I went to a Converge Retreat with McKernan Baptist Church Jan. 12-14. It was the most fun weekend I've had in a very long time. It was an entire weekend about honoring, and worshiping God. I wished it lasted longer. I loved the worship times, the speakers, the free time, my roommates, and especially the food. This is kind of a mix between event and spiritual.
The retreat was located at Camp Caroline. I carpooled with two of the nicest young ladies every, Rachael and Karlina. The introduced me to Peters, which is a smoothie restaurant. The smoothies were amazing and the variety is infinite. I chose mango, butterscotch and mint. I loved it. The first thing I realized is that I could actually see the stars. It's something so simple but because of the city lights, it's been impossible to see them so clearly. It really shows God's wonderful creation. I got to know Karlina and Rachael really well. I guess that's what happens when you are in a car for 2.5hrs. I learned both of them like partner dancing. They've done rumba. waltz, cha cha, and two step before. It was so fascinating. I learned that both of them are musical. Rachael sings with the worship team at church. They are from out of Edmonton. We got to Camp Caroline, there was some confusion about cabins and rooms. Jess was in the nicer cabins with Luisa, Maria, and another girl. I ended up in a different room than them. Strangely enough I ended up in a room with Sabrina, one of my childhood friends, Susan, Michael, and some other girls I had just met earlier when arranging rides. I really got to meet new people during this retreat. I met Daniel, the cello player in worship team. Kevin brought a bunch of board games. I met Sabrina's boyfriend. I think his name is Stephen but I decided to name his Ben. I guess it's because Julia and Sarah's boyfriends are both named Ben :P. The first night was just worship and dessert and sleep. Day 2 had worship, two break-out sessions, lunch, free time, dinner, more worship, and bed. I went to a session called God's will for my life and Boundaries. I liked the former better than the latter. I learned that it doesn't matter which way I might deter from God's will, every plan is Plan A. On Day 2, during my break I tried to study Finance for a quiz on Sunday. I gave up after 1.5hrs. I decided to give volleyball a try. Never played before but I guess why not. Now that I've tried it, I don't regret it. It was an interesting experience, painful experience, but experience all the same. I played on the team where everyone was experts. I was the only newbie. I've never played volleyball before. I know the rules because of Haikyuu but that's about it. The good thing was that everyone covered for me cause I suck. The bad thing was that no on could save in serving. The first couple times, I was short of the net and barely made half the court. As the game progressed, I started at least hitting the net. My team sometimes cheated and pulled the net down so the ball would go over :P. By the end, I could usually get it over the net, not every time, but generally I could get it over. The result of my experience, very red arms and later purple spots and bruises. Given the opportunity I'd definitely try it again. Next time however, someone please teach me. I would definitely be open to learning. The most amazing part about Day 2 was that after singing the songs, they just simply played music and we could worship God however we wanted. It was amazing to see just how many different ways people can worship God. Some pray at the cross, other people paint, some people pray with others, others sing, I folded origami. Inside I wrote everything that was on my mind. My regrets, my pains, my sins I wanted to leave at the cross. I opened it and laid it before the cross. I wanted it to symbolize that I'm leaving my sins, worries, regrets at the cross, and I will grow. New life will grow from that. With letting go, I can be renewed and bloom again. I asked Pastor Daunavan to pray with me. I revealed to him some of the things that have been plaguing the inner thoughts of my heart. It was so nice to be set free. It doesn't mean I told him everything, just what I had thought of a lot of during the fall semester. Day 2 ended with some board games, apples to apples, coding game, and dutch blitz. Jess and I went to the hot tub. I went to bed at 3:00AM. I was trying to finish my journal. I met some new people like Kevin, who actually brought all the board games. I got to meet Stephanie who braided my hair. It almost felt like I had an older sister, The trip ended with a moment of reflection, packing and I came home back again with Karlina and Rachael. I ended up sleeping in the car. I finished my finance quiz when I got home. Overall, I loved it. P.S. I will never forget Jess and her guy hunting.
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Today is like Christmas to school bookstores. All the products arranged nicely on shelves and row for students to find when the store opens at 9:00AM. On the other hand, students are battling to find their proper textbook, recommended by their Prof, to guarantee the A+ GPA at the end of the semester. Let the textbook war begin.
Much of the war actually isn't battled on the physical front, with students standing in the trenches to get to the cash register. No the most aggravating battle is held behind the scenes. It's the battle of the price bargains, the adequate amount of time for the exchange, the quality of product. No, this is the secret battle. As a 5th year student having studied at UofA and NAIT. I'm fairly immersed in the ways of the secret battle. It's a battle of superior cunning and marketing skills, used and orchestrated by students. On the surface, bookstores may be offering your textbooks for $100-$300. The smell of new textbooks, quality paper, unopened pages may be enticing to many but veterans of the battle know better. On a much quieter front, students are placing orders for high quality merchandise for a far greater cost. Sometimes it can be even more than half the original price. A $200 new textbook could be yours for $90. Obviously UofA and NAIT have ways to combat their foes by placing regulations of profs saying that they must indicate a textbook or upgrading the edition of the book every 2-3 years. But most students would take the risk if it could save them a few $100's. Average each textbook costs $100. A regular full time student takes 5 classes (5*100 = $500) Tuition for the classes ($6,500 + $500 = $7000) Living expenses for rent and utilities ($700/month + $7000 = $7,700) Food expenses ($150 + $7,700 = $7,850) This is the bare minimum possibly of expenses. You can see very quickly why students resort to cheaper alternatives. So though using Facebook chats to make deals may be a bit risky at times, maybe the cause is worth it. |
Jane HaoHi. I'm Jane and I'm a recent graduate. I wanted to record some fun events and memories on my blog. Archives
April 2020
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