My first weekend at Simpson

Wow, I can't believe it has only been two days that I have been here at Simpson. It seems like it has been a week already! There has been so much crammed into so little time.

Saturday was Move-In Day for freshmen. The frats and sororities helped us move in- all my family had to do was take in one load per person. We changed the height of my bed, and that was a bit of a trick. We took the bed apart to 'de-loft' it. Once we got that taken care of, I moved in fairly quickly. I have so much storage space and really not that many items to store.

We went down to Walgreens to get some last minute supplies like laundry soap and hearing aid batteries. Then we went to lunch in the cafeteria. The food is okay. Mom and Dad went to the parent orientation meeting while I went to the library, bookstore, and student center. I got my books and they look quite interesting. I have 6 books for 4 classes this semester, but I know I will be keeping 2 of them- a Spanish dictionary and a writing textbook.

After those events, we went to the Welcome Service on the quad. There is a tradition that the first-year students pass through the College Gates, and so I walked through the gate and into the Simpson world.

Mom and Dad left soon after and I went back to my hall. We spent a little time with our CAs (Community Advisors) and met the other people in our halls. One girl said she graduated in a class of six students! Wow. That is tiny. After a little get-to-know you, we went to supper, a picnic outside the cafeteria. The food was good and we met more people.

After supper all the first-years went to the campus theater to see a show called Risque Business. It is about college life and the things that can happen while a person is at college. There were some awkward moments. But it does happen and it could happen. It was a good show, though. Four students (two girls, two guys) played several roles and they were very convincing in each role. Once this show was over we headed back to our dorm floors to process it, and our CA gave us the harassment policy.

Next was the luau party at the chapel. It was a little too chilly for it and I ended up not staying very long. I met two girls who live on my floor, just down the hall a little ways, and we decided to go watch Bones. Not a bad experience and I think these two girls will become my 'girlfriends'. There was also bingo and a midnight breakfast available, but I was tired, so I went to bed.

I got up this morning (Sunday) at 8:00 to go eat breakfast with my LAS (Liberal Arts Seminar). It was awkward because I only knew a few names, but I still tried to pay attention to the group. I can tell now who is a freshman and who has been here before; those who have been here before are a LOT less shy and are more willing to put themselves "out there". I'm still working on that part. :) After the breakfast, we went on a tour of campus and found where our classes are.

Then, we boarded four big charter buses to go to the local Methodist camp. The camp has a ropes course that the LAS groups went on. Our first challenge was "The Raging River", where we had to use teamwork to get from stump to stump "across the river". It took us a long time because we had only three boards to walk on, and we had to move them often. Once we got a system worked out, and started moving more people, we got done faster.

We had to cross a small suspension footbridge across a trickling creek to get to our second challenge, which was a rope swing. This challenge would have been simple but for one twist: we had to get a bucket of water across without spilling it. Humor ensued when one of the boys in the group tried to carry the bucket across between his legs and ended up spilling it all over his shorts. Eventually we got the bucket of water across, and then all the other people went across afterward.

The third and final challenge was a tightrope of sorts. Two ropes were tied in an x above the tightrope cable, and two people, one from each end of the rope, had to go on the tightrope to the other side. The tricky part was in the middle where they switched between the two crossed ropes. I was the first girl to try each challenge, so I am pleased with myself for being brave.

After a late lunch and meeting our LAS professor, we headed back to Simpson. Then I took a shower and tried unsuccessfully to take a nap, because we had free time. Next was supper in the dining hall. I joined a table of girls who are living in the other freshman dorm, and they were quite silly and fun. Several of them left and I joined another table of girls living in the other dorm, and I met the girl who is a relative of some of my church friends. It was strange meeting after having only emailed! However, she seemed pleasant enough. I tagged along with these girls to their dorm and we stood around chit-chatting until the church service to welcome us. This service was outside the chapel. There was a praise band and we sang, listened to Bible readings, prayed, and signed up for religious life community (RLC) things. It was a new experience to have a decent praise band and an outdoor service.

Once the church service was over, I went to "The Stand Around" by the student center. This was an experience similar to prom/after-prom. I was one of the first people in line for the Tropical Sno snow-cones; I was just in time, because a 30-person line formed soon after I got my delicious (free!) strawberry cone. I ended up dancing most of the evening away with the girls I hung out with last night. There were bounce houses and fries for a quarter and prizes for dancing. I saw a guy or three crowd-surfing. Security moved in and gave them a warning to stop crowd-surfing. Apparently it is not very safe. :P Then I came back here to my dorm to try to get ready for bed. My roommate is here with her boyfriend. Now they are leaving to make a Wal-Mart run, and I am ready to climb into my bed.

About my roommate: She is tiny, redheaded, and works at Pizza Hut. She is friendly, open, and a Christian too. I feel fairly comfortable with her already.

Anyway, I need to go to bed now, because it is 11:30 and I have to be up in front of the cafeteria at 7:45 to eat with my LAS again. We are going to be doing a service learning project in Des Moines all morning. More about that later. Off to bed I go!