 150.  I have really enjoyed this class, and I have learned a lot from it.  I am glad our class only had around 20 students in it, because I feel there are a lot more discussions and group work in smaller classes.  As far as blogging, I wasn't excited to hear we would need to be keeping one.  Because I wasn't excited, I slacked off on blogging for quite a while at the beginning of the semester.  However, since I started posting a little more often, I have realized that blogging can almost be like keeping a journal. (Kind of...)  Although I was not excited to start, I have realized that blogging can be fun, and serve a good purpose.  I am going to try to continue my blog in the future.

My First Paper at BYU (I've come a long way)

No two identical people have ever been born at the exact same time in the exact same place.  We are all different.  From the family we were born into, to the place we were born, no two people have perfectly identical backgrounds.  We are born with different traits and we develop different abilities.  We all have different opportunities.  Thus, a completely uniform human society cannot exist and prosper.  There will always be diversity. All people live different lives also, so how could a society become, and stay, equal?  Government should not intervene to attempt to equalize a society because people are inherently unequal. 

            The very core of inequality in human society is at a time that none of us can control: our birth.  This is the very beginning of human diversity.  We all are born with different genes.  This is the main framework from which all inequality exists.  Government does not need to intervene because we all grow up in different societies with different people.  Any attempt by government to make everyone the same means a loss of rights and liberties to someone.  Across the United States of America, everyone deserves fair and equal treatment by the government.  The government should not favor some people over others because of where they are from, or who their parents are.

            Another reason that society is inherently unequal, and reason for which government does not need to overly involve itself, is opportunities and development.  Opportunities and development are, in essence, simply an extension of the previously mentioned reason.  As we grow up, we all face different choices, make different decisions and have different trials.  Here is a short quote from Moroni, written in his abridgement of the Jaredite record:  “… I give unto men weakness that they may be humble…” (Ether 12:27).  

El Salvador del Mundo

            El sábado 13 de noviembre mi papá y yo fuimos al centro para ver una obra de teatro.  La obra se llama El Salvador del Mundo, y monstra la vida de Jesucristo y su nacimiento y resurrección.  Esta obra se encontraba en el centro de conferencias.  Todo el elenco son hispano, y mucho del multitud fueron hispano también.  Mi papá y yo sentía diferente.  Pensé la obra fue un poco aburrido porque no entendido mucho de los conversaciones.  La obra había mucho música, y me gustó la música, pero no entendido la música también.  Una diferencia grande es los nombres del personas son diferentes en ingles y español.  Por ejemplo, en ingles, Jesucristo es Jesus Christ, y su papá se llama José no se llama Joseph.  Su mamá se llama Mariá, pero en ingles se llama Mary.  Las historias de las obras ingles y español son los mismos.  En la obra, Jesucristo nació en un establo.  Él vivió en Jerusalén, y es asesinado cuando tenía treinta y tres años.  Jesús fue resucitado después de tres días en una tumba donde los soldados lo pusieron.

Finals Week

With finals week right around the corner, I think it's fair to say we all have our fair share of studying to do.  This is especially true for me, because I have a much harder time paying attention in some classes than others.  I feel like my hardest final is going to be my world history class.  Not only do I have to get up early for that class, making it hard to stay awake, but the final is at 7:30 a.m., which isn't exactly the time I want to be focusing on taking a test.  As far as my other classes go, I feel more confident, but I still need to put in a lot of time in order to do well.

Looking Back at Freshman Year

As I look back at freshman year, I realize I have learned quite a bit.  One thing I have learned is how to study better.  In high school and earlier, there wasn't too much need to put in a lot of hours studying.  However, I learned quickly at BYU that more time should be put towards studying, and good notes should be taken for ease of studying.  Another thing I learned is how to manage my time a lot better.  With so much that I need to get done, it's important to set a schedule to prioritize and finish everything you need to do.  Those are just a couple lessons I learned my freshman year.

Why is History Important?

            What is history?  This is an age-old question that has many different interpretations.  Is it purely the study of the past?  Is it only what’s important?  Why do we study history in schools?  What does it matter?  Throughout this paper I will discuss what history means to me.  I will describe how I interpret the word history, and why it is important to us.

            So, let’s begin by first defining history.  Many people might tell you that they believe history is the study of the past.  Some might say it is the records from past civilizations.  One observation I would like to make is we can’t be certain what happened long ago because we weren’t there.  Much of what we study is biased by how we may feel, how the text was written, or some other kind of bias we might have.  It is important to realize that all of us have different views of history.  We all have different ideas about what has happened in the past.  Take the creation myths mentioned in class for example.  All of the civilizations since the beginning of time have had different stories and ideas about how the Earth and mankind were created.  From good Gods and Evil gods to multiple gods to giants and demons!  There are all kind of myths that explain the creation.  The Iroquois, for example, believe that the earth was built on the back of a turtle.  While that may sound ridiculous to us, it is their story- their perspective on the past, and therefore is their history.  If they saw our day, they would probably think our creation myths are crazy too!  This brings me to my definition for history, although perhaps more than one are correct, my definition is this:  History is an appreciation of the past.  It is our perspective of the past.

            This brings us to the next question:  Why is history important? Why is it studies in schools?  What does it matter?  One reason I think the past is studied is so we can gain an appreciation for it.  We can look back at our ancestors and founding fathers and be grateful for their contributions, hard work and dedication to making the world what it is now.  This can be looked at from both a gospel and secular standpoint.  Both the Book of Mormon and our records of secular history provide stories of people who have served to make this world what it is now.  By studying the past, we can show gratitude to the people that lived then.  We can be thankful for what they did for us.

            Another reason why history is important is those that aren’t educated are doomed to repeat it.  I know you hear this phrase all the time, but it’s true!  We learn from our mistakes.  If something didn’t work in the past, chances are it isn’t something we should be doing now.  This idea can be thought about at a worldwide, national or even personal level.  It’s important to realize what works and what doesn’t.  The past can play a very important role in teaching us a lesson or two.

            In conclusion, history can have a lot of different definitions.  In my opinion, the word “history” covers our perception of the past.  It covers our appreciation for our ancestors and the others that have gone before us.  It covers our perspective of what we think happened years ago.  Since we can’t say what for sure the people were feeling, or what they did, it is our biased view ideas and understanding of what we read and see.

Infinite and Eternal Sacrifice

            Jesus Christ, the son of God, came to Earth and lived a perfect life.  He served others and taught his message to all he met.  He lived a perfect life for us.  At the end of his mortal ministry, he gave up himself as a sacrifice for all mankind.  He did all of this so we would have the chance to return and live with him again.  The atonement was the only way that we could ever be cleansed from our sins and have a chance to return again.  His infinite and eternal sacrifice allowed all of us to be saved.

            So, what is meant by an infinite and eternal sacrifice?  Let’s start by dissecting the word “infinite”.  One of Webster’s Dictionary’s definitions of infinite is “subject to no limitation or external determination”.  I feel like this does a great job in defining Christ’s sacrifice.  It was infinite.  His atonement covered every person across the whole Earth, and not only that, it covered everyone throughout the whole universe!  The charity Christ showed by bleeding from every pore and suffering all manner of diseases and infirmities truly shows how much he cares for each of us individually.  He knows each of our pains; he has been where we are at.  He can help us if we are willing to repent.  So, Christ’s atonement was infinite in two ways, it covered the entire universe and covered all manner of disease, pain and infirmities.

            Christ’s infinite sacrifice not only covered all those that live on the Earth.  It covered everyone that would ever live, and had ever lived too!  This is what is meant by the “eternal” part of the sacrifice.  Going back to Webster’s Dictionary, we find that “eternal” is defined as “having infinite duration : EVERLASTING”.  Christ gave up his life for everyone that has ever lived.  From Adam and Eve to our present day, everyone can benefit from the atonement if they are willing to repent and become cleansed from their sins.  Everyone has a chance to return to live with Christ, our older brother.  Nobody that receives a body is doomed to a lesser kingdom.

            I am grateful for Christ’s infinite and eternal sacrifice.  We all should be grateful that He would give up his life so we all have the opportunity to return to him.  None of us are perfect, but through the atonement we can be forgiven for our sins.  He suffered blood from every pore for each of us individually.  We should use the atonement to our benefit and repent so we can return to our Older Brother and Heavenly Father.

            Although Son of God, Christ came to Earth as a mortal being.  His condescension was necessary for the Plan of Salvation to work.  In order for all of us to return to our Heavenly Father, there needed to be a savior to satisfy the demands of justice.  The only way that justice could be met, and mercy given, was if we had a mediator- someone who could pay the price of our sins, so we could be cleansed and perfect again.  Christ, although Son of God, descended below all of us.  His Earthly life was full of service and teachings.  He went about performing miracles simply out of pure charity and love.  He knew his purpose and his part of the plan.  Even with what seemed like everyone against him, he continued preaching his doctrine.  Through trial after trial, he stood for what he knew was right.  He never wavered, he knew his mission. 

            There are many things we can learn from Christ’s life.  He came to Earth and gave service to all.  He loved both his friends and enemies alike.  His charity covered all people.  His role was a vital piece of the Great Plan of Happiness, and he knew it.  He knew his purpose.  We need to humble ourselves and repent of our sins so we can return to him again. 

            I have a testimony that Christ came to Earth and lived a perfect life.  His life was a perfect example of how we should strive to live our lives.  If we all could show charity like Christ did, think of how amazing the world would be!  He gave service to everyone simply out of love.  There’s a lesson we can all learn from.  We need to be kind to everyone, regardless of any bad thoughts we may have about them.  I have a testimony of Christ’s infinite and eternal sacrifice.  He died for everyone across the whole universe that has ever lived.  He bled from every pore and suffered everything that we have ever felt before.  He did it so that we can use the atonement to return to live with him again.  I know that Christ knows each of us individually.  He knows our strengths, our weaknesses, our shortcomings.  He knows how we feel, because he has felt it too.  He may not always be there right when you wish he was- but he is never late.  I know that.  I have been incredibly blessed by the atonement in my life.  I have a lot of room to improve my  life to more fully emulate Christ’s, but I am trying to get better every day.  We all have trials and tribulations, but if we turn to Christ in prayer I know we can be comforted.  I am thankful for the atonement so I can have the chance to see my family again past the grave.  I am thankful that families can be together forever.  I am thankful for the Plan of Salvation and the blessings it provides to everyone.  I am thankful for Christ’s example, that he would come to Earth and suffer for each of us individually.  The atonement is the biggest blessing that we can ever receive.  It is because of Christ’s charity towards all of us that we have such great a gift.  I know that Christ lived and died for us.  I am thankful for my Savior.  I am grateful for his infinite and eternal sacrifice.

            

The Powers of Heaven- David A. Bednar

My favorite talk from the April 2012 General Conference was David A. Bednar's address during the priesthood session entitled "The Powers of Heaven".  I'm sorry for those of you that missed it.  I would highly encourage both men and women to go back and read it over, or listen to it.  His address, although priesthood holders are his target audience, has principles and stories that can relate to women too. 
Around the middle of his talk he explains a life experience he had from the time he was a young boy, all the way through his teenage years.  He discusses how his father wasn't a member.  David pleaded with his father multiple times to join the church, but his father always responded by saying he wouldn't join until he knew it was right for him.  Although he wasn't a member, he still helped with scouting and came to church on a regular basis; to the point that many of the members thought he was a member too!  One day David asked his dad the same question, and he got a much different response.  David's dad asked him a question in response, it was:

     “Here is my question. Each week in priesthood meeting I listen to the bishop and the other   priesthood leaders remind, beg, and plead with the men to do their home teaching and to perform their priesthood duties. If your church truly has the restored priesthood of God, why are so many of the men in your church no different about doing their religious duty than the men in my church?”
     While David didn't have a response for his father at that time, his father later joined the church.  David had the opportunity to give both the Aaronic and Melchizedek priesthoods to his dad.   He goes on to urge members of the church to become "examples of righteousness".  He tells us that if we are on the Lord's errand, he will strengthen us.
     Through this story and the rest of his talk, David does a great job in creating pathos in his audience.  When people here his story, often times they relate to at least part of it.  While many of us may not have grown up in a house in which the father wasn't a member, we all can probably think of times that we haven't been perfect "examples of righteousness", or shirked doing our callings or duties.
     Because of his incredible use of pathos through his talks, Elder Bednar is one of my favorite speakers.  I look forward to what he has to say every conference.  I strongly encourage a re-read, or a first read of "The Powers of Heaven".

Key Events and Teachings of 3rd Nephi 11

Key Events:

·         There were a great multitude gathered together around the temple that were marveling and wondering about what had taken place.  (Verse 1)

·         There came a soft, piercing voice out of heaven.  They heard the voice but they didn’t understand it.  (Verses 3 and 4)

·         The third time they heard the voice.  They had to open their ears to hear it.  (Verse 5)

·         Christ descended from heaven wearing a white robe.  (Verse 8)

·         Christ explains to the people who he is.  He is the Light of the World, he took upon him the sins of the world for these people.  (Verse 11)

·         The great multitude fell to the earth before Christ.  (Verse 12)

·         Christ allows the people to feel hisi palms and his sides, to prove that it truly is him.  (Verse 14)

·         The people went forth one by one, each had the chance to see if it truly was Christ.  (Verse 15)

·         The people realize it is Christ, and all worshipped Him.  (Verse 17)

·         Christ calls Nephi to come to him.  (Verse 18)

Key Teachings:

·         Christ gives Nephi and others the power to Baptize.  (Verse 21)

·         Christ tells the people the exact ordinance of baptism, and how it should be done.  (Verses 24-26)

·         Christ points out specifically that Baptism must be done by immersion.  (Verse 26)

·         Christ explains that Him, the Father and the Holy Ghost are one in purpose.  (Verse 27)

·         Christ explains that the spirit of contention is of the devil.  He stirs up the hearts of man to anger and contention.  (Verse 29)

·         Christ explains His doctrine, that whosoever should believe in Him and be baptized shall be saved and inherit the Kingdom of God. (Verse 33)

·         Those who don’t believe in Christ, and aren’t baptized shall be damned.  (Verse 34)

·         The Savior says if we build our foundation on His rock, the gates of Hell won’t prevail against it.  (Verse 39)

·         Those who build on a sandy foundation will be washed away by wind and floods. (Verse 40)

·         We must repent, be baptized and become as a little child to inherit the kingdom of God (Verse 38)

History 201- Pre-Modern Civilizations

Comparing and Contrasting Byzantium with Medieval Western Europe

            When we think about “medieval” times, most of the time we think about Europe.  We think about knights and castles, princesses and dragons.  Although this is the common thought process most people have, most of it is far from the truth.  “Medieval” times weren’t as fantasy-like as they are made out to be.  Also, not all of Europe was the same.  Although Byzantium (Eastern Europe) and Western Europe shared some common elements, for the most part they were vastly different.

            The Byzantine Empire began with the founding of Constantinople by Constantine.   The Empire can be thought of more or less as the post-Roman Empire, however, its language was Greek, along with its culture.  The Byzantine Empire was a Christian state.  World History to 1648, a textbook by Jay Pascal Anglin and William J. Hamblin, explains that the Byzantine Empire was the “political heir to Rome, cultural heir to Greece, and the spiritual heir to Christianity.

            After the collapse of the Roman Empire, the other large piece left was Western Europe.  While Byzantium was Orthodox Christian with a Greek culture, Western Europe was Roman Catholic with a Latin Roman culture.  Unlike the long-lasting Byzantine Empire, Western Europe had economic and population troubles.  This happened because of Germanic raids from the north.  Western Europe crumbled into several Germanic kingdoms. 

While Byzantium lasted much longer than Western Europe, it is important to realize that it too had a collapse.  The emperor Justinian fought his way to the throne despite revolts and unrest from the citizens of Constantinople.  Justinian decided to attempt to regain control of the West.  After conquering North Africa, Italy and Southern Spain, the Byzantine Empire’s conquest reached a halt.  After claiming these territories, raids from the Slavs and Persians resulted in loss of much of the land Byzantium had conquered.  The wars, along with Bubonic Plague left the empire in a state of bankruptcy and decline.  Civil war broke out throughout the empire, and it was reduced to the city of Constantinople and a few other surrounding areas.  However, the following emperor, Heraclius, was able to restore the empire to the boundaries it once had. 

            As you can see, the two sides of Europe had very different histories around the middle Ages.  Byzantium had far surpassed Western Europe in trade and economics, as well as structure and unity. The Byzantine Empire’s unmatched success in economics came because of its position in modern-day Turkey. (Location of Istanbul) Constantinople’s prime positioning made it a trade center for the Silk Road, and a connection between Europe and the rest of the pre-modern world.  Western Europe, unable to trade across the world, had more problems economically.  Western Europe was more independent of other countries, and traded very little outside of Europe.  Both of these sides also had very different Government structures.  The Byzantine Empire was just that- and empire.   This contrasts the political structure of Western Europe, which didn’t really have one.  Western Europe became very divided and spread.  While these two sides had vastly different governments, as well as economic and military success, they did have one thing (sort of) in common:  Religion.  Both Eastern and Western Europe were dominated by Christianity, but different kinds.  Western Europe was Roman Catholic while Byzantium was Eastern Orthodox.  While Western Europe was dominated by Roman culture, Byzantium’s culture was Greek.

            As you can see, the Byzantine Empire was vastly different than Western Europe.  One of the only common links between the two was the religion of Christianity.  The two sides developed very differently culturally, politically, economically and historically.  While Byzantium was a powerful empire, Western Europe was divided into small kingdoms.  The Byzantine Empire’s location made it a prime for trading with the rest of the pre-modern world, while Western Europe was mostly economically independent and less successful.  Eastern Europe was Greek culturally, while Western Europe was Roman because of its predecessor, the Roman Empire.  Despite Byzantium and Medieval Western Europe’s numerous differences, they do share a few common elements.

PWS150 Final Paper

The Truth Behind Soil Erosion

What is one of the most overlooked problems in the world we live in today?   One might say that soil erosion is often overlooked.  The problem of soil erosion has been around for many years now, but is just now starting to be recognized as one of the most important environmental problems that our Earth faces today.

So, what exactly is soil erosion?  Why is it a problem?   Soil erosion can easily be described as the wearing away of the land.  Soil erosion is caused by natural forces such as the flowing of water, rainfall, wind, etc.  So, what can we do to stop this?  You see, soil erosion isn’t limited to natural forces.  Humans accelerate soil erosion by tillage and other activities.  Some other activities may include deforestation, overgrazing and removing crop residue.  These activities degrade the soil and become a threat to it.  Overall, soil erosion is any activity that moves geological matter from one area to another.

Although it may sound harmless, soil erosion, if left unchecked, can become a huge issue on Earth.  As the world’s population increases by tens of millions of people each year, the Earth loses almost 37,000 square miles of available cropland each year due to soil erosion.  With 99.7% of all human food coming from croplands, we can’t afford to be losing such a vast amount of usable land at such a rapid rate.

Action needs to be taken to reduce soil erosion, and it needs to be taken now.  The US is losing soil 10 times faster that the natural replenish rate.  The economic impact of soil erosion in the United States costs the nation about $37.6 billion each year in productivity losses.  The damage caused by soil erosion worldwide is estimated to be $400 billion per year.  With such drastic numbers, we need to act before it is too late.

There’s even more problems.  About 60% of the soil that is washed away ends up in rivers, streams and lakes.  The soil makes these waters more prone to flooding and contamination due to the soil’s fertilizers and pesticides.  Also, soil erosion reduces the soil’s ability to store water and support plant growth.  This reduces the soil’s ability to support biodiversity.  Soil erosion promotes critical losses of water, nutrients, soil organic matter and soil biota, harming forests, rangelands and natural ecosystems.  One final fact is erosion increases the amount of dust carried by the wind.  Not only does this dust pollute the air, it also carries disease organisms that can cause problems for humans, such as anthrax and tuberculosis.

While there aren’t people that are “pro” soil erosion, the issue at hand is whether we need to act to protect our soil.  The two sides to this argument are:

A.        We need to act now, before it’s too late and we can’t grow enough food to support ourselves.

B.        We don’t need to really worry about this, it will work itself out.  We can’t really stop soil erosion without causing food shortage problems, or spending millions, if not billions of dollars.

I think that we need to take solution A.  I feel that soil erosion is going to become an even bigger issue than it is now.  While we may never have to face consequences of soil erosion during our lifetime, maybe our children or our children’s children will.  While it is true that we can’t be sure what will happen in regards to soil erosion in the future, we still need to be safe and take action now.  We don’t want to put ourselves in a situation we can’t fix.

Personal Narrative Final Draft

Wait, where is that?

I was downstairs in my room, probably doing homework or playing a game with my older brother Jake when I heard the same, familiar call I had heard thousands of times before.  My little brother Jordan yelled down the stairs

“Jake, Jason, it’s time for dinner!” we heard from upstairs.

After finishing the problem, I rushed up the stairs with my brother, just like we would any other day.  Everything was shaping up to be another good night filled with very little homework and a lot of fun.  Or so I thought.

We were sitting around the dinner table.  It was quiet... too quiet.  Normally by now my mom or dad would have asked us how school was going, how our basketball or soccer game went, something like that.  Not today though, today we just sat in silence.   We knew something was up, so it came as no surprise to us when my dad wiped off his mouth, then proceeded to give us the news.

 He asked us, “How would you guys feel if we moved?”

 My older brother Jake, younger brother Justin and I knew exactly what this meant.  He didn’t need to word it as a question, the only one of us that took his question literally as a question as my littlest brother, Jordan, being only a first grader at the time.

“Why?” My brothers and I asked nearly simultaneously.

My dad responded, “I got a promotion at work, to be the head of an office in North Dakota.”

Jordan promptly asked, “Dad, how far away is North Dakota from America?”

That gave us all a good laugh, and made the situation a little lighter.  There were several other questions answered that evening, most of which made us less and less excited and more and more scared.  My dad explained to us that we would be leaving during the summer, at the end of this school year.  We would divide the 18 hour drive into 3 days. He went on to say he wasn’t sure how long we’d live there, or if we would be moving back to Utah at all.  There were definitely a lot of things that we didn’t want to hear.

“But what about all my friends here?” Jordan asked.

“You’ll have plenty of time to make new friends when we get there.  You’ll have part of the summer to make friends, and it will be a fresh school year so you won’t have troubles fitting in.” My dad responded.

By this point Jordan was pretty much in tears.  My older brother Jake and I really felt bad for him.  While this would be the first time that any of us had moved, it seemed especially hard for him, being only seven years old at the time. 

After our short interrogation with my parents about the details of the move, the rest of dinner went by relatively quietly.  Nobody really had anything to say.  Nothing we could say seemed to really matter at that point.  My brothers and I were too focused (or maybe frightened is a better word) on the news that our parents had told us.

The final couple months of the school year were weird for me.  You’d think that most people would try to spend as much time as possible with their friends because it was their final chances.  To me, however, it was different.  I didn’t play with friends as much because it almost seemed to me like it didn’t matter.  I knew that at the end of this year, I wasn’t going to be here anyway, so why make relocating harder than it needed to be?

The next thing we knew, the school year was over.  This marked the time that we would start packing up all of our belongings.  What seemed like a very short time later, the whole house had been transformed into endless stacks of boxes.  We spent our last night in Utah eating McDonalds in sleeping bags at our empty house in Sandy.  The next morning we would get up early to start the journey.

We divided our traveling into three days, as previously planned.  It was the most time I have ever had to sit in a car in my entire life.  When we arrived in North Dakota my parents informed us that our home wasn’t done being built yet, and we’d have to spend a few days longer in a hotel.  We did, however get to go look at our house.  That was a really fun experience for me as an eleven year old.  Looking through every room at the house was surprisingly exciting.  We decided which room we would all get, and waited impatiently for the time we could move our stuff in.

            Finally the day arrived; the day when we could finally start moving into our new home.  After spending what seemed like countless days in a hotel, we couldn’t wait to move into our house.  After driving the short distance to our house, we saw the moving truck there too.  It was the same one that was at our house in Sandy.  We started to unload all of our stuff.  The piles of boxes, once again, seemed endless.  However, after we finished unloading the truck, my brothers and I were still excited to begin organizing and setting up our new rooms.  That step didn’t take long.  Before we knew it, each of our rooms was set up to our liking.  I was really excited to be in a new house, with a new environment.  Jake and I had rooms right next to each other in the basement.  We were the two that had bedrooms in the basement, and we felt like we owned it. Jake and I grew up together and have always been best buds.  Although we missed our friends, we were happy in our new place.  It was exciting to have a change-up.

Volleyball

I miss playing high school volleyball. (cue laughter)  My high school's season just started, and I have some old buddies on the team.  Because I only live about 45 minutes away from my high school, I have decided to go down and help the team at their weekend practices.  It is really fun to play again, even though without playing in like a year or so, I am just terrible now.  It's pretty embarrassing.  Having a captain from the year before come help practice, and just doing terrible.  I'm hoping as their season progresses both the team will play better and better, as well as I hopefully can get better again also.  I miss playing in the games with the team though... :(

NCAA Basketball, and The End

After Baylor's victory over Notre Dame in the WNCAA tournament.  College basketball officially comes to a close for the season.  I have mixed feelings about this part of the year.  I am glad to be done with the semester of school, but the finale of college basketball marks the dry season of sports.  (At least for me)  By this I mean, there isn't any college basketball or football for a while.  So for the next few months I have to follow the NBA for my sports fill.  While I don't actually follow women's basketball at all, I have to brag a little and say my brackets for both tournaments did pretty well this year.  I had both Kansas and Kentucky in the finals for my NCAA bracket, with Kentucky winning, as well as Baylor in the WNCAA finals, with them winning.  It feels good to have predicted (guessed) especially well this year.