Please stand by for Emily's witty commentary. We will return to regular programming shortly. Thank you for your patience.

'Twas the Night Before Finals...

...And all through the dorms

Not a creature was sleeping, but that was the norm

The students were nestled all slumped at their desks

While visions of scantrons danced through their heads

Their study guides covered the desks in piles

In hopes their efforts would be worthwhile.

When out in the lounge their arose such a clatter

When a book flew across and hit the wall with a splatter

"Agh, Lacky and Lytle and both the Shumakers

And Cragoe and Schloegel!" cry all the test takers.
"Your tests and exams they make me go crazy,

And I'll probably wake up with my brain all hazy!"

Their shouts and their cries rise up from their rooms

As they study and study for the week of gloom

Christmas break awaits on the other side of this week

But finals create a schism that looks rather bleak.

When at last the time for testing is come,

Hard preparations will prove well for some.

The Residence Halls fall silent in the morning

While nervous butterflies flitter with warning.

"Do your best on this exam" they all will say,
But what everyone really wants is only an "A."

From bed to breakfast with study guides in hand

"Some last minute cramming won't hurt," they demand.

They trudge up the stairs of the floors of Jackson Hall

Where the semester's last judgment will take place for all.

And then with a sigh the pencils will strike

A, B, C, or D - pick the one you most like.

When you are finished, hand it in with a smile,

And to your teachers say goodbye for a while.

Now take a deep breath and exclaim "I'm done!"

Don't answer the question, "Now wasn't that fun?!"

The students now leave skipping with glee,

For finals are over and their families to see.

Within minutes, it seems, they drive out of sight.

Shouting, "Happy Christmas to all, and to all a goodnight!"

The End is Near!!!

Well, it looks like another late night post from the 2nd room of A suite in Thomson Hall!


First off, can we just take a moment to ponder the fact that the month on the Calendar now starts with the letter "D?!" (The sad thing is, I had to stop and go through the months of the year to make sure that last sentence was correct before writing it. True story.)

Seriously, December is here and college students everywhere are celebrating - well, almost. They first cringe at the thought of "finals week" (insert dramatic music here) and shortly after that there are celebratory shouts and dances taking place across America's college campuses (insert happy accomplishment music here).

So, welcome, December!

Only 9 days until I get to be home!!! Well, if I wait another 24 minutes, 8 days...
My handy-dandy paper chain told me so!! Yes, my roommate and I made a paperchain to count down the days until the end of the semester/Christmas break! It's red, green and gold. Perfect, I know.


The moral of the story is ...life is always more fun when you revert back to elementary school and pull out those crazy paper chain-making skills! :)

In other news, I wrote some pretty fun stuff for this month's Anchor (BBC's monthly paper) which I'm kind of excited about. I might post something soon, so keep an eye out for it... :) It's one of my favorite things that I'm involved in here at BBC!

Anywho -- It's late, once again, and I should go to bed. Yay for 9 o'clock classes! Eh, it's not too bad. If I go to bed now I can get 8 hours of zzz's....which is awesome for a college kid! :)

With that said, I bid you farewell and good night....

"...Happy Christmas to all, and to all a good night!" :)


p.s. yay, Christmas music!!!

De Ja Vu? De Ja Vu?

Okay, a short post tonight to tide you over until I can find time to post that ISN'T me procrastinating...
Oh wait, that will never happen.
Okay, a short post tonight because, despite my hour and a half nap this afternoon, I'm still tired. And I have an 8er (8 o'clock class) tomorrow morning...so I am attempting to put my body in a dormant state in order to save up potential energy so that it can be used as kinetic energy in the hours following.
In other words, I want to go to sleep (but I think you caught the idea).

The countdown is on! Hm, anyone else have de ja vu?? Only a few short weeks ago I was counting down the days to coming here to BBC (or Bravo-Bravo-Charlie as my brother likes to put it), and NOW I'm counting down the days to going HOME! There's no place like it! Man I wish I had a pair of those red (sparkly!) heels...

14 days until Thanksgiving break - the days are a-flyin'! I can't wait. I could list the things that I'm looking forward to MOST about being home, but you would soon lose interest and the daunting task of reading the list would most likely overwhelm you and you would probably just say "well, I'll quit while I'm ahead" and stop reading. Don't feel bad - I would do the same thing!

I guess the biggest thing that I'm looking forward to (well, after ya know, the whole FAMILY part) about being home is having some HOME COOKIN'! Real meat, in the form of a flightless bird (preferrably dead and cooked to perfection), artery-clogging gravy (with which to douse said bird), and the only good way to eat yams (that is, with brown sugar and crispy flakes on top) are just a few of the images that 'dance in my head' each night when I am 'snug in my bed' (whoops, wrong holiday). And, not to be forgotten, the all-important climax to every Gehman family gathering..."Mom's homemade Apple Pie!" (can you get more HOME than that? I think not!). THESE are [just] a few of my FAVORITE things!

tttttttttttttttttttttttttttttttttgggggggggggggggggggggggggggbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbhhhhhhhhhhhh
hhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnghsadks
whoops sorry...drifted off there for a couple minutes...

The moral of the story is...Only a few short days (and one LONG day in a car) until I'm home safe and sound taking part in the glorious festivities of that holiday of feasting and giving thanks! And for that I am giving THANKS!

Speaking of which, THANKS for reading...

In my frantic search to find something, ANYTHING to do OTHER than Homework, my computer cursor found its way to my nifty little blog...
Ahhh procrastination
at its finest!

Well, my writing habits have digressed and for this I apologize. My personal journal has also suffered the consequences of an addiction to sleep and the taskmaster of college life! The past couple weeks have been somewhat crazy. At times I'm almost completely convinced that my professors get together each week to figure out how they can make me scramble to put all the pieces of my academic life together in time! This week they certainly gave me a run for my money! Well, let me rephrase that...they already have my money! And to think...all of that money and in the end, all I get is a little piece of paper...I could make my own diploma! Now there's a higher-level thought!
The moral of the story is...never believe it when someone tells you that college is a breeze...I mean we do get some pretty high winds here but I wouldn't call any of them "breezes"...
Um... yeah. I'm pretty much working my fingers to the bone and by the end of the semester my brain will be mush! But, to quote my little friend Khalil, "I am okay with that now!"

Yikes, my mind is a scary place to be at 10:07 pm!

If you are still reading, you get a gold star and a sticker that says, "You're #1!"

Okay, so what's really going on with me, you ask? Well, if you've been paying any attention at all, you know that I have been working hard! Today, I was sitting in church and the thought dawned on me: "The last time I was off-campus was LAST Sunday, to go to church!" And I realized how much of a bookworm I am (and not really the good kind, but more of the academic OCD kind of bookworm)!! Which isn't a bad thing, but there comes a time in a college student's life when they really just need to get off campus!

Okay, in all seriousness (who am I kidding, seriousness isn't really going to make it into this post) - School is going well. There are two classes that I'm absolutely loving, mostly because of the professors (MAN are they SMART!) and partly because of the material. The rest of them, well...come to your own conclusions :)
The good part is - the semester is more than 1/2 way over, and there is a light at the end of the tunnel - or so I'm told! We're all looking forward to Thanksgiving break for sure!
In other news...I tried a new church this morning, which I REALLY liked, and I think I will keep going. I'm excited for that!
God is teaching me SO much here, and the more I learn the more I realize how tiny I am compared to the Great and Mighty God that we serve!!

Well, I have procrastinated long enough -- I really should get to those last few pages of reading...oh, joy! The reading never ends...it is endless...there is no end to this tunnel nor is there a light...page after page after page...the reading...and reading...

Hey, thanks for reading! ;)

Welcome to October!

Woah!!! Did you see that?? I think it was September, but it was going so fast I almost didn't see it. Yikes! Where did it go? The days are a-flyin'! Fall is here, and so are its beautiful colors. The mountains here are amazing, spotted with bursts of orange and red...I will post some pictures soon so you can see what I see everyday! I wish this season was longer! This is my favorite season. Colors, leaves on the ground, cooler weather and, best of all, FOOTBALL! College football in particular...GO BLUE! I do love Michigan football...and living here in PA is slowly making me a Penn State fan -- If they aren't showing the MI game, I can always count to find the Penn State game on 3 or 4 channels!
BBC Defenders Football - Undefeated since 1932!! ;)

In other news...

I competed in my first collegiate athletic event last weekend...Yep! It's true! I'm a student athlete! At this point, you may be wondering what kind of athletic event I would be able to participate in...because, let's face it -- There isn't a picture of me in the dictionary under "student athlete"!! Let's just say, the Women's Tennis team was extremely desperate. Apparently, they were going to have to forfeit last week's match if they didn't have another girl. Well, I couldn't really come up with a good reason to not do it (other than that I didn't have any experience...they didnt' care!) and I felt really bad that they would have to forfeit...and I didn't have the heart to say no...So I told them that I had little to no experience playing tennis - and they still let me on the team! Crazy! As long as they know what they are getting....hah! So I went and played in the match. We had to go to Baltimore, Maryland (I'd never been there, either!), so it was quite a drive. We lost the match overall 8-1, but all things considered, I think I played fairly well. I won 6 out of the 18 games in my singles match...which isn't that great if you're a REAL tennis player...but if you're not (like me), I wouldn't say that's too bad! I told the girl I played that it was the best match I'd played all season! She didn't have a clue that it was the ONLY match I'd played all season! Haha! I had a lot of fun, and I'm staying on the team for the rest of the season. Since last weekend I've only played exhibition (which means it doesn't count for the season record) because #7 in the lineup, and only 6 girls play at the match. But it's still fun and I'm having a great time. :)
http://www.bbcdefenders.com/ <<< I'm on here!

Anywho...
This next week is Bible Conference here on campus...which is kind of our fall break, but not really. We only have classes on Monday and Tuesday and the rest of the week is Bible Conference...Chapels and workshops galore! I'm looking forward to the break.

welp...that's about it for now...I'm about to fall into bed and get some shuteye. Sleep has become sacred!
Goodnight!

iHola mi amigos! Bienvenidos a mi "blog" nuevo.

Okay, that's about all I can do in Spanish for right now. I've been using my Spanish Bible a little bit this week in some of my classes and I'm not doing too bad - although sometime it is fairly hard to keep up with it. Just a little challenge for me to make life interesting (okay, maybe to just make my 9am classes more interesting...)

So - Baptist Bible College! Here I am - you've seen the pictures - I am really here! I went to the first home soccer game this last saturday. It was a good game - unfortunately, we didn't win - but we only lost by one, and it was really close. Very exciting to watch - even though I'm not a huge fan of soccer, it was fun to be there. I think next week I'll paint my face - half blue and half white -- I'll be ready for both the BBC Defenders' soccer game and the Penn State game (the Nittany Lions seem to be the favorite around here..altho I did get to watch the MI last week too!!)! Yay, multitasking! :)

In other news...

I really like all my classes - and by all I mean most - and by most I mean maybe 2. Just kidding - let's go with "most." Today, my favorite class was Theology II. Dr. Cragoe is probably my favorite professor (so far). His wife, Mrs. Cragoe, regularly attends all of his classes and she is a very sweet lady. They don't have any kids of their own, so they "adopt" all of us college kids as their own - how cool! I like them a lot. And Dr. Cragoe is VERY smart (hence the prefix, "Dr.") and interesting to listen to. I have him M-W-F and I enjoy his class very much. Another class I like is History ----- now that you have picked yourself up from the floor from the shock that the last statement caused you to go into....keep reading.

Miss Cagley is our history of Western Civ & Thought professor - and she again is very knowledgable in her subject and presents it as an epic story. I'm never bored in her class (which adds to me liking it) and I especially like how she weaves in the Bible -- when and where this happened in the Bible and in History - how very interesting. I like the class lecture (which is 1/2 the battle) but not a huge fan of the work -- but who is?

Principles of Bible study is another favorite -- Dr. Lytle (another extremely smart man) is very interesting to listen to and I appreciate his dry humor. He cracks me up. His class is a longer one but only T and Th so it is bearable. The material is so interesting to me -- how to study your Bible in depth and so that you can get the most out of it. What an applicable class to take at Bible college (which is probably why it is required)!! :)

So, for the most part, I like my classes. But it wouldn't be college if you didn't have a class you didn't like, would it? true. So there are a couple classes that aren't my favorite, but the good thing is, it's only a semester!

I went to a church called Parker Hill Community Church this past Sunday. It was awesome. It was different than my home church but I liked it a lot. They didn't get too heretical - although ...it's it okay that they didn't have pews but just chairs? not sure...but there wasn't any lightning strikes so I think it's okay...

Anywho - I really liked it and I'm excited to get involved and see how God will use me there - hopefully I can get involved with the youth group there and get some cool experience with the church. I'm looking forward to it!

So - the rumors are true - I'm doing well here at BBC and excited for the rest of the semester (but looking forward to a break to come home too). THANK YOU for all of your prayers - keep 'em coming!! Oh -- and just in case you didn't get my address from before.....

Emily Gehman #269

Baptist Bible College

538 Venard Rd

Clarks Summit, PA 18411

JUST IN CASE you needed that address ...

just sayin'...

THOMSON A SUITE RM 2!

Notice the Michigan paraphernalia :)

And the Love from Michigan wall, which is fairly

empty....!!! ;)

OK, I will crawl out of my little homework hole long enough to update you on my first week at BBC...okay, who am I kidding - I haven't done any homework this weekend!!

It has been a crazy first week of classes - hardly time for a breather! Between getting settled in the dorm, going to meetings left and right and then starting classes - there has been little time for relaxation! So far, I like all - or at least most - of my classes...

Monday : Old Testament History (9am), West. Civ (12n), and Theology II (2p)
Tuesday: Old Testament Prophets (9a), Principles of Bible Study (11:30a)
Wednesday: Proclaiming the Gospel (8a), OT History (9a), West. Civ (12n) and Theo II (2)
Thursday: OT Prophets, Principles of Bible Study
Friday: Proclaiming the Gospel, OT History, West. Civ, and Theo II

Now just imagine a 4+ page syllabus for each of those classes - and you will understand what this week had entitled for me. Talk about information overload! yes. Oh - throw 3 softball (fall ball) practices in there somewhere and complete the picture!

I like my classes, and I'm excited for the Bible that I'm diving into so far. Yay Bible College!

In other news...
Yesterday was the New Student retreat at Dorney Park. Dorney Park is a small amusement park in Allentown, PA that is pretty much a mini (and I mean mini) Cedar Point. It was fun -- didn't have to wait more than 2 mintues for any ride -- first time that has ever happened to me before! Of course, when all you know is Cedar Point - well it just doesn't stand a chance, but that wasn't the point of the trip, I know. It was fun, I'm glad I went (plus it was free...what good college kid passes up a free trip to an amusement park??). However, that did keep me from doing anything productive (i.e. homework) yesterday... Oh well, It was worth it! :-)

So, I guess that's what I should be doing now - Homework. Not too much for this first week but lots of reading. but I can do that! :-)

And...just for your information - not that you should write this down or anything...I'm not saying you should do anything with this information but just IN CASE you need it...

Emily Gehman Box #269
Baptist Bible College
538 Venard Road
Clarks Summit, PA 18411

;-)


Pictures to come...stay tuned!

Arriving at Destination!

Welp, I'm here, safe and sound!!! I'm laying on my nice comfy bed in a nice dark room about to konk out right here on my keyboard. I got up at 6:15 this morning! I can't remember the last time I saw 6:15AM!!!!! The drive out was a little longer than we expected but not unbearable. Slightly, maybe, but we made it.

Man, I'm excited! Actually, I really just want to get into everything - jump in with both feet (which will come soon enough -- Tuesday!). I'm looking forward to it. My - I mean our - room, or at least my half of the room is a disaster, but will be better soon..hopefully. :-)

I am ready for this awesome ride...trusting God and following Him is surely an adventure but one that I am ready to go on! I feel good here. This is where I am supposed to be right now. God is good. :-)

T-27 hours and counting...

In a few short hours I will be cruising through the hills of Pennsylvania...to my little slice of Heaven (I wish!!) in the Pinocchio Mountains! Uh, I mean the Pocono Mountains. Tomorrow is moving day and I'm convinced it will be complete and total chaos on campus. But I suppose it wouldn't be right if it wasn't. I am glad I am on the bottom floor...only one set of stairs to deal with and it is going DOWN! That will make it easier.

Well, I'm excited. It will be good. Hard to leave, but once I get there and 'plugged in' I will be fine. God is good!

I'm ready. Let's go!

Nostalgia at its best

Well, it has come down to my last full week at home. Though, not without excitement, mind you. Thanks to the 5 inches of rain and plenty of lightning and wind, we found ourselves in the dark on Sunday night. Nothin' like a good ole power outtage to make you realize that procrastinating on that big pile of laundry maybe wasn't the best decision. We were out from Sunday night about 8ish til about 3 yesterday (Tuesday) afternoon. It was fun. I said that we should turn Amish and then we wouldn't have this problem!

Needless to say, we are all thankful that it is back on. Now for that laundry...

Ah, it's waited this long, it can wait a few more minutes. Besides, there's more than one way to wear a pair of underwear!

So now I have become consumed with seeing how much of my life will fit into the car. Yes. It's a good thing we own more than just the Volkswagen (Although I do think my little Jetta will be lonely without me...). Packing is hard work. With this being my first year away, I have no idea what I will be needing. I can only rely on advice from everyone else who has been there (and depending on the person, can be somewhat tricky...). So it will be interesting for sure. I may be sending half of what I take back home til Christmas! Or I may be running to Walmart every week for the stuff I forgot...Hard to tell but I think I'll be okay (I am thankful for the Walmart only 3 miles away!)

I leave Michigan on Thursday the 20th and arrive in Pennsylvania on Friday the 21st. Why such a long trip, you ask? Pennsylvania isn't THAT far from Michigan! Well, it really depends on who's driving... plus Ohio road speeds are kind of ridiculous.
Just kidding (well, not about the OH road speeds). We're making a stop in Marblehead, OH to spend the night with Adam and Linda and then Linda is coming with us the rest of the way (how's that for a sister-in-law from OH! Score!) which I am pretty excited about. Plus it shortens the trip about 3 hours, so instead of 9 hrs out in one day it will be 3 hrs to OH and 6 hrs to PA. Sounds good to me!

So like I said, this is my last full week in this great state of Michigan (oh trust me, I will be bringing plenty of MI paraphernalia, so it will feel like Michigan for sure). And perhaps I am over-dramatizing this, but you have to understand - this is kind of like the end of the world for me because I can't really see past the next week and a half or so. So over-dramatizing? Maybe. Feeling too nostalgic? Maybe not.

Okay, seriously. My room is starting to smell from the pile of laundry. So that is my next task. Wish me luck!!

T-21 Days! Not that anyone's counting...

Hello there!!! Thanks for tuning in...

It is now August! In just a few short weeks I will be traveling across the country to the grand old state of Pennsylvaney to begin a new adventure... College! Excitement is coursing through my veins....well, maybe some of that is caffeine, too.

This past year I attended Oakland Community College here in Auburn Hills, Michigan for my freshman classes. I have saved a lot of money and have enjoyed the extra year here at home. But now it is time to cut my strings, fly the coup, spread my wings, take the plu--oh wait... let's not get carried away, here.

Baptist Bible College is located in Clarks Summit, Pennsylvania - about a half hour out of Scranton (yes, Scranton, where they shoot "The Office"). BBC is about 1/4 of the size of your local highschool - no, I'm not kidding. Including undergrad, gradschool & seminary, there are a little over 1,000 students. My graduating class will have about two to three hundred people in it, if I'm lucky. But that is one of the things I love about it!

You might be wondering how one can afford Bible College. Well -- I'm still wondering that too! Let's just say it's...slightly more expensive than community college...!!! But by the Grace of God and his unending provision and faithfulness, I have watched my school bill shrink and shrink over the past few months -- and I have no idea how. The God we serve is one amazing guy.

I will be studying Biblical Counseling and because of the rigorous Bible classes at BBC, I will have the equivalent of a double major -- A major in Bible and major in Biblical Counseling. And you know what that means -- lots and lots and LOTS of reading. BBC will make an early riser and a speed reader out of me yet! ...

I'm so excited to see what God has in store for me. It will surely be a never ending learning and stretching experience - and I can't wait to get started. God is good. This blog is to keep you - my faithful reader[s] (hi, mom!) - updated on what God is teaching me throughout this ride. Thanks for reading!

So -- Only 3 weeks before I leave for this great adventure. I'm nervous, excited, scared, thrilled, anxious....and the list goes on. But there's one thing I know for sure: I'm ready. Let's go!