The Weather Outside....

...is frightful. See for yourself!

The snow began falling Friday night, and look how crazy it got! It was incredible seeing all of the pure joy on campus that resulted from the snow. Snow in Redding is extremely rare. Because I come from Placerville, I wasn't impressed until it began snowing at this level, but as soon as snow began falling, it seemed that everyone on campus was outside enjoying the frozen H2O.

We all had major snowball fights, built snowmen, and had a really good time. The snow helped that day to be one of the most memorable that I had at Simpson. After playing in the snow, a group of us went into one of the dorms and ate fresh brownies while watching National Lampoon's Christmas Vacation, one of my favorite Christmas movies of all time! Afterwards, the guys (Aaron, Steven, and I) proceeded to Aaron's room, where we watched Mewtwo Strikes Back and Man of Steel.

It was fantastic being able to be distracted by the horror that is fast approaching:

FINALS WEEK!!!

But seriously, Finals Week is going to be one of the most important weeks of my life. This week determines my course of action for the next four years. For example, my absences in New Testament Class (all of which were due to my being sick) meant that I missed four quizzes this semester. He is letting me retake them this coming week, but I have to get A's and B's on all four quizzes and my final in order to pass the class. THE PRESSURE!!!!!

I would write more, but it is time to sleep so that I can study tomorrow. Wish me luck!

~Blarg

PS: Aaron and I ate tons of cake last night at Rachael's birthday party! Here's a pic:

Much Ado about Men (and Muppets)

This following post will have several portions. Be warned.

Firstly, there has been tons of fallout from Man or a Muppet. Aaron and I got third place overall, and were second in the fan-voting on Facebook. Although we did not receive any awards for these achievements, I must say that I am thrilled to have been able to perform for the good people of Simpson University. It is hard for me to go around campus without hearing somebody sing, "Am I a maaaaaaaaaaaaaannnnnnnnnnn, or am I a Muppet?!?" or have somebody ask, "So, have you figured out if you're a Muppet or a man yet?"

Here are some photos of the event:

I am so blessed to have been able to give so many people joy through performance! It almost makes up for the lack of Theatre that has been in my life lately.

Almost.

Outside of all this fallout, there has been a lot happening.

I am still recovering from my Pericarditis. It has been rough going school-wise as a result. My condition has left me absolutely exhausted with a weakened immune system, making it so that I have been attacked by even more (lesser) diseases and leaving me exhausted. The end of this semester is coming up, and I am afraid that I might not pass all of my classes. As a result, I have been working on overdrive, trying desperately to make up all of the schoolwork I have missed. Most of my professors have been gracious, thankfully, and are allowing me to turn in late work without any penalty. But I still have a long way to go. Any prayer in this regard would be very much appreciated.

Besides that, I have been working towards preparing myself so that I can hopefully become an R.A. in my dorm next year. I have been watching how the other RA's operate, and I feel confident that by the end of the school year I will be ready to attempt to earn the position.

My classes have all been registered for next term. I am taking mostly general education classes still, but I will be taking Chorale once more, as well as Acting 1! I can't wait to learn how to better myself as a Theatre artist!

Speaking of which, I went down this weekend to see my high school's production of Shakespeare's Much Ado about Nothing. Here's a look at the cast:

It was so great seeing everybody again. I have missed my Theatre family so much, and it was awesome experiencing all of their hugs once again. I cannot wait until their Winter Play! I know that they shall blow me away once again, just as they always do!

Well, until next time, I bid you all adieu!

~Blarg

All Hallows Day

Today is the day after Halloween! Here are some brief pics of my experience.

Guess Who I was!

~Brandon Smart

Man or a Muppet

This weekend, Aaron and I participated in Airband, a school-wide lipsync competition. Here is our masterpiece (I was the man. The vid washes out our faces, but you get the idea. We are lipsyncing)

Princess and Blarg

Coming soon...

Pictures Worth a Thousand Words

Hello friends and family.

It is often said that a picture is worth a thousand words. So here are some pictures chronicling my journey so far:

When I arrived, I found that my floor was decorated to celebrate that which I despised: Duck Dynasty

My first weekend here brought about the FYE (first year experience) games, I series of games where we had to dress up ridiculously. I became The Purple Gentleman, and was able to walk along side Aaron "Princess" Wanek as Team Purple's mascots.

Aaron also has a blog: http://aaronscaliforniaadventures.blogspot.com/ 

I soon met tons of new friends. 

Left to right: Myself, Tenisha, Aaron, and Ashley

Justin the Anarchocapitalist (debates with him are fun)

Ellen Gator

Nolan and Sarah

Kirsten (playing my Pokemon X version. She loves Eevees)

There are other friends of mine which I do not have good photos of, such as Moriah, Rachael, Jen and my roommate, Jordan, but as you can see, I'm doing great!

Well, I say great.....

Earlier this month, I felt a sharp, continuous pain in my chest which caused me to rush all over, from the emergency room all the way back to Placerville on a quest for answers.

Eventually, Doctor Zhu in good ol' PVille found the problem:

Pericarditis is the imflamation of the muscle surrounding the heart. I am still not 100% better, but the pain has mostly subsided. I am certain to survive.

The area around here is truly beautiful. I am so incredibly blessed to be able to live in such a beautiful area! #NoFilter

I am always well fed.

Ashland is just a few short hours away! I've gone up there twice already this school year. I saw Cymbaline a little over a month ago, and last weekend I saw The Taming of the Shrew again. It's fantastic!

All in all, it has been an incredible experience up here in Redding. I am ready to live life to the fullest and experience all of the great things God has planned for me!

Until next time,

~Brandon Blarg Smart

Red Hawk Revolution

Greetings, friends!

I am Brandon Smart, also known as Blarg. I have decided that the best way to inform all of the people back home on all of my life events is to create a blog. So, here goes nothing!!!

I recently started my Freshman year at Simpson University. It's been pretty awesome, to say the least. My life has been honestly awesome since I came out here. Already I have made such fantastic friends, and all of my classes are pretty fun (for the most part.)

I'm keeping this post short, as I am going to Ashland, Oregon tomorrow to watch Cymbaline. I will make another post as soon as my computer is back from IT. Until then, I bid you goodnight!

~Brandon "Blarg" Smart