Joe's blog
Class of 2010, Biomedical Sciences/Pre-Dental Major, from La Crosse, WI

I had an interesting Spring Break, to say the least. I really didn’t do a whole lot besides hang out with friends from home and sleep in, but the weather made for a crazy week. One day it was close to 50 degrees with bright blue skies and I went hiking with my girlfriend, and the very next day La Crosse was getting hit with five inches of snow! Talk about diverse weather conditions...
Before break, I had a lot of stuff going on school-wise. It seemed like each class had some sort of big event planned for that week. However, with the overload of exams, lab practicals and papers, I was able to have a relaxing break with nothing difficult to do when I returned from break. I am happy with the way my hard work in the library has paid off in my classes. It’s very nice to see that the effort you put into classes is rewarded by the grades you receive.
We had our Student Housing Options Program (SHOP) meeting before break, too. It turned out that me and a group of guys got into an eight person house for next year. It’s very convenient because the majority of us are on the soccer team and will be on the same schedules for next year. In the house there is one HUGE room and two regular sized rooms, along with two single-person rooms. Naturally, there is no perfect way to decide who gets the biggest room. A couple guys in the house spent a lot of time making up a scavenger hunt around campus, and my roommate Ryan and I came in a controversial first-place finish. The other parts of the competition include a pool tournament and another event that has yet to be determined. I’ll be sure to keep everyone up to date.
It’s about time to register for next year’s classes so everyone is getting frantic with finding the perfect schedules again. I hopefully have everything worked out with mine, assuming the classes I want are not filled. I plan on taking Limnology, Comparative Vertebrate Analysis, Consciousness and Modern Philosophy – so hopefully all the pieces will fall into place. I hope everyone’s getting excited for next year and is ready for another year to be done! Good luck with all the important decisions that come along with the end of the school year.

Here we are, spring break. All my friends are excited to be going to exotic places like Jamaica, London, Cancun and Florida but I’m just excited to be going home. Last year I headed up north to my friend Ryan’s shack near Mercer, Wisconsin, so I’m not disappointed that I’m missing out on the sunshine. I truly am excited to be getting back to LaCrosse because it’s been a while since I saw my friends and family back home. I suppose I should also mention that both my sister and dad had their birthdays over the past couple weeks so I’ll be able to wish them a happy birthday in person, which is nice. The next time after break that I’ll be home will be after finals and I’ll be playing soccer like crazy.
Classes are still going well. We are learning about really interesting things in all of them, so I can’t complain. It’s hard to concentrate right now with break being just around the corner, but the teachers don’t take to this theory very well. I have two exams Thursday and then I’m home free! I hope everyone is enjoying the last bit of winter

A couple weeks after the start of the classes, most classes begin the horrific process of mid-term exams. It seems like all the exams get piled into one week and when you’re not taking an exam you’re held up in the library studying for the next one. The trick to it is to stay on top of your studies and keep studying your notes every night so when the tests do come around, you’re ahead of the game. I’ve had a quiz in Social Geography and exams in Genetics and Philosophy and all of them went well as far as I’m concerned.
As you may or may not have noticed on the Men’s Soccer website, the team recently acquired a new coach, Mr. Andy Steger. The whole team is really excited to see what he has to offer and all of us are excited for the snow to melt. We have been playing on gymnasium floors and artificial turf indoors for months and it just isn’t the same as a natural grass field. I guess it’s just a form of cabin fever for soccer players. I, being a goalie, am real excited to not have to dive on gym floors anymore. I don’t mind diving, but after a while it starts to get painful.
I would like to extend a warm happy 21st birthday wish to our very own soccer captain, John Cremer. Captain Crunch, as he is affectionately known to the team, was surprised at his house and afterwards we spent the night grilling out and eating cake. It was nice to see that kind of commitment from the team members and just goes to show the respect that John has earned from his compatriots.
Well, I have to get back to studying for my last mid-term in Mammalogy on Friday. Once this week is over, I’ll be home free for another couple weeks until the next wave of exams hits. I know the time to make college decisions is looming and I hope that if you have any questions about anything, you will email me and I’ll do my best to help you out. Good luck!

Weeks have passed since I've last had a blog, but not much has changed around here. I'm still loving waking up at the crack of 10:15 everyday. I never really thought much about it until I realized that they actually stop serving breakfast and put out the lunch menu at the Cafe before I make it there. I have a habit of starting to study late at night, and this presented a problem in the previous semesters because I would lose sleep every night, but now I can study late and still get a full night's rest.
One thing I am looking forward to is being able to take road-trips to visit my friends. My friends are pretty much all within driving distance. A couple go to Madison, a couple friends and my girlfriend go to Minnesota, some go to Marquette and I have friends back in LaCrosse as well. OH! And I have a friend in space....well, not really. My friend Nate got an internship in Cleveland, Ohio with NASA. Yeah, the space NASA. It's kind of a running joke to say that “We wish Nate could be here having a blast, but he's out in space.” ... That might not seem remotely funny to you, but if you knew the guy, you'd laugh.
So besides loving my classes and sleeping in, I haven't been up to anything all that exciting lately. I'm in a rut with snowboarding. I haven't been able to go since the first week back at school and it's killing me. I STILL haven't had an 8:30 tour on Thursday morning, so I don't know if people are scared of me or what... but I'll hold out hope that some reader will schedule a tour at that time and know way too much information about me and my interests. I hope everyone's making it through the long winter and is looking forward to spring and summer! Thanks!

So second semester is finally here! After a nice long break, I’m ready to hit the books again with four brand new classes. I’m taking Mammalogy, Genetics, Intro to Philosophy and Social Geography now and I’m real excited about all of them. I feel like it’s the first time I get to choose more classes I want to take and less classes that I have to take. I purposely arranged my schedule to have later-starting classes so I get to sleep in a bit more than I’m used to. It’s pretty funny to wake up and have all of my roommates at class because I’m usually the one with the 8 AM time slot. I can already tell that I am a lot more awake in class and more motivated during the day. Basically, it’s already looking like I made a good decision.
It’s always nice to come back after not seeing my friends from school and to be on my own once again. Although I could never spend too much time with my friends at home, it’s actually pretty weird not to be able to walk a couple yards down the hall and be with a bunch of friends at any time. Also, I find it pretty exciting to come back to the playoffs of the Intramural Dodgeball season. The season is coming to and end and it’s down to the elimination rounds. The team I’m on is undefeated thus far and I want to win it all this year and be an intramural champion for the first time since high school.
Although it’s only the first week of the new semester, I have a good feeling about my new classes and schedule. I feel recharged from the break and like I’m starting fresh and new with the New Year. The tours are starting to become more plentiful in the admissions office, which means I may see some of you at 8:30 AM if you are scheduled at that time. Good luck with making all the important college decisions and don’t be afraid to ask questions or schedule a visit! I’ll talk to everyone soon,

Joe