Merry Commercialized Christmas!

I've been thinking about the whole idea behind gift giving on Christmas for the past several days and am now fed up with the idea. Here's why:

What is Christmas all about? Originally it was the birth of Christ... but now, with the existence of Santa and his "naughty or nice" list, kids get presents on Christmas. Right.

But we're adults now...

Okay, someone wants something for Christmas, right? I figure, if they want it, they should just go out and get it themselves!

If you want to give a gift, give to those who can't afford to live the lives we have. Give to those less fortunate!

That said, I'm quite tempted to tell my family next year not to get me anything and if they REALLY want to get something for me, help out at a homeless shelter or a food bank.

I know this blog isn't very well constructed and for that, I do apologize. However, I'm must ask: what do you guys think about this? Is it something you'd consider? I'm interested to hear your thoughts.

That said, Happy Holidays to all of you out there and a Happy New Year, too!

Take Care,
Nick

Semester 1 = History

Wow.

That's it?

Finals showed up and before I knew it, they were over. And now I have a break. A 1 month break.

So how does this feel? Honestly, it's completely throwing me off. I miss school. On Monday, I felt really bad that I wasn't in class continuing to learn about things. It feels weird.

On Tuesday, the day of my last final, I stayed up until darn near 4AM playing video games and searching the Internet because I knew I had nothing to do the following day. That was my "party" day. Yay for parties.

So what am I to do? I have a full month of nothing. The job market in my town SUCKS, so that pretty much rules out finding a job. I do volunteer at the Carlinville Chamber of Commerce, helping out with odds and ends, which is good.

And then there's Christmas, which is another blog altogether.

For those of us first time freshmen, there's only 7 more semesters to go and we're DONE! I have a feeling it's going to go by faster than we think. Take your time and try to enjoy college. It'll be over before you know it.

I'm gonna go continue writing my screenplay. Or maybe I'll design another floorplan. Or maybe I'll...

1 Week Off, Followed By FINALS?!

Hey guys,

I'm just going to ramble here a little bit about what's on my mind. It's been said that when you just spill everything out, you'll feel better. Here's praying...

I find it rather... not good... to have a full week off for Thanksgiving. Reason being is you come back and finals are staring you in the face. Of course people can say, "Well, just study over your break!" I will tell you that I studied off and on throughout the vacation, for about an hour here, and hour there... that sort of thing. But let's be real, I am in the minority, right? I wonder... how many college kids out there actually sit for more than an hour at a time, several times over their break? Please do feel free to comment and let me know...

So now that my sleep schedule is completely out of whack and I'm sitting in my empty Intro. to Lit. classroom, I find myself extremely tired and not really motivated to do anything but get through the day so that, come tomorrow, I can fully get back into the swing of things. So much so that maybe I'll forget about the vacation.

So... sleep. I'm wondering... has anyone else out there found themself lying in bed completely unable to shut their "thinker" off? I'll tell you, I'm a dreamer. A BIG dreamer.

There was a day back in Inglemoor... I recall listening to my Bruce Springsteen Greatest Hits CD on the bus. It was my new CD I got for Easter. I was listening to a song called "Thunder Road". Immediately, I found myself picturing a house so detailed and so memorable, I went home that day and drew out the floorplan. That, my friends, is my dream house. It still is, darn it all.

But at night, whenever my wife and I hit the sheets, I find myself thinking about that house. The gravel driveway leading to the concrete pad in front of the garage. The steps leading up to the wraparound porch. The front door open, but the screen door closed. Lori making her famous iced tea in the kitchen. Everything. It's so real, I can feel it. Every. Night.

Of course that leads to my other dream. The one where I win $315 million. Okay, so this one's completely unrealistic. But it's fun. What kind of Mercedes do I want? The dream house is then embellished some. Sure, tack on another 5 acres to the backyard. Turn the 2 car garage into a 6 car garage. Build a second, much smaller, house on the side of the driveway for friends and family.

Then, BAM! I'm confronted by reality. Finals. Crap.

Do we have a test in Japanese? Do I even remember any Japanese? My mind struggles to make sentences. It's difficult. My vocabulary. Crap! Where did it go? Intro. to Lit. - did we have anything to read? English Comp. - paper due November 30th. Two CTL sessions this week. Tuesday, 2 P.M., Dr. Leonard. Wednesday, 6 P.M., Thomas Webb. English Comp. - paper due November 30th. Analytical paper for English Lit. due December 5th. Is my topic good enough? Am I confident enough to go through with that topic? Japanese... oral interview. Did Maeda sensei e-mail me back?

*sigh* The dream house. Reality. Eventually I fall asleep, but by this time it's nearly 3 A.M.

More thoughts.

5 hours of sleep. I won't make it. I'll be too tired. Maybe I won't go to school tomorrow. No, don't be silly. You've pulled less sleep in the Navy, you can do it! Yeah, but I don't want to do it.

Eventually I fall asleep.

Spring Break I think I'll be fine, as there will be a good 2 months to go after it to get back into it all. Thankgiving.

The turkey was good. The break, not so much. *sigh*

I gotta go. I still have a good 15 minutes I can use to type some more into the two papers that are due soon.

However, I'm curious as to what you guys have to say about this. Does anyone else out there feel the same way?

God, I miss home.

Take care, you guys.

~ N.

Prayers Answered! :)

Hey All,

As it turned out, the "race for classes" went well!

I'm signed up for: (Monday & Wednesday)

Oral Com. from 10-11:40
English Comp. 2 from 12-1:40*
Criminal Justice 347 from 2-3:40
HOPEFULLY Japanese from 4-5:40

I'm also taking Jazz in American Culture, which is online.

Furthermore, I'm "waitlisted" for Art Appreciation, which is also online.

So depending on the outcome of my Japanese 151 grade, hopefully I'll get into the section I want. If not, I'll be forced to drop the Criminal Justice class and end up going home sooner. Also, I'll probably end up dropping the Art Appreciation and save that for a rainy semester.

I'm glad I'm definitely going to be a full-time student again next semester at UIS and look forward to the challenges that lay ahead.

You may have noticed there's an asterisk next to my English Comp. 2 class. I'm especially glad I'm taking this particular section which is to be taught be Dr. Jackson (I'm currently taking Intro. to Literature, which is being taught by him). This man is a phenomenal professor!

I asked him what section of English Comp. 102 he'd be teaching and he said, "It's the one on Mondays and Wednesdays starting at noon... but I'm tough!" To which I replied, "But you're good!" After much thought, I've found that I'd be willing to risk a lower grade being taught by a strict professor. I figure you'll get more out of the class, which is what I'm here for. To learn... right?

So what do you guys think? Would you be willing to risk a lower grade being taught by a strict professor? Or would you prefer getting a better grade in an easier professor's class?

Take care you guys, and have a wonderful Thanksgiving holiday!

I'm sure I'll write again soon! Until then...

~N.

Hands Down, The MOST Frustrating Aspect of College!

Holy CRAP! It HAS to be signing up for classes.

Why is this? Well, it's a race to get the classes you want to get before others snatch 'em up.

So here I am, 9:45 at night jotting down potential schedules that I'd like to have, and then back-ups to those in case any of those classes are already taken!

It's a huge non-benefit to be a commuting student driving 45 minutes/ 45 miles each way My '01 Nissan Maxima lovingly named "Nessie" guzzles at least 2 gallons of gas... again, each way. *sigh*

Thankfully, my first semester has been wonderful. I've been a full time student attending 4 classes on only Mondays and Wednesdays. Still, I've spent over $300 on gas since my college career began, and we still have over a month to go for this semester.

It's NUTS!

So if you would, please say a prayer and cross your fingers for me that I'll get the classes I want!

And maybe also, that a brand new Toyota Prius would appear on my driveway. That'd be nice, too.

Thanks.

~ N.

Where Were the Midterms?!

October was a huge month for me, to say the least!

Not only was it my 28th birthday, I also got to celebrate my first college midterms!!

I'll be real, those suckers came and went faster than I realized. I found that if you just stay on top of your game throughout the semester, you shouldn't have any problems. Simply put: study.

Also! If you complete all of your homework in a timely and efficient manner, you'll have a lot more free time on your hands.

I remember feeling anxious and nervous about midterms. Like I'd spend every minute in each of my classes filling out a 500 question test. This is totally not the case. I can only assume that finals will be the same. Here's prayin'...

Japanese Students Unite... again!

So it's finally started - Japanese Table.

I missed the first one because it was on a day when I guess a lot of students couldn't make it, myself included.

So I went to the new time chosen - Wednesday at noon (well, actually it was 1:15 for me 'cause I have class)... but it starts at noon.

It was totally not what I expected it to be - a bunch of students studying Japanese at lunch. Quite the contrary, we do anything but study. It's a time for students who are learning the language to bond in an on campus setting. There are a couple of Japanese students studying at UIS, so it's also a chance to meet them and, if desired, ask questions about cultural differences or what have you.

It's a lot of fun. Last Wednesday we played a game of Boggle along with a card game whose name escapes me.

That said, if there are any students out there who are interested in Japan or Japanese but feel 'intimidated' about learning 'such a difficult language' and fear the class - join us on Wednesdays at noon and talk to us about it! We'd be more than happy to meet you and tell you all about it.

Until then...

~ Nick

1 Month Down, 47 To Go...

So it's been a full month since classes started up.

Midterms are right around the corner as classes are pumping through their respective curriculums.

So how do I feel?

It's going very well so far! I'm thankful that my classes get more fun as the day rolls on. I've found that time management is by FAR the biggest factor that comes into play as a college student. Thankfully due to the life experience I have prior to attending college, I've come well equipped to face any circumstance.

The teachers I have are good! One is quirky, one is very intellectual, one is fun and one is strict. I guess I can go on and say that everyone has their faults - especially me! Of course teachers do to, so you just gotta roll with it and adapt to any change that may come your way.

If school's going this well so far, the next 47 months ought to rock!

And the beat goes on...

Japanese Students, UNITE!

Minasan konbanwa!

I have a confession to make: I love Japan.

I love the people and the culture, but most of all, I love the language!

I got into the language thanks to my best friend Josh. Initially I took it in high school so that Josh and I could speak "in code" and talk about people behind their backs where the chances of them knowing what we were saying were slim to nil. So while my intentions weren't the best at first, they took a rapid change the first day of class.

I enjoyed the challenge of writing something other than Roman letters. And what’s more – there are THREE different alphabets. The first two two years of high school were a lot fun thanks in part to this course!

Fast forward to 2007

I was surprised to see that UIS offered Japanese and jumped all over the chance to take it like white on rice and a glass of milk on a paper plate in the middle of a snowstorm! It got better from there. Class size: 7. I KNEW this class was going to rock!

And it did! Maeda Sensei is an extremely fun and effective professor. During the second week of class, he announced he was going to hold a Japanese student dinner for the exchange students from Ashikaga and all students currently taking Japanese.

The legendary, awesome, ALL Supreme Maeda Sensei (L)... and another professor.

It was held at New Buffet City for the low price of 5 dollars. Hey, for a college student, you take what you can get! The back room was packed with host families and their exchange students and those taking the language course and their friends as well. I ate so much, I got sick. But it was worth it!

Chowin' down at New Buffet City with new friends.

Classmates Mat and Emily are on the right - they RULE!

The dinner provided an opportunity to mingle with current friends and make some new ones. It was a LOT of fun and hope there will be more events like these in the near future!

Rob P. rocks... my face off!!

I remember it as if it were yesterday. I logged onto Youtube.com and was just about to search for a video on Counterstrike: Source when it caught my eye: A 'Featured Video' called Pachelbel Rant.

Undoubtedly it had to be about Pachelbel's most famous work, Canon in D. I loved that piece and knew a host of others who did as well, so I was curious as to why someone would want to rant about such a lovely tune!

I haven't laughed that hard in MONTHS. This dude was hilarious! He was a cellist in high school who had the unfortunate experience of playing this piece. You'll have to watch the video to find out why it was called such. By the end of the video, all I had was a name that I could barely read through my tears: Rob Paravonian.

Over the course of the next year, I'd occasionally look up this hilarious comedian to see if he had any new videos posted. Every video I saw, I was crying. This guy RULED! So one day, I thought I'd actually check his website to see what all was new. I Checked his schedule and I saw it:

Sept. 6 - University of Illinois at Springfield

Price: Free (?!?!?!?!)

Oh yeah, the legend was coming to MY campus and it wasn't going to cost me a dime!! Unfortunately it wasn't publicized well, as I surely expected a comedian of this magnitude to pack the Brookens Auditorium on campus.

So there he was at about 9:30 standing up on the stage, dishing out jokes from the ridiculousness of strobe lights on school buses to Justin Timberlake's "manly" voice. Later, he busted out his guitar and played us several hilarious songs about being politically correct during a breakup, the stupidity of lyrics in famous songs and without fail... the Pachelbel Rant.

I laughed incredibly hard over the next hour and a half, but I think others laughed MUCH harder.

Rob playin' a funny tune.

It was a time I'll never forget. My first college experience NOT having to do with classes.

Me with the legend himself!

Thanks for coming out, Rob! Do come back soon - I'll make sure more people will be there! :D

An Ice Breaker...

Alright. For those who don't know me, I like dreams. Like actual, sleeping during the night type dreams. Daydreams are a COMPLETELY different topic which I may or may not bring up later...

So what is it about dreams that I like so much? At freshman orientation, this question was raised: If you could have any super power, what would it be? I said that I'd like to fly. Reason being, I have had one dream in which I flew and it was remarkable to wake up and realize that sensation.

I like dreams because you'll never know what you're going to get. If you read my blogs on my myspace page (search: Nick Hanscom), you'll see a huge variety of dreams I've had so far this year. I think dreams are interesting, and that's enough for me.

And last night, I had my very first dream where I time travelled. Yeah. I went back to the 1970's and it was freakin' awesome!

In the present time I had this mission to retrieve this one particular trophy jumping through all of these hoops; sneaking past guards, getting past alarms, etc. Come to find out that this trophy was hidden by someone a long time ago. So that was my goal, to find this person way back then and ask them THEN what they did with it.

Unfortunately, I didn't get that far in the dream. But here's the cool part:

I went back in time. I was driving a car down a road leading to a parking lot, where I parked (duh.) I was supposed to go to a nearby beach/park to conduct surveillance on someone. So I stepped out of the car and headed toward the the rear of the car. There was a van parked next to me and an older lady was filling up her cooler in the back. I tried to get her attention, "Ma'am?" No response.

"MA'AM??" Still nothing.

I touched her shoulder. She jumped. I apologized.

"Ma'am, can you please tell me where Blahblahblah Beach is?"

"Yeah, actually - I'm heading there myself. I'll walk you there."

And now the dilemma. Do I walk with her and talk, possibly ruining future events? It was fun to actually have to think this. Of course, since I was just shooting the breeze with her, there'd be no harm. So I walked and talked with this older lady to the beach back in the 70's.

And that's pretty much it. I know it wasn't that intense or anything. It's one of those things where you just had to be there.

Anyhow, if any of you out there have some interesting dreams, feel free to share 'em with me! Could be fun.

Have a good one!

~ Nick

The Introduction...

Hey All!

My name's Nick Hanscom. I'm a non-traditional (28 yr. old) commuting freshman at UIS. I wanted to give you guys a little background on where I'm from.

I was born and raised in a couple of cities about 15 miles north of Seattle, Washington. I lived in Edmonds from '79 - June 1991 and Kenmore, WA from June 1991 - April 1999.

I graduated, I'll admit BARELY, from Inglemoor High School in June '98.

I spent some time travelling before joining the U.S. Navy in April 1999. I was in the service from April 1999 - September 20th, 2006.

My first tour of duty was on board the aircraft carrier U.S.S. Constellation (CV-64). On her, I did 3 deployments to the Persian Gulf for Operation Enduring Freedom and Operation Iraqi Freedom. I lived onboard her from August 1999 - September 2003, when she was sadly decommissioned.

Pulling into Sydney, November 1999

R.I.P. Connie: 10/23/61 - 8/06/03

From there I nabbed shore duty orders to Everett Naval Station, about 30 miles north of Seattle. Shore duty means that I didn't go out to sea at all and basically got to live the 8-5 lifestyle for 3 years. I must admit it was nice to be near family again.

Naval Station Everett from Grand Ave. Park

The most important event that transpired over those 3 years, was my marriage to my beautiful bride, Lori, on January 28, 2006.

Nick and Lori Hanscom

Like I said earlier, my active duty contract with the Navy on September 20th, 2006. Lori and I then road-tripped it across the states back to her hometown of Carlinville, Illinois where we currently live.

The Carlinville Gazebo with the Million Dollar Courthouse looming in the distance.

Taken on 9/11 - That's why the flag's at half mast.

It's been a long time coming, but I'm looking very forward to furthering my education here at UIS!