I Participate in Class

These are photos from my Interpersonal Communication class, where I was taught how to communicate interpersonally. Yes, I am holding a yellow plate with a giraffe.

I keep asking that myself...

Who Wants to Study?

I've always been faced with severe cases of not wanting to do anything during finals, which usually means that I want to be outside having fun, NOT studying for my tests. The sun is actually shinning at full force outside and I really don't want to be here (library). I'm going digging in a new pit after lunch, maybe that will help my mind stay focused on the tasks at hand.

To be honest, my mind is here:



and not here.

Pray for concentration. ;)

Math Final

The euphoria of having finished my last class is over and I need to start studying for finals. This is what I am currently studying:



These are two examples of oscillators in Conway's game of life, and I'm desperately trying to train my mind to capture all possible options for these little buggers. If a dot is touching two dots, it stays a live. If there are three dots touching, one comes to life. If there is one or four dots, it dies. This creates all kinds of interesting patterns that move across the grid. If you want to see what I'm studying, look here. I need to get a good grade on this test...so I'll go back to trying to find patterns.

My test is Monday at 8:30 am, if you want to keep me in your prayers. :)

A Time With Friends

We live close to the beach. Bus 6 makes it there in only 15 min. or so and the walk is a bit over 40 minutes. I'm sorry to say, I've never been able to experience a beautiful Klaipeda sunset due to clowdy weather and other unfortunate circumstances. Finally, on the last day of classes, I was able to join a group of friends and enjoy God's creation with them. It was a great step toward saying goodbye...

School is out. Oh yay.

Today is my last day of classes, a whole three weeks or so before Taylor's graduation date. I don't really feel like my semester is over though. I usually celebrate with a hoot and a holler once my last class is done, but I'm sure that I'll celebrate today with a good hour of intense editing.

Yea...I can already tell that I'm getting lazy though. I still have four tests to study for, even though they shouldn't be too bad.

HBH Revisited

As a closing goodbye party to all of the study abroads, we went to HBH, the same restaurant where we had our opening ceremony. A few of the girls cried, because this was the last time that we would be together as a group. It's hard to believe that we've been together for four months now and that in a week or two most of us will be gone. But...it was a lot of fun too:

Oh Lithuania...

As the time for my to say "Iki Pasimatymo" to Lithuania nears, I've started realising that I'm going to miss a few things from here. I'm going to miss my math/skating friends:

On the other hand, I probably won't miss this too much:

Naps...

...they do the body good.*





*In moderation, of course.

Histories Mysteries

If anything, being a history major has taught me that certain things in the past need to remain a mystery. For example: Blue plate on my sleeping bag? I still don't have any idea whose that is.

Photo taken freshman year, 2001.

Roomies

I've been wanting to do this for a while now... Here is an almost complete list of all of the roommates that I've had since 7th grade and the countries that they are from. I'm sure I am missing a few. I've actually changed roommates a lot more than 27 times, but quite a few (such as Ben, Tony, Jonathan, etc.,) are repeats. I tried to list them in order:

1. Alvaro (Bolivia/China)
2. Tony (Bolivia/Taiwan)
3. Chris (USA)
4. Jonathan (Bolivia/ Korea)
5. Joel (USA)
6. Josh R. (USA)
7. Joe (Canada)
8. Simon (Switzerland)
9. Ben (Argentina/ USA)
10. Jeremie (Bolivia/ Switzerland)
11. Michael (Bolivia/ Switzerland)
12. Matthew (USA)
    
13. Obed (Germany/ Switzerland)
14. Mike (USA)
15. Isaac (USA)
16. Josh M. (Canada)
17. Jeff J. (USA)
18. Bob (USA)
19. James (USA)
20. Keith (USA)
21. Jeff M. (Virgin Islands)
22. Ian (China)
23. Sergey (USSR)
24. Gabe (Singapore)
25. Upi (India)
26. Sasha (Moldova)
27. Oleg (Belarus)
    

Bingeing

(binge) (binj) 1. a period of uncontrolled or excessive self-indulgent activity, particularly of eating or drinking (http://www.mercksource.com).

I will no longer be internet bingeing during these last two weeks of school. I am starting to realize that I have something of a brain and that I am only in Lithuania for two more weeks. I must take advantage of my time here, not only studying in the world of academics, but I should continue investing in people.

Besides, the Internet should be around for at least another 5 years, giving me plenty of time to earn my masters degree.

I am thankful for the Internet though, it allows me to find free places to stay when I am in need.

To Grandmother's Village I Went

A huge castle that lies on the opposite side of the river from my abuelas' village. No one lives there...maybe their wating for me to claim my inheritance? ;)

My supervisor's dog liked to sit in the driver's seat while we were gone.

My supervisor, Romas. He's a Lithuanian archaeologist who focuses on medieval urbanization.

Looking out across the river towards grandma's village.

A beautiful panoramic view of my grammy's village.

The village is on the edge of a huge forest.

Lithuanian

In honor of my trip to my grandmother's birth village, which will take place tomorrow, my father and I wrote a letter to the Lithuanian embassy in Argentina:

Muy estimado Señor Vateris Baliukonis,

Le escribo con el propósito de obtener información sobre la adquisición de mi ciudadanía lituana. Mis abuelos (los padres de mi madre) eran inmigrantes de Lituania a los Estados Unidos y tenemos sus documentos, pasaportes, etc. Me gustaría saber cuál sería el procedimiento necesario. Le agradezco su atención.

This letter requesting information on how to obtain my Lithuanian citizenship will hopefully prove to be fruitful. I am going to be in Buenos Aires for a few days in June and might as well take advantage of my time there to see if I can present my grandparent's papers proving the purity (or lack there-of) of my Lithuanian blood.

Numbers

5 days of class left
18 days until flight to Stockholm
48 days until I fly to the States
53 days until I eat Argentine meat
57 days until I eat mom's cooking

The semester is almost over, but after looking at these numbers I realize that I still have a lot of waiting, exploring, and learning to do before I can finally "settle down" for the summer, whatever that means.

Home...¿qué es?

A Nice Visit

Heather Sommer, the study abroad coordinator from Taylor University, visited us in Lithuania this week to check out the program. It was really nice to have her here and express our feelings towards LCC. I was surprised how much time I got to share with her even though she had a busy schedule. I wanted to take her to a small Orthodox church that I found the other day, but by the time that we got there it was locked. We then headed over to a nice tea shop in Old Town. I got to show her where I had been digging with the archaeological team a few weeks before. She's returning to the States tomorrow morning. I'll probably see her in June when I visit Taylor.

Is it Possible?

I've always wanted to donate blood. I've been successful in donating plasma a few times because they aren't too picky about where my body has been. Blood banks can be so picky when choosing their blood. Seriously now, if anything my blood is super strong because of all of the bugs that I've encountered throughout the years, not to mention that I had been unknowingly drinking well-water my senior year in Santa Cruz (a big no-no) and survived to tell the tale.

There was a blood drive at school today and I managed to get my name into a time slot. Luckily for me, it was during class and was going to get to leave half an hour early. :) I was getting all hyped up thinking about how my blood could potentially save a family member's life, or something crazy like that.

When I walked into the room that they were drawing blood, they told me that they weren't taking any more. Aww. I felt really embarrassed having to go back to class. I could have skipped, but I felt a moral responsibility to find out what kind of conflict resolver I am. Turns out I'm mostly a collaborator with comprising coming in a close second. Huh.

¿¡Que Están Haciendo!?

The sun it out today and it feels HOT. Actually, it's only 11 C (52 F for those who might be used to that kind of measurement) but due to the sun it feels extremely warm. Lithuania has a lack of sunny days, but when the sun does come out, it feels and looks wonderful. After a botched meeting with my supervisor I decided to wander around Klaipeda for a bit, hiting all of the parks that I knew of. After wandering through about three parks, I ended up in a Russian Orthodox church and was able to spend a few minutes in meditation. Heather Sommer from Taylor University is visiting Lithuania, so I think we are meeting her tonight for dinner.

I thought it was pretty interesting to note that some people had t-shirts on, while others still had their big winter coats on. Is it cold out? That my friend, is relative.

Who Would Hire a History Major?

What kinds of jobs do history majors get? This question has been going through my mind a lot lately. I'm starting to realise that getting an undergraduate degree in history is actually quite freeing when thinking about my future. I am currently reading John Lukacs' A Student’s Guide to the Study of History on what it really means to be a student of history. On the chapter which discusses the difference between primary and secondary sources (and how the lines seperating these are becoming blurred) he states that

A history major who does not go on to graduate school has lately become prized by intelligent employers, since they know that a history major is not some kind of apprentince archivist, but someone who knows how to read and write relatively well - and whose knowledge of some history gives him at least a modicum of understanding of the variety of human beings. History is, as I wrote earlier, the knowledge that human beings have of other human beings, a kind of knowledge more valuable and, yes, even more practical, than the knowledge human beings have of more primitive organisms and of things (31-2).

I am now convinced that I should buy The Modern Researcher by Jacques Barzun and Henry F. Graff along with The Decline and Fall of the Roman Empire by Edward Gibbon. You could say that those are ideas for future gifts. ;) Let me know so that I don't get three copies of each.

A Time to be Cheesy

This is why I'm a history major and not a major in film production:

Getting Things Done

Sometimes, getting organized and knowing what to work on is half the battle to getting your work done. I have a lot of things that are going to be due soon, but I'm absolutetaly clueless as to where to start. It isn't so much that I am overwhelmed, I just don't know what should be worked on first. I already edited for an hour today, so at least that is out of the way. Here's a list of homework assignments and their due dates which are all due this month:

• "What About Bob?" essay (14th)
• 2nd set of interperpersonal journals (21st)
• Bible essay (21st)
• Interpersonal presentation (23rd)
• Identity essay for Anthropology (??)

I think I'm going to go ahead and start on "What About Bob" since it's due tomorrow. :)

Flesh on Sweden

It's fun being able to plan trips and see the small things come together. I've been pretty flexible with my summer travel plans, in case if something were to happen. Today, I was able to buy two tickets for my travels throughout Sweden. These include train rides from Stockholm to Linköping and then from Linköping to Malmö. The total cost of the tickets were much lower than expected, considering the cost of life within Sweden and the distance traveled (about $18 each). Yay for fast and cheap trains!

Speaking as a Poet

I am currently reading The Gates of the Forest by Elie Wiesel. It's been kind of confusing so far, but what I do understand is that we are inside the mind of a young man (17 years old) who is a Jew in Hungary during WWII. What really stood out to me was the unrealistic way in which this young man speaks.

For example, on page 9 he shares with a stranger about how long he has been waiting for his father's return: "Sometimes I watch the sun rise and set, but it no longer marks the passage of time. If the sun were to stop, it wouldn't surprise me. It has become a stranger to the earth- it warms out of habit or out of boredom. People don't interest it any longer."

If I start speaking like that, either in Spanish or in English, please take me to a doctor. I have enjoyed being able to read more "novel" books than usual though. :)

Edited

In summary, the development of these two powers can be called “urban colonisation” and “rural urbanisation”, two different directions in urbanisation development, which arose in Medieval times in former Semigallia, which was divided between two states.

Thus, I conclude my rough edit of Urban Colonisation and Rural Urbanisation by Romas Jarockis.

Toilet Talk

While in Estonia, a great blog topic came to mind. I've spent most of my life in Argentina, the United States, Bolivia, and now, Lithuania. The culture that I experienced in Bolivia was mostly U.S. American, so I won't talk about my experiences there.

Everywhere were I go I see differences and similarities between the three cultures. Certain sights and sounds trigger my mind and take me homes, while others are just out of this world. Even small things, such as bathroom etiquette, can be quite different.

For example, all bathrooms in Eastern Europe have little brushes to clean up after yourself if you've left a mess. You won't find that in either Argentina or the United States, and aren't necessarily expected to use it at the same extent as you are here.

A major bathroom observation that I've made includes the bathroom door. Argentina: keep door closed at all times and knock before going in. If someone is in there, they yell ''OCUPADO!'' In the States: the door is left open when unoccupied (if even a crack) and closed when in use. A knock is appropriate if you are unsure, in which you will get a ''Almost done!'' In Eastern Europe: the local customs dictate that the door always be closed and that you do not knock, but directly try the door handle. If you do knock (which I have tried on various occasions), no one will ever answer. Therefore, the only way to know if the bathroom is unoccupied is by trying the handle. I'm not sure what would happen if a bahtroom door didn't have a lock...

I'm still not used to it, so whenever someone tries the handle (which from the inside usually sounds like someone is going to break down the door) I yell out, ''OCUPADOOOO!''

:)

Estonia and Latvia- check

I'm going on my last trip organized by LCC. It should be a good way to end the semester. We still have three weeks of classes to complete, along with a weeks worth of finals.

My friend Timur and I were hoping to make it Helsinki, the capital of Finland, to be able to mark another country off of our visited list. It would have worked if we were visiting Tallinn, instead of Riga, last. It might have also helped if I had some extra money to take the 60 Euro ferry over to Helsinki. :)

We should be getting back this Sunday. Pray for us!

:::: Argentina Celebration ::::

Received in a school email today:

Got Questions about Life South of the Equator?

Come and join Study Abroad student Josh Greenman as he shares about the culture and people of Argentina. Josh has lived almost his whole life in Argentina and will answer all your questions about South America.

Wednesday April 2nd 16:00

Neumann Hall Lobby

:) I should probably get started on that soon...

Frontline

Lately, I've been watching a PBS show, Frontline. They have a lot really good documentaries on current events (AIDS, meth, Iraq, etc). I just finished watching one on racism. The teacher separates the classroom according to the student's eye color (brown and blue). She treats each group differently to teach them how racism feels. Depending on how they are treated, their grades raise and fall. She then does the same to a group of adults who work in a jail. It could be interesting to incorporate this into a university class.

Very interesting, watch it.